CIBC sees Lehman-related loss of about $25 million

By Lynne Olver

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM.TO: Quote) said that, as of Friday, it had a roughly $25 million mark-to-market loss on various positions associated with Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc LEH.N, and it was seeking to rehedge some of the positions.

"We do not have large exposures," CIBC Chief Executive Gerry McCaughey said on Monday, noting that Lehman Brothers was a collateral-posting counterparty.

Lehman Brothers Holdings filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States after failing to reach a deal on the weekend with a stronger strategic partner.

Shares of CIBC were down C$2.78, or 4.3 percent, at C$61.39, on the Toronto Stock Exchange by late morning, after sliding as low as C$61.09 in early trading.

Shares of its competitors, including Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD.TO: Quote) and Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO: Quote), were also lower.

The S&P/TSX financial index, which includes insurance companies and asset managers, was down 1.25 percent by late morning, having made up some ground lost early in the session.

Richard Nesbitt, chairman and chief executive of CIBC World Markets, the bank's corporate and investment banking arm, said the $25 million exposure figure was approximate. It includes derivatives in which Lehman is a counterparty to CIBC, and was net of collateral which Lehman had pledged to CIBC.

That collateral is mainly in the form of government securities, Nesbitt said.