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Toronto-Dominion Considers U.S. Purchases, Clark Says: Bloomberg.com
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aReM42caUs_w
Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Toronto-Dominion Bank, Canada's second-largest lender by assets, would consider acquisitions in the U.S. that don't involve ``significant'' asset risk, Chief Executive Officer Edmund Clark said.
``If we could find a bank that's in our space that we could buy for less than what it would cost to build new branches there, and doesn't involve significant asset risk, then we're interested,'' Clark, 61, said today in an interview in New York.
Toronto-Dominion has spent more than $15 billion over the past four years to expand in the U.S., including the acquisitions of Portland, Maine-based TD Banknorth and Cherry Hill, New Jersey-based Commerce Bancorp Inc.
``If things come up, then we'll buy, if they don't, then we're content to sit out the market,'' he said.
Clark said Toronto-Dominion doesn't need acquisitions to grow, and can increase its network of about 1,100 U.S. branches by opening new outlets on the east coast, including Florida.
``I look at Florida and say `no one wiped out the deposit base in Florida, what they wiped out was the asset base,''' Clark said. ``If you can get in there and build new branches and gather up deposits, that's a tremendous place to be.''
Toronto-Dominion is in a position to buy because it's the only large Canadian bank that has avoided debt writedowns in the financial crisis. The bank unloaded a structured products business in 2005, which included collateralized debt obligations and interest-rate derivatives.
Writedowns
Canada's five other main banks by assets have written down C$11.6 billon since the third quarter of 2007. Banks worldwide have recorded $704.6 billion in writedowns and credit losses since last year, according to Bloomberg data.
Clark said the financial crisis has ``terrified'' U.S. consumers, and he said he expects a sharp economic downturn.
``We've terrified the consumer, we've caused the equity in their house to disappear, and we've now added on investment losses to that,'' Clark said. ``You've got to think the U.S. consumer's going to go on strike until they feel better.''
Toronto-Dominion fell C$2.91, or 5.2 percent, to C$52.95 at 4:16 p.m. in trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The stock has fallen 24 percent this year, compared with a 22 percent decline on the nine-member S&P/TSX Banks Index.
To contact the reporter on this story: Sean B. Pasternak in Toronto at spasternak@bloomberg.net.
Last Updated: November 12, 2008 18:09 EST
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aReM42caUs_w
Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Toronto-Dominion Bank, Canada's second-largest lender by assets, would consider acquisitions in the U.S. that don't involve ``significant'' asset risk, Chief Executive Officer Edmund Clark said.
``If we could find a bank that's in our space that we could buy for less than what it would cost to build new branches there, and doesn't involve significant asset risk, then we're interested,'' Clark, 61, said today in an interview in New York.
Toronto-Dominion has spent more than $15 billion over the past four years to expand in the U.S., including the acquisitions of Portland, Maine-based TD Banknorth and Cherry Hill, New Jersey-based Commerce Bancorp Inc.
``If things come up, then we'll buy, if they don't, then we're content to sit out the market,'' he said.
Clark said Toronto-Dominion doesn't need acquisitions to grow, and can increase its network of about 1,100 U.S. branches by opening new outlets on the east coast, including Florida.
``I look at Florida and say `no one wiped out the deposit base in Florida, what they wiped out was the asset base,''' Clark said. ``If you can get in there and build new branches and gather up deposits, that's a tremendous place to be.''
Toronto-Dominion is in a position to buy because it's the only large Canadian bank that has avoided debt writedowns in the financial crisis. The bank unloaded a structured products business in 2005, which included collateralized debt obligations and interest-rate derivatives.
Writedowns
Canada's five other main banks by assets have written down C$11.6 billon since the third quarter of 2007. Banks worldwide have recorded $704.6 billion in writedowns and credit losses since last year, according to Bloomberg data.
Clark said the financial crisis has ``terrified'' U.S. consumers, and he said he expects a sharp economic downturn.
``We've terrified the consumer, we've caused the equity in their house to disappear, and we've now added on investment losses to that,'' Clark said. ``You've got to think the U.S. consumer's going to go on strike until they feel better.''
Toronto-Dominion fell C$2.91, or 5.2 percent, to C$52.95 at 4:16 p.m. in trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The stock has fallen 24 percent this year, compared with a 22 percent decline on the nine-member S&P/TSX Banks Index.
To contact the reporter on this story: Sean B. Pasternak in Toronto at spasternak@bloomberg.net.
Last Updated: November 12, 2008 18:09 EST
