Executive moves this week

Each week, Advisor’s Edge summarizes notable management shifts across the financial and wealth management industry.

• Andrew Auerbach, who became head of BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc. back in January 2018, announced via a LinkedIn post on April 15 that he’s officially retired from the bank. Auerbach first joined BMO in 2000 and has held leadership roles across multiple lines of business at the company. He indicated in December of last year that he planned on retiring, but a date was not set at that time. Deland Kamanga, group head for BMO Wealth Management, has been leading the charge on an interim basis, and the bank said in an emailed statement from March 31 that Kamanga “is well underway with the succession process.” Auerbach noted in his farewell post, “The last four years have been particularly rewarding bringing together our businesses at BMO Private Banking and BMO Nesbitt Burns. […] I know that BMO Private Wealth is set for even greater things ahead.”
• Edmonton-based Raintree Wealth Management Inc. has a new president: Jay Bhutani, who’s worked in the investment and wealth management industry for more than 20 years. Bhutani has been tagged as of this week to help “uncover new wealth management opportunities across Canada,” a release from the firm said. Alongside CEO Peter Kinkaide, Bhutani will work on strategy and execution, bringing Raintree “to the next level.”
• New York-based Morgan Stanley announced April 20 that its Montreal office has chosen Sophia Bennaceur as regional head of Morgan Stanley Montreal and technology Montreal. She has been with the company since 2016, operating out of Montreal, and succeeds Alan Vesprini, who’s retired after nearly 12 years with the firm. The Montreal office represents its “largest presence in Canada,” Morgan Stanley said.
• The Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) has named Edward Iacobucci as an independent director on its board. Effective April 19, he took over for Malcolm Heins who resigned earlier this month for personal reasons. Iacobucci is professor and Toronto Stock Exchange chair in Capital Markets at the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto.
• Effective April 18, a new CEO was named for Canadian Premier Life Insurance Company and Canadian Premier General Insurance Company (based in Toronto). Nigel Branker, who was previously president of health and productivity solutions for LifeWorks (formerly Morneau Shepell) for nearly four years, will lead the company through a “time of transformation,” a release said. He succeeds Suzette Huovinen, who will remain with the organization’s U.S. parent company (Minnesota-based Securian Financial).
• Effective May 2, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) will welcome Priti Singh as senior managing director and global head of capital markets and factor investing. She’ll replace Poul Winslow (who’s retiring after 13 years with the organization) but has been with the firm since 2008. Her most recent role was managing director and head of external portfolio management plus interim head of strategy and operations.
• This week, IG Wealth Management spoke to Investment Executive about the host of executive management shifts the firm has made within the past seven months. Between September 2021 and January of this year, the firm not only added staff (such as Philip Petursson as chief investment strategist) but also made adjustments so it can better respond to industry trends. Read more.
• Toronto-based Evermore Capital Inc. announced this week that Oscar Dewar joined the firm as chief compliance officer in March. The company calls him a “seasoned compliance professional,” noting that Dewar has worked at organizations such as CI Global Asset Management, Fidelity (Canada) Asset Management and IA Clarington Investments.

If you know of other people moves in the financial industry and/or would like us to consider your announcement, email Katie Keir at katie@newcom.ca. 

Katie Keir

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Katie is special projects editor for Advisor.ca and has worked with the team since 2010. In 2012, she was named Best New Journalist by the Canadian Business Media Awards. Reach her at katie@newcom.ca.