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# National Bank of Canada and Canadian Western Bank Complete Legal Amalgamation
- URL: https://www.theglobalbanker.com/national-bank-canada-canadian-western-bank-amalgamation-march-2025/
- Published: 2025-03-01T15:02:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-02T13:48:16.000Z
- Description: National Bank of Canada and Canadian Western Bank completed their legal amalgamation on 1 March 2025, forming a single pan-Canadian entity weeks after the acquisition closed in February.
- Author: TGB Editorial Team
- Tags: M&A, Americas, #archive

National Bank of Canada and Canadian Western Bank became a single legal entity on 1 March 2025, with the formal amalgamation taking effect just weeks after the acquisition close on 3 February 2025\. The combined institution assumes all rights and obligations of both predecessor banks, creating a larger bank that National Bank said would deliver a stronger banking choice for all Canadians and Canadian businesses. The amalgamation combines the two banks legally under a single charter, while integration of CWB's clients and employees continues in the following months.

The amalgamation completes a process that National Bank launched when it announced its intention to acquire CWB, a Western Canada-focused lender offering commercial banking, equipment financing, and personal banking. 

#### ALL CWB OBLIGATIONS ASSUMED BY COMBINED ENTITY

A direct consequence of the legal amalgamation is that the newly combined entity assumes all outstanding obligations of Canadian Western Bank, including its NVCC Subordinated Debentures. NVCC, or Non-Viability Contingent Capital, instruments are required under Canadian bank capital rules for regulatory capital instruments, other than common shares, issued by deposit-taking institutions and must include contractual provisions allowing the regulator to convert or write off the instruments if the issuer approaches non-viability. 

The federal Minister of Finance had approved the acquisition in December 2024\. CWB's other capital instruments were dealt with before the amalgamation: on 20 February 2025 its NVCC preferred shares were exchanged for substantially equivalent National Bank preferred shares and its Limited Recourse Capital Notes were redeemed.

#### COMBINED INSTITUTION

The combined institution will operate under the National Bank of Canada brand and will be regulated by OSFI as a domestic systemically important bank. The amalgamation took effect on 1 March 2025, as National Bank had announced when it closed the acquisition on 3 February.