The Financial Post reports in its Wednesday, May 13, edition that Bank of Montreal is selling a majority stake in its transportation and finance lending businesses to a New York alternative investment platform to enhance capital efficiency and focus on core markets. The Post's Naimul Karim writes that BMO U.S. president Aron Levine says, "This transaction is consistent with BMO's focus on delivering sustained profitable growth, and enables us to invest in areas that deliver the full power of BMO to our clients." Stonepeak Partners will acquire the BMO businesses, which had a loan portfolio of $14.5-billion as of March 31, for undisclosed cash considerations and an earn-out, if the business achieves specific targets. BMO will use a portion of the "consideration" to buy a 19.9-per-cent stake in the new Stonepeak entity. It will also record a net after-tax charge of about $900-million, primarily related to goodwill, in the third quarter. BMO's transportation and finance lending operations had caused "a measure of indigestion" over the past few years, says Jefferies analyst John Aiken. TD analyst Mario Mendonca says, "The sale should leave BMO with a greater mix of loan asset classes with better growth profiles."