The Bank of Montreal (BMO) announced Friday its purchase of Marshall & Ilsley for $4.1 billion in stock, doubling its stake in the US banking market.
Each M&I share is to be exchanged for 0.1257 BMO shares, valuing the purchase of the Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based bank at $7.75 per share, or 33.8 percent higher than at the close of markets on Thursday.
The deal, which is to be completed by June 30, 2011 bolsters BMO's holdings in the US Midwest after in 1984 buying Harris bank of Illinois. It doubles its number of US branches and deposits to 695 and $92 billion, respectively.
BMO said it will issue 800 million Canadian dollars ($791 million) in shares to finance the purchase.