The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday edition that Royal Bank of Canada expects to close its $13.5-billion takeover of HSBC Holdings PLC's Canadian subsidiary in March, clinching the biggest domestic banking deal on record. The Globe's Stefanie Marotta writes that Canada's largest lender said in a statement that it plans to close its proposed acquisition of HSBC Bank Canada on March 28, less than half a year later than its initial timeline. The deal received its final stamp of approval from Ottawa in December. By purchasing HSBC Canada, RBC will gain tens of billions of dollars in deposits, mortgages and commercial loans, while also bolstering its services internationally. London-based HSBC Holdings employs about 4,000 people in Canada and provides banking services to around 780,000 clients. RBC will immediately begin converting HSBC's products and services over to its own systems. HSBC branches and offices will open on April 1 as RBC locations. When the deal was announced in November, 2022, RBC and HSBC said they expected the deal to close late in 2023. The transaction bumped up against slight delays as it moved through regulatory approvals. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland approved it in mid-December.