TORONTO – The CEO of Toronto-Dominion Bank, the Canadian-based parent of TD Bank, says the bank is looking to expand further in the United States through small acquisitions, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Ed Clark told attendees at the RBC Capital Markets Canadian Bank CEO Conference last week that the bank will “do opportunistic smaller deals that we can make money on and fill in where we want to fill in.”
Clark said, however, the bank would not agree to any major deals without first seeing how the uncertain regulatory environment shakes out.
TD Bank recently opened its first branches in Rhode Island, and executives have said the bank expects more to be built in the coming years.
The Wall Street Journal said there has been speculation that several U.S. regional banks, including SunTrust Banks, could be eyed by Canadian banks such as Toronto-Dominion, which have been left relatively unscathed by the financial crisis in recent years.
Clark said it appears that some U.S. banks might be more willing to sell because of the slow economic recovery and stiffer regulations. And, he added, there are few buyer around.
