Seeing what it perceives to be a poorly served market, CIBC has opened an investment-banking office in Winnipeg to attract business in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

The christening of the CIBC World Markets Inc. branch at the intersection of Portage and Main is the first such commitment to the two Prairie provinces by any of the Big Five banks.

David Leith, CIBC’s managing director and head of investment and corporate banking, says the firm already has a significant client list in the region, including the governments of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, the City of Winnipeg and corporate entities such as the Winnipeg Airports Authority and CanWest Global Communications Corp. He says, however, that the new office’s presence means greater and faster growth.

“It’s an economically vibrant region. We see opportunities to develop deeper and more client relationships for our investment-banking business,” he says, noting the firm’s sweet spot will typically be deals in excess of $50 million. “We’ll offer a full range of financial services, from relatively small transactions to very large ones.”

CIBC World Markets has hired long-time Winnipegger Jason Stefanson to run the new office. A former corporate lawyer and executive with Assante Corp., Ensis Growth Fund and Canterbury Park Capital LP, Stefanson says the focus on Manitoba’s capital is part of the bank’s strategy. A year ago, it installed a regional vice president in Winnipeg, several years after relocating the position from Winnipeg to Calgary.

“It’s a consistent theme throughout that CIBC believes the mid-markets are where a big chunk of its future is going to be,” says Stefanson. “On the mega-deals and mega-companies, the U.S. dealers are very competitive. There’s a recognition [by CIBC] that you have to look for other opportunities to maintain and grow the business. Winnipeg is a classic mid-market.”

With CIBC having spent the past decade working with and for Winnipeg businesses, Stefanson says, it is time to locate its investment-banking business in the city.

“We have lots of mid-sized, family-controlled, largely private businesses that are reasonably well-known to people in Winnipeg. But when you get outside of Winnipeg, they’re not so well known,” he says. “We’d like to play a role in helping them grow through acquisitions, accessing more capital or potentially selling the businesses. There may be a generational changeover, and we think we can play a role.”

Stefanson expects his main competition will come from other investment banks that have relationships in Winnipeg, as well as some of the large accounting firms. CIBC World Markets, he adds, will have a complementary relationship with Wellington West Capital Inc. , arguably the local player with the highest profile.

“Wellington West does an excellent job of raising money for emerging companies in Manitoba,” he says. “As those companies grow and Wellington West looks to add people to syndicates, we’d be delighted to work with it as the need arises.”

CIBC World Markets has been engaged in a number of Winnipeg projects in the past few months. It was involved in a $92-million equity offering for Westfield Real Estate Investment Trust and participated with Wellington West in a $15-million financing for Exchange Industrial Income Fund.

The Winnipeg office is the fifth Canadian location outside Toronto for CIBC’s wholesale banking arm. The others are in Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa and Montreal. CIBC World Markets also has offices in the U.S., Europe, Israel, Asia and Australia. IE