PNC buys Royal Bank of Canada's US arm for $3.45B

[June 20, 2011]  NEW YORK (AP) -- PNC Financial Services Group Inc. is buying the U.S. retail operations of Royal Bank of Canada for $3.45 billion.

RBC Bank (USA), based in Raleigh, N.C., has 424 branches and about $25 billion of assets.

Pittsburgh-based PNC says the transaction will bring its total to 2,870 branches and make it the fifth biggest among U.S. banks.

It is the second big banking transaction in recent days following the announcement that U.S. bank Capital One Financial Corp. struck a $9 billion deal to buy the online bank of the Dutch financial services company ING.

PNC has the option to pay for the deal with up to $1 billion in common stock.

The acquisition is expected to close in March.

[Associated Press]

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