The Laurentian Bank of Canada (LBC; ) is a Schedule 1 bank that operates primarily in the province of Quebec, with commercial and business banking offices located in Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, and Nova Scotia. LBC's Institution Number (or routing number) is 039.
The institution was established as the Montreal City and District Savings Bank in 1846. The bank's shares were publicly listed on the Montreal Stock Exchange in 1965 and the Toronto Stock Exchange in 1983. In 1987, the institution was renamed the Laurentian Bank of Canada.
It is the only bank in North America to have had a labour union, some 1,100 positions becoming unionized in 1967, with the rest of non-managerial positions joining decades later. In 2017, there was a failed attempt by the bank to decertify the Canadian Office and Professional Employees Union, but a majority of workers voted for union decertification in March 2021, leading the Canada Industrial Relations Board to revoke the union's certification in April 2021.
On December 2, 2025, the bank announced it had agreed to be sold for C$1.9 billion to Fairstone Bank of Canada, which will retain its commercial banking business, with personal and small business banking operations to be acquired separately by National Bank of Canada, pending shareholder and regulatory approvals. Under the proposed split, all Laurentian retail branches would be closed, with branch employees only promised the ability to apply for any open roles at National Bank branches.
History
thumb|The [[mayor of Montreal addresses a crowd during a run at the Montreal City and District Savings Bank, 1872]]
LBC's history began in 1846 with the founding of the Banque d'Épargne de la Cité et du District de Montréal, or Montreal City and District Savings Bank, by Bishop Ignace Bourget and a group of 15 prominent individuals from Montreal, Quebec. The bank's 60 honorary directors included Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine, Louis-Joseph Papineau, and Sir George-Étienne Cartier.
In 1965, the bank listed its shares on the Montreal Stock Exchange.
In 1974, the bank installed an ATM system called "Bancaide". Primitive by the standards of the following decade, the nonetheless revolutionary machine dispensed cash 24 hours a day.
thumb|A Laurentian Bank branch in Longueuil
Mergers and acquisitions
The bank merged with Eaton Trust Company (in 1988), purchased Standard Trust's assets (1991), acquired La Financière Coopérants Prêts-Épargne Inc., and Guardian Trust Company in Ontario (1992), acquired General Trust Corporation in Ontario, and purchased some Société Nationale de Fiducie assets and the brokerage firm BLC Rousseau (1993).
In 1993, the Desjardins-Laurentian Financial Corporation became the new majority shareholder of Laurentian Bank of Canada, following the merging of the Laurentian Group Corporation with the Desjardins Group. The bank purchased the Manulife Bank of Canada's banking service network and the assets of Prenor Trust Company of Canada in 1994.
In 1995, the bank acquired 30 branches of the North American Trust Company.
In 1996, one of its subsidiaries acquired the parent corporation of Trust Prêt et Revenu du Canada. A few months later, the withdrawal of its main shareholder, Desjardins-Laurentian Financial Corporation, prompted the Laurentian Bank to become a Schedule 1 Bank under the Bank Act, on par with all the other large Canadian banks.
In 2023, Laurentian Bank launched a new line of Visa credit cards in partnership with Brim Financial. The new system provides digital onboarding and instant adjudication, instant virtual card issuance, mobile wallet functionality and self-serve card management options including setting credit limits and replacement of lost cards.
Membership
LBC is a member of the Canadian Bankers Association and registered member with the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation, a federal agency insuring deposits at all of Canada's chartered banks. It is also a member of Interac.
See also
- List of banks and credit unions in Canada