Bank towers are shown from Bay Street in Toronto's financial district, on Wednesday, June 16, 2010.Adrien Vecza
Here are the top reads from the week. Have a great weekend,
ROB Magazine weekend reading: Rude, crude and filthy rich, bad-boy traders once ruled Bay Street. Now they're being replaced by computers that think – and soon we won't need them at all ROB Magazine (John Daly and Christina Pellegrini, for subscribers)
China: The Liberal government is facing calls to reconsider its decision to let Beijing-based Anbang Insurance Group buy a stake in British Columbia's health-care sector after the Chinese government announced it had assumed direct control of the massive conglomerate. Story (Steven Chase and Robert Fife)
OMERS results: Efforts made by the pension plan for Ontario municipal employees to reshape its investment portfolio seem to be paying off as the fund produced a 11.5-per-cent return in 2017. Story (Jacqueline Nelson)
RBC earnings: Royal Bank of Canada absorbed a $178-million writedown from U.S. tax changes and barely broke stride, galloping to faster growth in most of its key businesses. Canada's largest bank by market capitalization earned $3-billion in profit for the three months that ended Jan. 31, also shrugging off concerns about a cooling housing market and North American trade uncertainty. Story (James Bradshaw)
RBC capital markets earnings: Tax reform south of the border helped boost profits at Royal Bank of Canada's capital-markets division, which reported a 13-per-cent jump in first-quarter profit. Story (Alexandra Posadzki, for subscribers)
Street moves: After nearly two decades at CIBC World Markets, which included stints in multiple senior roles, a senior executive is departing to take on a different type of endeavour. Story (Tim Kiladze, for subscribers)
CIBC earnings: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce raised its dividend and easily surpassed analysts' expectations despite a dip in profit, bolstering an already bullish outlook for first-quarter results from Canada's big banks. Story (James Bradshaw)
Traders: CIBC's capital markets arm got a boost from its equity trading business, even as the division's overall profits dipped compared to an exceptionally strong first quarter of 2017. Story (Alexandra Posadzki, for subscribers)
Opinion: How Canada's capital markets hinder the cannabis industry Story
Pension returns: Asian stock market investments helped the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec post a return of 9.3 per cent last year as Canada's second-largest pension fund manager warns of a looming market correction. Story (Nicolas Van Praet)
Bids: Apotex Inc. is weighing a reconfiguration of its global footprint, a process that could result in the sale of its European division. Story (Paul Waldie and Tim Kiladze, for subscribers)
Street moves: Hydro One Ltd., Ontario's newly privatized power utility, is showing its commitment to future expansion by hiring a veteran investment banker as its chief corporate development officer. Story (Tim Kiladze, for subscribers)
Robo advisors: Investment giant Power Financial Corp. is pouring more money into Canada's burgeoning financial technology space with an additional $65-million investment in online portfolio manager Wealthsimple. Story (Clare O'Hara)
Court: The Ontario Court of Appeal has dismissed a challenge brought by Catalyst Capital Group Inc. against rival fund manager West Face Capital Inc. from the bench, without hearing from West Face's lawyers. Story (Alexandra Posadzki)
HSBC Canadian earnings: Fourth-quarter profit at HSBC Bank Canada dipped 20 per cent lower than a year ago and its global parent reported mixed results as it says farewell to departing chief executive Stuart Gulliver. Story (James Bradshaw)
Post takeover blues: Alex Pourbaix didn't get the kind of honeymoon the market often affords new CEOs brought in to turn around a company that's stumbled. But Cenovus Energy Inc.'s chief executive officer, who took the helm in November, is doing what he was hired to do – work to bring credibility back to the oil sands producer as it deals with the fallout from a massive acquisition that many investors still sneer about. Opinion (Jeff Jones, for subscribers)
From Globe Investor: Six stocks with takeover potential Story
Bank stocks: Staying loyal to one Canadian bank stock has its advantages. So does owning them all. But if you want to get the most out of an investment in this sector, try buying a fresh bank stock each year. Story (David Berman, for subscribers)
FRIDAY'S DEALS WRAP
Insurance sector: Standard Life Aberdeen (SLA) has agreed to sell the bulk of its insurance business to Phoenix Group for 3.24 billion pounds (US$4.5-billion), allowing it to focus on savings and investment products. Story
Food sector: Cheerios cereal maker General Mills Inc will buy Blue Buffalo Pet Products Inc for nearly $8 billion, foraying into a fast-growing pet food market to counter declining sales of processed foods. Story
IPOs: Data-sharing business Dropbox Inc. on Friday filed for an initial public offering of up to US$500-million with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Story (for subscribers)
FRIDAY FINANCIAL SERVICES WRAP
Cryptocurrencies: Toronto-Dominion Bank is halting the use of its credit cards to buy cryptocurrency as it conducts a review of the "evolving market." Story
China: The Chinese government on Friday seized control of Anbang Insurance Group Co Ltd and said its chairman had been prosecuted, a dramatic move that highlights Beijing's willingness to curtail big-spending conglomerates as it cracks down on financial risk. Story
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