
CIT Group has sold its Canadian equipment finance and corporate finance business, CIT Canada, to Laurentian Bank of Canada.
CIT Canada, which has more than $700m (630.72m) in assets, will see around 140 of its employees join the Laurentian Bank team.
"This transaction represents another milestone for us as we continue to exit our international businesses and focus on growing our core commercial franchises," said Ellen R. Alemany, chairwoman and chief executive officer at CIT Canada.
"We remain focused on our strategy to become a national middle market bank and serve our customers with an integrated set of financing and deposit products."
The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2016, subject to customary closing conditions, including all applicable regulatory notifications and approvals. CIT Canada and Laurentian Bank of Canada will continue to operate separately until the closing of the transaction.
In January, Leasing Life reported how private equity-owned firm Highbridge Principal Strategies, a subsidiary of Highbridge Capital Management and J P Morgan Asset Management, completed the acquisition of CIT Vendor Finance UK for an undisclosed amount.
As part of the acquisition, Highbridge Principal Strategies incorporated CIT Vendor Finance into its newly-created Pan European Asset Company ("PEAC"), a platform established to consolidate asset finance businesses and portfolios across the European SME lending space.