In Brief: Associates Purchases Canadian Lender

Associates First Capital Corp. said it bought Superior Acceptance Corp., Canada's largest independent consumer finance company, with 91 offices in 10 provinces. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The acquisition gives Associates, the largest publicly owned consumer finance company in the United States, a platform for extensive growth across Canada, said Keith W. Hughes, Associates' chairman and chief executive officer.

Superior Acceptance's receivables consist primarily of consumer loans, although a branch in Nova Scotia specializes in equipment leasing to small businesses.

With Superior Acceptance, Associates will have 117 offices in Canada with 574 employees, 145,000 customers, and total net receivables of $867 million.

Associates already has both consumer and commercial branches in Canada; its commercial branches offer financing and leasing of trucks, heavy equipment, and telecommunications equipment.

Superior Acceptance will retain its management and will continue to operate under its own name. It was a wholly owned, indirect subsidiary of Great Universal Stores, based in the United Kingdom.

Associates First Capital offers consumer and commercial finance, leasing, and related services through 2,220 offices in the United States and abroad. It is a majority-owned, indirect subsidiary of Ford Motor Co.