Meridian enters new lending space with $28.7 million acquisition of loan portfolio from Morrison Financial

Explosion of condo developments in housing sector accompanied with need for financing condo corporations

TORONTO, Oct. 22, 2020 /CNW/ - Meridian has completed the acquisition of the condominium term loan portfolio of Toronto-based Morrison Financial for $28.7 million.

Since 1992, Morrison Financial has been providing term loans to Canadian condominium corporations under the CondoCorp Term Financing^TM brand. These loans are made to registered condominium corporations to finance capital expenditures related to major repairs, replacements, additions and alterations to common elements.  

The loan portfolio acquired by Meridian consists of $28.7 million in loans to a total of 35 condominium corporations located in Ontario and Alberta. As part of the deal, Meridian and Morrison Financial will also enter into a mutually exclusive partnership in which Morrison Financial will continue to originate loans for the portfolio.

"We are very excited with this acquisition and are very much looking forward to deepening our working relationship with Morrison Financial," said Kevin VanKampen, Vice-President, Business Banking at Meridian. "With this transaction, we are stepping in to fill a growing need for condo term financing. Meridian is now one of a few select financial institutions in Canada specializing in this asset class."

There are currently more than 15,000 condominium corporations in Ontario alone. And according to Urbanation, there were 260 condo projects (representing 78,112 units) under construction in the Greater Toronto Area in 2019, while 24 new projects (representing 7,197 units) were launched in the first quarter of 2020. Long-term maintenance of existing condominium supply will continue to be an important part of the housing equation in key markets across the country.

"This new relationship with Meridian strengthens our ability to fill a growing demand for specialized condo term financing," said David Morrison, Chief Executive Officer of Morrison Financial. "We have a deep understanding of this market and a long successful track record. By joining forces with Meridian, we look forward to expanding our capacity to serve this important, growing but underserved market sector."

The transaction was officially completed on September 15, 2020.

About Morrison Financial Services Limited
Established in 1987, Morrison Financial is a boutique financial services company that has been providing tailored financial services to businesses, builders and developers, and condominium corporations since its inception.  In a transaction that occurred in 1992, Morrison Financial is believed to be the first lender in Canada to make a loan to a condominium corporation for the purpose of funding majors repairs to the common elements of the condominium property.  Since that first one, the Company has completed hundreds of loans of this nature for an aggregate amount in excess of $500,000,000.

About Meridian
With more than 75 years of banking history, Meridian is Ontario's largest credit union and the second largest in Canada, helping to grow the lives of 370,000 Members and customers. Meridian has $26 billion in assets under management (as at June 30, 2020) and delivers a full range of financial services online, by phone, by mobile and through a network of 92 branches across Ontario, and business banking services in 15 locations. Meridian Members also have access to THE EXCHANGE® Network, with more than 3,600 no-fee ABMs across Canada and 500,000 ABMs in the United States. For more information, please visit: meridiancu.ca, follow us on Twitter @MeridianCU or see our Facebook site.

SOURCE Meridian Credit Union

Media Contact: Teresa Pagnutti, Senior Manager, Public Relations, Meridian, [email protected], 416-275-3816