Scotiabank to Tap Brakes on Deals After a Six-Month Buying Binge

After five deals in six months, Bank of Nova Scotia is taking a breather. “We’ve got a lot of work to do in terms of execution and integrations now, so I think we’ll be fairly quiet on the acquisition front from here on in,” Chief Executive Officer Brian Porter told BNN Bloomberg on Friday in a TV interview set to air at 3 p.m. Eastern time. On Thursday, Scotiabank agreed to buy MD Financial Management from the Canadian Medical Association for C$2.59 billion ($2 billion), the latest in a series of announced acquisitions that include Canadian money manager Jarislowsky Fraser Ltd. and Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA’s 68 percent stake in a Chilean lender.