(Bloomberg) – Alberta, Canada, did not use Bank of America when it sold bond transactions established in Europe in late March, which was the operating rights of such sales over the past six years.
Alberta sold 1.25 billion euros ($1.4 billion) of bonds as bookkeepers using Barclays Plc, Royal Canada of Canada and Toronto-Dominion Bank on March 26. Nordlb of Germany acts as co-manager of the deal. This is the first time that the Syndicate Group lacks Bank of America due to the issuance of more than 100 million euros in the Alberta government’s euro bonds.
The Canadian government has been curbing relations with U.S. businesses in response to President Donald Trump’s trade war and repeatedly commented on his desire to make Canada the 51st state. After his administration imposed tariffs on Canadian goods in early March, the Alberta government said it would buy goods and services from companies in Alberta or Canada — “or countries with Canada that have a free trade agreement with Canada.”
Justin Brattinga, a spokesman for the Alberta Treasury Department, said there is no blanket ban on working with U.S.-based banks. “We will continue to build strong relationships with U.S. financial institutions and will work with them under the necessary conditions of bond groups to ensure best performance,” he said in an email.
“The province is constantly monitoring and evaluating the performance of the service providers used for its funding activities and adjusting its lending group to that performance,” he said.
Bank of America provided the province with a total of 3.85 billion euros in 2019, 2020 and 2024. Representatives for the bank declined to comment.
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