Canada Approves EQB Takeover of Loblaw’s Mass-Market Banking Arm

Canadian challenger bank EQB Inc. won government approval for its deal to acquire the mass-market banking arm of Loblaw Cos. and said the transaction is set to close this summer.

The signoff from Canada’s finance minister, which follows a recommendation from the bank regulator, is the last step in the regulatory review process, EQB said in a statement Tuesday. The deal to buy PC Financial from the country’s largest grocer, which the firms announced in December, was previously cleared by the competition watchdog.