One of the largest – and most contentious – takeovers in Canadian history is getting its day in the sun, with public hearings kicking off later this morning. Rogers and Shaw are set to square off with the Competition Bureau over the planned $20 billion acquisition, after failing to reach a resolution with the competition watchdog in order to push the deal across the finish line. To my memory, I can't think of a bigger deal that's headed this far down the competition tribunal process, nor one that's been so vociferously opposed by regulators. As a reminder, Rogers has attempted to assuage competition concerns by agreeing to sell Shaw's Freedom Mobile unit to Quebecor for $2.85 billion – contingent on the Shaw deal going through – a solution Competition Commissioner Matthew Boswell sees as an insufficient balm to competition concerns.

M&A MONDAY

Auctioneer Ritchie Bros. is on the acquisition trail, announcing plans to buy up IAA for US$6.3 billion, plus the assumption of about US$1 billion in debt. The deal is a mix of stock and cash, and represents a 19 per cent premium to IAA's closing price on Friday. The deal will leave Ritchie Bros. shareholders with 59 per cent of the combined entity, with IAA shareholders picking up the remainder.

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE

Dream Industrial REIT is teaming up with GIC to buy up Summit Industrial Income REIT for $5.9 billion, including debt. The deal works out to $23.50 per unit of Summit – about a 31 per cent premium to Friday's closing price. GIC will end up owning about 90 per cent of the asset, with Dream owning 10 per cent and acting as the asset manager of the joint venture. The deal is expected to close early next year.

A US$197 BILLION VIEW OF THE MARKETS

Now this is appointment viewing if I ever did see it. We're looking forward to Amber's conversation with U.S. billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Fisher at 10:30 a.m. EDT – his firm has nearly US$200 billion in assets under management, and he's about as well-known of a financial commentator south of the border as you can find. He'll dig into the implications of the mid-term elections, his views of macroeconomic risks and where he sees markets heading in the near and medium term.

ENERGY INDUSTRY DECRIES BUYBACK TAX

We got some pointed words over the weekend from the energy industry as it digests the federal government's plan to tax share buybacks to the tune of two per cent, starting in 2024. Enerplus CEO Ian Dundas told BNN Bloomberg Ottawa's approach to the energy industry was “truly tragic,” while Birchcliff Energy CEO Jeff Tonken said the new tax “goes directly against” current federal policy. You can catch that full story at BNNBloomberg.ca.

OTHER NOTABLE STORIES

  • Maple Leaf Foods says it's currently experiencing a system outage due to a cybersecurity issue. The company says it expects a full resolution will take some time.
  • Gold Fields is digging in it's heels, declaring it will not raise its bid for Yamana in the face of a rival bid from Agnico Eagle and Pan American Silver
  • Shares of Apple are sliding in the premarket – now down two per cent – after the company pared its iPhone sales forecast by about three million units.
  • Empire Co. says it's experiencing an IT issue – while stores remain open, the grocer says some services are operating intermittently or with delays. 

NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS

  • Notable data: U.S. Consumer Credit
  • Notable earnings: Franco-Nevada, Ritchie Bros Auctioneers, Ballard Power Systems, Activision Blizzard, Take-Two Interactive, Lyft, Mosaic, Pizza Pizza Royalty, Groupon, Finning International