Ministerial signoff puts EQB’s PC Financial takeover on track for closing in summer 2026
Final approval from the federal minister of finance and national revenue cleared the way for EQB Inc. to complete its acquisition of President’s Choice Financial from Loblaw Companies. The challenger bank said the deal would inject fresh competition into a market long dominated by the Big Five.
The deal, first announced in December 2025, is expected to close in summer 2026, subject to remaining closing conditions.
The ministerial signoff followed a recommendation from the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions and Competition Bureau clearance in March 2026, concluding a months-long federal review of the transaction.
The Competition Bureau already framed the deal as one that could help ease affordability pressures by strengthening alternatives to Canada’s largest incumbents.
"We applaud the swift actions of the Federal government to enable us to move with pace to drive improvement in banking competition, affordability and innovation for Canadians," Chadwick Westlake, EQB president and CEO, said.
"This approval signals the government's clear commitment to strengthening Canada's economy and fostering competition and innovation here at home."
EQB said completion of the acquisition would expand its customer base to about 3.3 million Canadians and add roughly $5.8 billion in assets and $800 million in direct retail deposits.
The transaction, valued at around $800 million and partly paid in EQB stock, would also give Loblaw roughly a mid‑teens equity stake and cement a long-term commercial agreement making EQB the exclusive financial partner of the PC Optimum loyalty program.
"This acquisition unlocks significant benefits for millions of PC Financial customers and PC Optimum members, including a wider variety of products, services, and even more ways to earn rewards, while gaining access to EQ Bank's leading digital platform for everyday banking," Loblaw chief financial officer Richard Dufresne said.
Challenger bank leans into loyalty economics
EQB positioned the move as building "Canada's first ever Challenger‑driven, loyalty‑linked banking ecosystem."
PC Financial itself helped pioneer grocery‑aisle banking in the late 1990s, while competitors such as Simplii Financial and Neo Financial have also blended digital banking with rewards‑based customer acquisition.
Under the new structure, EQB would fold PC Financial – including its Mastercard portfolio – into the EQ Bank platform, with both sides emphasizing continuity for customers on day one and promising more integrated spending, saving, lending and rewards options over time.
What it could mean for brokers and borrowers
For mortgage professionals, the deal extends an ongoing story: EQB’s push beyond its roots in alternative and commercial lending into mainstream personal banking at scale.
EQB’s has been aiming to use Loblaw’s national footprint and PC Optimum’s tens of millions of members to deepen cross‑selling into credit, savings and home‑lending products.
EQB brings more than $140 billion in combined assets under management and administration and ranks as Canada’s seventh‑largest bank by assets, with a concentration in alternative and uninsured mortgages and a growing broker‑facing franchise.
It reported lower first-quarter earnings compared with a year earlier. For the three months ended January 31, 2026, net income totaled $79.5 million, down from $107.7 million in the same period last year.
PC Financial, launched in 1998 inside Loblaw supermarkets as a no‑fee alternative for day‑to‑day banking and cards, evolved into a digital platform offering credit cards and the PC Money Account, rewarding everyday spending with PC Optimum points.
Make sure to get all the latest news to your inbox on Canada’s mortgage and housing markets by signing up for our free daily newsletter here.
