Canaccord appoints former Ontario finance minister to board amid takeover tussle

Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. has partially replaced the board members opposed to a management-led takeover bid, with former Ontario finance minister Rod Phillips among the new appointees set to evaluate the offer.

Phillips, who resigned as Ontario’s long-term care minister last year and didn’t seek re-election in his Ajax riding, joined Canaccord’s board along with Amy Freedman, a partner at Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd. in Toronto.

The appointments come a week after the resignations of four board members who belonged to a special committee evaluating the bid to take Canaccord private.

Gillian Denham, Charles Bralver, Dipesh Shah and Sally Tennant resigned after indicating the breakdown with the company’s management was “irreparable.” The committee chaired by Denham did not support the management team’s all-cash offer of $11.25 per common share to take Canaccord private. Shareholder Skky Capital Corporation Ltd. had called for their ouster.

Phillips and Freedman were also named to the special committee evaluating the takeover. They join Terrence Lyons, who Skky nominated as a director and was appointed to the board last week, and Michael Auerbach.

In a release on Tuesday, Canaccord said the special committee will continue its review of the management group’s bid and that it requested a delay from securities regulators in releasing a directors’ circular.

Phillips was elected as an MPP in 2018 and served as environment minister and finance minister under Ontario Premier Doug Ford before moving to the long-term care portfolio. Prior to entering politics he was president and CEO of the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. and Morneau Shepell, and chairman of Postmedia Network Inc.’s board.

Freedman was CEO of Kingsdale Advisors and worked as an investment banker with Stifel and Morgan Stanley.

Mark Burgess

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Mark was the managing editor of Advisor.ca from 2017 to 2024.