A Scotiabank location in Toronto.Deborah Baic/The Globe and Mail
Bank of Nova Scotia is acquiring U.S.-based energy boutique Howard Weil Inc. to beef up its oil and gas business south of the border.
Operating out of New Orleans and Houston, Howard Weil will add to Scotiabank's growing global presence in the energy arena. The bank already has a strong energy investment banking business through its Scotia Waterous division, and the new deal will add research on 115 energy firms, as well as sales and trading capabilities.
"The acquisition of Howard Weil is strategically important for Scotiabank, providing not only an expansion of our product footprint in the energy sector, but also dedicated energy sales, trading and research capabilities in the U.S.," Mike Durland, Scotia's head of global capital markets said in a statement.
The acquisition also adds more personnel to Scotia's energy business beyond Canada's borders. Scotia Waterous already has offices in Houston, London, Singapore and Hong Kong, and through these locations the firm has been able to source two-thirds of its energy deals from outside of Canada.
Scotia has also advised its way into a growing number of big name acquisitions. In 2011, the Canadian bank worked on BHP Billiton's $15.1-billion (U.S.) purchase of Petrohawk Energy Corp.
Terms of the Howard Weil deal were not disclosed.
Tim Kiladze