Paul Desmarais III is the Chairman and CEO of Sagard Holdings, the Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of Portag3 Ventures, and the Chairman and co-founder of Diagram. Within the investment portfolios of Portag3 Ventures and Sagard Holdings, he is the Chairman of Wealthsimple and Peak Achievement Athletics and a director of Koho, Integrate AI, and IntegraMed.

Paul is also a Senior Vice President of Power Corporation of Canada and Power Financial of Canada. As a part of his responsibilities at the holdings, he sits on the boards of Groupe Bruxelles Lambert, and Imerys.

Prior to his current role, Paul worked at Goldman Sachs in the Investment Banking Division, Investment Group, and Special Situations Group; Imerys in supply chain management and strategy; and Great West Lifeco in risk management. Paul is a recipient of a B.A. in economics from Harvard College and holds and an MBA from INSEAD in France.

Mr. Kris Coleman founded Red Five Security in 2004 to provide world class, state of the art security and protective intelligence services. Mr. Coleman continues to use his knowledge, experience, and integrity to grow Red Five into a multi-faceted company focused on bespoke security solutions for unique clientele.

Working in both the private and public sectors throughout his 20+ year career, he has served with the Central Intelligence Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and as a former Principal with Good Harbor Consulting. Mr. Coleman’s depth and range of experiences allows the Red Five team to specialize in high quality,

proactive, and discreet security services. He has built a unique capability in Red Five to support clients with tailored low-profile security operations, analysis, training, and program and system design.

A distinctive portion of Mr. Coleman’s work in the private sector includes the complete assessment, design development, and installation of cutting-edge security programs for high net worth clients. Projects have included large residences in Florida, California and the Washington DC, area (some in excess of 45,000 square feet), commercial facilities with challenging security requirements, as well as unique sites overseas.

Mr. Coleman has also consulted on the pre-construction security design review for the Louvre Abu Dhabi, Guggenheim, and Sheik Zayed National Museums on Saadiyat Island in the United Arab Emirates as part of a multi-disciplinary team. He has extensive experience re- evaluating protective units and residential security for US-based Fortune 50 CEOs and their global properties, including one effort to completely re-engineer and retrain a family’s protective detail. He also led a team for a top US retail client to conduct risk assessments for executives involved in an acquisition in Central America.

During his tenure with the CIA, Mr. Coleman conducted threat and vulnerability assessments and developed programmatic approaches to counterterrorism and law enforcement for such countries as Italy, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Colombia, and Jordan. Deployed with the CIA’s protective operations cadre he was a Senior Instructor, Team Leader, and Operator for low and high-profile operations.

Mr. Coleman also served four years as a Special Agent with the FBI, with a focus on criminal investigation of international organized crime and international terrorism. He was a member of the FBI’s enhanced SWAT Team and is an FBI-certified instructor in firearms, protection, surveillance and counter-surveillance. Over the course of his government career he has been involved in numerous major security events both overseas and domestically with National Special Security Events, providing assessments, tactical response and protective services.

Mr. Coleman graduated from the University of Arkansas with a BS in Public Administration. He is also the author of a copyrighted protective intelligence methodology for executives known as PrIME. He is a member of the American Society for Industrial Security, Society of Former Special Agents of the FBI, and the Association of Former Intelligence Officers.

Arthur C. Salzer, is the Chief Executive Officer & Chief Investment Officer of Northland Wealth Management. As the firm’s founder, he is the visionary and driving force behind Northland Wealth. Arthur is responsible for developing and implementing the firm’s strategic plan as well as overseeing all operations and investments of the company. Arthur also advises many of the firm’s largest and most complex clients.

Arthur is an active member of the CFA Society, the Family Firm Institute (FFI) and the Family Enterprise Xchange (FEX). For the past two years, Arthur has been a judge for the Family Enterprise of the Year Award (FEYA). Since 2016, Arthur has been the Wealth Management Columnist for The Financial Post Magazine.

Arthur is frequently interviewed by leading media sources such as Bloomberg, Reuters, NBC, Financial Post, Globe & Mail, Washington Times, Wealth Professional Magazine, CTV and CBC for market analysis and commentary and is a frequent speaker at leading family office and investment conferences across North America.

Wealth Professional Magazine has featured Arthur as the Top Ranked advisor in Canada along with being recognized in its Hot List as one of the Canada’s leading wealth management executives.

A graduate of McMaster University (B.A. Econ.), he also holds the designations of Certified Investment Manager and Chartered Financial Analyst.

