Mortgage lender PNC Financial Services Group Inc. agreed to buy RBC Bank, the U.S. banking subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada (RY), for $3.45 billion. PNC Mortgage, a subsidiary of PNC Financial, is the 20th largest mortgage originator in the United States, originating $10.5 billion in home loans last year alone. Once the transaction closes in March, the acquisition of RBC Bank will add $25 billion in assets, 424 bank branches, $19 billion in deposits and $16 billion in loan balances to the PNC Financial (PNC) network. RBC’s current allowance for loan losses is in the $755 million-range, according to PNC. “The addition of RBC Bank provides PNC a great opportunity to enter attractive southeast markets in a way that will create value for our shareholders,” said James Rohr, PNC’s chairman and chief executive officer. RBC Bank has branches in North Carolina, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Virginia and South Carolina. Combined the two firms will have 2,870 bank branches, making it the fifth largest network in the United States. Write to: Kerri Panchuk.