Morgan Stanley : to buy Canadian employee stock manager for $900 million

(Reuters) - Morgan Stanley said on Monday it would buy Canadian employee stock plans manager Solium Capital for C$1.1 billion ($900 million).

The deal will allow Morgan Stanley to attract young salaried workers, who after they sign up on Solium to manage their stock options, can eventually choose the bank's investing and virtual adviser channels, as they build their wealth, or when their investing needs arise.

The bank will pay C$19.15 per share for Solium, a 43 percent premium over its Friday closing price of C
$13.36. The deal is expected to close by June 30. https://reut.rs/2I3oO9H

Calgary, Canada-based Solium provides stock plans for over 3,000 companies, which include Instacart, Levi Strauss, Shopify , Bombardier , and Dropbox .

The transaction is expected to have minimal impact on Morgan Stanley's earnings and capital ratios, and the bank does not expect any changes to its share repurchase programs.

Davis Polk & Wardwell and Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt served as legal advisers to Morgan Stanley in the transaction.

(Reporting By Aparajita Saxena in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)

Stocks treated in this article : Morgan Stanley, Solium Capital Inc.