TORONTO, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Vancity, Canada's largest

credit union, is looking to fill gaps in small and niche markets

after two of the country's big six banks made large acquisitions

in Western Canada, the chief of the Vancouver-based financial

institution said in an interview.

Canada's highly regulated banking sector has been further

consolidating since No.1 lender Royal Bank of Canada ( RY )

bought HSBC's ( HSBC ) domestic operations for C$13.5 billion ($9.53

billion) and National Bank proposed to buy Canadian

Western Bank ( CWESF ) for C$5 billion in the past year.

The acquisitions, and other deals in the credit union space,

reduce the number of options for consumers in Western Canada,

Vancity's CEO Wellington Holbrook said in an interview.

"That's why I think there is a huge opportunity for credit

unions, in general, to step up and fill that void," he said on

Tuesday.

Had they not been acquired, HSBC ( HSBC ) would have been the largest

headquartered financial institution in British Columbia while

Canadian Western Bank ( CWESF ) would have been one of the largest in the

region.

British Columbia-focused Vancity, which has nearly 600,000

clients and C$36 billion in assets, is now investing in

technology to help it scale its operations and compete with the

big banks.

Canada's banking space is largely dominated by the big six

banks while smaller banks and credit unions hold a small share

of the market focusing on specific provinces.

Holbrook, who took charge in January of this year, has

slashed jobs to cut costs after the company reported an annual

loss for 2023.

He said 2025 will be the year of investing to build its

technology platforms to capture market share in everyday

banking, small and medium sized business banking in British

Columbia.

"We can be small enough to fill the niches," he said, noting

that the large banks could find it challenging to cover every

niche and unique needs in local markets.

($1 = 1.4162 Canadian dollars)