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(Bloomberg) -- Canadian trucking company TFI International Inc. reversed its decision to move its legal headquarters to the US, saying it was backing down after shareholders expressed opposition to the idea.
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The Montreal-based company told investors last week that it planned to change its domicile to the US, where about 70% of its operations are now located after an acquisition spree. TFI has bought dozens of businesses over the years, and in 2024 it closed the purchase of Daseke Inc. of Texas for $1.1 billion, including debt.
But the relocation plan drew a swift rebuke from the powerful Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec, one of TFI’s largest shareholders. The public pension manager has a mandate to try to boost the economic development of Quebec, and a spokesperson suggested TFI had blindsided investors with the decision.
Chief Executive Officer Alain Bedard told analysts the relocation was an “evolution” that stemmed in part from regulatory requirements and wouldn’t have a big impact on operations. “It’s business as usual,” he said on a conference call with analysts. “We’re not moving people from Canada to the US. We’re not doing that. We’re not stupid.”
The TFI controversy is occurring at a time when Canadians are expressing anger and dismay over US President Donald Trump’s trade policy, which aims to dominate the global race for investment capital partly by imposing tariffs on products provided by foreign companies.
Trump’s tariffs and repeated taunts about turning Canada into the 51st US state have prompted a patriotic fervor in Canada over the past few weeks, with Canadian consumers shunning US labels in favor of domestic products. Kraft Heinz Co. even took out television advertising on the Canadian broadcast of the Super Bowl to highlight its Canadian-sourced products. The ad used the tagline: “Made by Canadians. For Canadians.”
TFI is the fourth largest for-hire carrier in North America and the fifth largest less-than-truckload carrier, according to Transport Topics and Bloomberg Intelligence.
The company announced the plan to shift to the US on Feb. 19 at the same time as it unveiled earnings that widely missed analysts’ estimates.
Bedard told analysts last week that a unit of Daseke does business with the US Department of Defense, “and because we are a foreign owner, that creates a little bit of issues for us.”