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(June 11, 2008) Canaccord Adams has announced that, effective today, Jamie Brown will be president of Canaccord Adams in addition to his duties as head of investment banking. He succeeds Kevin Dunn, who is assuming the title of vice-chairman of U.S. operations.

“I am very proud to announce Jamie’s appointment to this key leadership position,” says Paul Reynolds, president and CEO of Canaccord Capital. “He has been integral in the growth of our U.S. operations, doubling banking revenue and establishing the corporate finance team in a highly competitive environment since becoming head of U.S. investment banking in May 2006.”

Jamie Brown has been a member of Canaccord’s investment banking team since 1997. In early 2005, he assumed the role of managing director for Canaccord’s corporate finance activities in Vancouver and led the public venture capital (PVC) operations.

After more than six years with the firm, Kevin Dunn will assume the role of vice-chairman and will focus significant attention on senior client relations across the firm’s business lines, especially in mergers and acquisitions.

“Under Kevin’s leadership, the integration of Adams Harkness into Canaccord Adams has been successfully completed and U.S. operations have expanded considerably,” Reynolds says. “His new role will allow him to build on his extensive network and vast experience to continue to cultivate long-term relationships for the firm.”

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CHIP signs deal with Quebec’s largest mortgage broker

(June 11, 2008) Canadian Home Income Plan Corporation (CHIP) has signed an agreement with Quebec mortgage broker Multi-Prêts, that will extend CHIP’s home equity lending to Multi-Prêts senior customers over 60 years of age.

CHIP hopes the new partnership with Multi-Prêts will give it further penetration in Quebec through the mortgage broker’s well-established branch network. The deal comes on the heels of the establishment of a new regional head office in Montreal.

“By working in association with a mortgage broker such as Multi-Prêts, seniors are able to see the application of a home equity solution in many different ways,” said Eric Bisaillon, CHIP’s general manager of Quebec and Atlantic provinces. “Seniors can use the extra cash toward home maintenance, paying bills and expenses associated with owning the home, or realizing their retirement lifestyle goals. The CHIP solution is flexible, so it can easily fit into a personalized financial plan.”

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Online brokerage launches social media tools

(June 11, 2008) RBC Direct Investing is providing online investors with access to an array of resources, such as blogs and discussion forums, that will help them create, build and make decisions about their investment portfolio.

RBC says the new feature, called Community, uses unique technology developed by media tracking company Collective Intellect, which filters and ranks bloggers and posts so that clients only see the most credible sources of information and only when it’s relevant to their trading strategies.

“The explosive growth of social networking means online investors now have a wealth of information and immediate news available, which is often overlooked by conventional media,” says Doug Coulter, president and CEO of RBC Direct Investing. “Community” will enable our clients to investigate leads and seek out information on smaller companies that might not otherwise get extensive coverage in traditional mainstream media.”

The Community feature is part of a larger site redesign that includes a new “Sectors & Industries” page, allowing investors to target a sector and obtain more trending information. As well, a new “Trading Dashboard” will be added this summer, which will enable more active traders to consolidate their trading needs such as researching a stock, tracking an order and executing a trade.

(06/11/08)