By Rita Trichur, Ben Dummett and Gillian Tan 

Two of Canada's biggest banks looked at Boston Private Bank & Trust Co. as a potential acquisition target, according to people familiar with the matter, underscoring Canadian lenders' growing interest in expanding their U.S. wealth-management businesses.

Royal Bank of Canada was in active talks to acquire Boston Private before reaching a deal to buy another U.S.-based lender last month, two people said. One of them said RBC ultimately decided that Boston Private wasn't a good fit because it wanted a wealth-management platform, not a private banking platform. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce also had Boston Private on a list of potential acquisition targets, a third person said.

It is unclear whether Boston Private is running an active auction process. RBC and Boston Private declined to comment.

"We don't comment on rumors or speculation," said CIBC spokesman Kevin Dove.

RBC had initially valued Boston Private, which specializes in wealth management and private banking, at about $2 billion, according to one of the people, who also said RBC later concluded that valuation was too high. RBC was also in serious discussions, but later passed on, buying First Republic Corp. in San Francisco, according to people familiar with the matter.

Instead, RBC agreed in January to acquire Los Angeles-based City National Corp. , in a deal worth $5.4 billion. That deal will add an attractive roster of high-net-worth clients in the entertainment business.

Canadian banks are eyeing expansion in the lucrative U.S. wealth management market, as growth prospects for their domestic retail business slow in an already-saturated market north of the border.

Investment bankers pitched both RBC and CIBC on the idea of buying Boston Private, one of the people said. It is not clear, however, whether CIBC held talks with Boston Private on doing a potential deal.

CIBC's new chief executive, Victor Dodig, has said repeatedly in recent months that the bank is scouring the U.S. market for private banking and wealth-management acquisitions valued up to 2 billion Canadian dollars ($1.59 billion).

Last year, CIBC lost out against the London Stock Exchange Group PLC to buy Russell Investments , a stock-index and asset-management business, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Boston Private, a subsidiary of Boston Private Financial Holdings Inc., serves clients in Boston, San Francisco, San Jose and Los Angeles. Its assets under management totaled $4.7 billion at the end of June 2014, according to the latest financial information posted on its website.

Last July, Boston Private announced a deal to acquire Florida-based investment advisory firm Banyan Partners LLC--a transaction that was expected to increase its total AUM to $9 billion.

Julie Steinberg contributed to this article.

Write to Rita Trichur at rita.trichur@wsj.com, Ben Dummett at ben.dummett@wsj.com and Gillian Tan at gillian.tan@wsj.com

Access Investor Kit for Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce

Visit http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=CA1360691010

Access Investor Kit for Royal Bank of Canada

Visit http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=CA7800871021

Access Investor Kit for London Stock Exchange Group Plc

Visit http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=GB00B0SWJX34

Access Investor Kit for Boston Private Financial Holdings, Inc.

Visit http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=US1011191053

Access Investor Kit for City National Corp.

Visit http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=US1785661059

Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires

Boston Private Financial (NASDAQ:BPFH)
Historical Stock Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024 Click Here for more Boston Private Financial Charts.
Boston Private Financial (NASDAQ:BPFH)
Historical Stock Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024 Click Here for more Boston Private Financial Charts.