Wes Hall, founder and CEO of Kingsdale Advisors, joins BNN Bloomberg to discuss the outlook for M&A activity in 2026.

After two weak years, Canada’s mergers and acquisitions market has rebounded sharply, with deal activity now above its 10-year average. A weaker dollar, lower interest rates and attractive valuations have made Canadian assets a magnet for global buyers.

BNN Bloomberg spoke with Wes Hall, founder and CEO of Kingsdale Advisors, about the factors driving the surge in dealmaking, the impact of tariff uncertainty from Washington and why more Canadian firms are merging to gain scale and stay competitive.

Key TakeawaysCanada’s M&A activity is running above its 10-year average after two sluggish years.Lower interest rates and a weaker loonie have drawn global buyers to Canadian assets.Tariff uncertainty is delaying some deals but also prompting U.S. firms to buy Canadian companies on the cheap.Domestic mergers are seen as a way for Canadian firms to scale up and attract pension fund investment.Once tariff clarity arrives, a new wave of consolidation could reshape Canada’s corporate landscape.Wes Hall, founder and CEO of Kingsdale Advisors Wes Hall, founder and CEO of Kingsdale Advisors

Read the full transcript below:

MERELLA: After two weak years, Canada’s M&A market has bounced back, with activity running above the 10-year average. Canadian firms are also coming under activist pressure from across the border. Let’s go to Wes Hall, founder and CEO of Kingsdale Advisors. Wes, thanks for joining us today.

WES: Merella, thanks for having me.

MERELLA: So what’s driving the momentum so far this year?

WES: Merella, our market is absolutely dirt cheap — dirt cheap. If you have money and you want to buy assets at a discount, you come to Canada. Our entire capital market is about US$3.5 trillion — that includes our banks, insurance companies, everything listed on the TSX. The U.S. market, by comparison, is around US$67 trillion. We make up only about five per cent of that. Apple alone is worth US$3.7 trillion, meaning it could theoretically use its stock to buy every company on the TSX today. So, if you’ve got a strong stock price in the U.S., you can buy just about anything here — and that’s the sad reality.

MERELLA: Do you think uncertainty over tariffs and the new administration in Washington held back some of this activity earlier in the year?

WES: One hundred per cent. It’s the uncertainty that’s the real problem. If you tell the market tariffs are coming — say, 20 or 30 per cent — investors will price that in and move on. But when there’s no clarity, it’s impossible to plan. I really believe President Trump is intentionally delaying a decision on tariffs to keep our market depressed. That’s why I expect more U.S. companies to use their stronger stock prices to buy Canadian firms on the cheap.

MERELLA: Your firm has advised on some of these M&A transactions this year — we’ll put a few of them up on screen: Parkland-Sunoco, MAG Silver-Pan American Silver, and MDA Space with SatixFy Communications. Have you noticed any common themes?

WES: The good news is that we’re still seeing Canadian-to-Canadian transactions. If we can get more domestic companies merging to create something larger and more competitive, that’s what we want. Of course, you’ll still see U.S. firms like Sunoco coming in to buy Canadian assets, but there’s a real opportunity for Canadian firms to use the depressed valuations of their peers to scale up. I’d like to see a lot more of those homegrown deals.

MERELLA: Do you think this is generally a good thing for Canadian investors?

WES: At the end of the day, it’s not good when you have a shrinking pie. Large pension funds, for instance, are running out of quality Canadian companies to invest in. The more firms that disappear through takeovers, the fewer domestic options they have. So, they’re forced to look abroad. Many of our companies are too small for these funds to consider, so if Canadian firms merge and get bigger, that creates new opportunities for pension capital — and that’s the name of the game going forward.

MERELLA: The Bank of Canada is set to make another rate announcement later this month. What’s your outlook, and could that affect dealmaking?

WES: If interest rates keep moving lower — which I think they will — that’s great news for the market. Cheaper borrowing costs mean more buying activity. The more affordable money becomes, the more deals we’ll see.

MERELLA: Are there other catalysts you foresee for the rest of this year or into next year that could boost M&A activity in Canada?

WES: Once we get a decision on tariffs, the floodgates will open. You’ll see renewed confidence and more transactions. Some companies won’t survive whatever decision President Trump and Prime Minister Karna make on tariffs, but stronger firms will get even stronger. I expect a lot of consolidation — and a lot of companies disappearing from the stock market over the next several months or years.

MERELLA: You mentioned catalysts — what about headwinds?

WES: Tariffs are the biggest headwind. That uncertainty affects everyone. If companies can’t plan for what’s coming, they may have to sell or restructure. Once we get clarity, we’ll either see firms fail faster or see more M&A, because others will buy them up at a discount.

MERELLA: Wes Hall, we’ll have to leave it there. Thanks for joining us. Wes is founder and CEO of Kingsdale Advisors.

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This BNN Bloomberg summary and transcript of the Oct. 21, 2025 interview with Wes Hall are published with the assistance of AI. Original research, interview questions and added context was created by BNN Bloomberg journalists. An editor also reviewed this material before it was published to ensure its accuracy and adherence with BNN Bloomberg editorial policies and standards.