Frederick T. Pye is the President, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Compliance Officer of 3iQ Corp. Mr. Pye is recognized for creating and promoting creative and unique investment products for the investment industry.

Mr. Pye has managed private client portfolios with Landry Investment Management and various other investment dealers. Prior to this Mr. Pye was Founder, President & Chief Executive Officer of Argentum Management and Research Corporation, a company dedicated to managing and distributing quantitative investment portfolios including the first long-short mutual fund in Canada.

He was also Senior Vice-President and National Sales Manager of Fidelity Investments Canada and an integral part of the team that saw assets rise from $80 million to over $7.5 billion in assets under management during his tenure. He also held various positions with Guardian Trust Company, which listed the first Gold, Silver and Platinum Certificates on the Montreal Exchange.

Mr. Pye obtained a Masters in Business Administration from Concordia University and is a member of the Board of the Anglican Funds and the West Island Youth Residence.

Jason Chertin is the Co-Chair, Investment Funds and Asset Management at McMillan LLP. A significant part of Jason’s practice encompasses working with investment fund managers, portfolio advisors and dealers in establishing, marketing and maintaining investment products, including privately offered domestic and offshore funds, publicly offered mutual funds and other exchange-traded funds. Jason also provides ongoing advice to Canadian and non-resident managers with respect to registration and compliance obligations, and assists clients with regulatory reviews and audits.

Brian D’Costa is a founding partner of Algonquin Capital; a boutique specializing in alternative fixed income.

Prior to starting Algonquin Capital, Brian was the Global Head of Fixed Income and Rates for CIBC where he was responsible for the bank’s entire bond and rate trading business, overseeing 40 traders globally.  Before that, Brian spent 11 years with TD Securities, where he was the Global Head of Vanilla Interest Rate Derivatives, managing trading teams in Toronto, London, Tokyo and Sydney.

Before building a career in trading, Brian spent seven years in the Canadian Armed Forces where he served as a Captain in the Airborne Regiment and participated in a peacekeeping tour in Iraq.

When not in the office, Brian can usually be found in the gym, at a hockey rink or undertaking an ambitious gardening project.

James Rosebush is a widely recognized leader in building and managing corporate, family office, and philanthropic organizations as well as serving as an advisor to families on the complex issues of wealth management. He recently published his second book and best-seller, TRUE REAGAN: What Made Ronald Reagan Great and Why It Matters, a rare insight into the fortieth president’s mysterious character as Rosebush discerned it from his years of working for him.  Rosebush is a frequent public speaker before various audiences and the media on leadership, politics, philanthropy, and the Reagans. His weekly columns on leadership and public speaking appear on BusinessInsider.com and Real-Leaders Magazine.  He co-created Deal Ring, a platform to train investment managers to make the perfect pitch and compete for investment dollars. He coaches business leaders to become impact speakers through www.impactspeakercoach.com. His third book WINNING YOUR AUDIENCE will be released in April 2020.

He is the founder and CEO of an international advisory firm, GrowthStrategy, Inc. focused on management strategies, finance, marketing, and communications, that result in measurable growth for Fortune 500 companies as well as startups.  In 2018 he launched Intersection Impact Fund, following his life-long passion for impact investing and philanthropy.

At the request of President Bush, he created and was the first CEO of the Challenger Memorial Foundation, with forty-six space science education centers around the world.  He served as the president and board member of the Fairfax County Education Foundation, Chief Executive of the Howe School—a leadership academy, as founder and CEO of The Technology Transforming Education Compact, and President of the Urban Monuments Foundation.  He has served on the Board of and was finance committee chair for The Phillips Collection, America’s first museum of modern art, where he originated the Duncan Phillips Collectors Medal awarded to Leonard Lauder and David Rockefeller among other leaders in philanthropy and the arts.  He was awarded a “Telly” for his documentary “Hands on the Wall” a Discovery Channel program on Thomas Jefferson’s building of Monticello.

In the White House Mr. Rosebush was President Reagan’s “point man” on philanthropy and public-private partnerships.  As a commissioned officer at the White House, he started and managed the President’s favorite domestic program, PRIVATE SECTOR INITIATIVES, designed to engender private sector solutions for public problems, a precursor of today’s social impact investing.

Mr. Rosebush was also the longest-serving Chief of Staff to the First Lady.  In this role, he was one of a small group of top aides to President Reagan and served as a member of the President’s historic Theme for The Day communications team.  He managed all the official activities of the First Lady including press and media, scheduling, projects and policy (including the anti-drug campaign), as well as the official functions held in The White House.  During his tenure Nancy Reagan’s public approval rating increased to an all-time high.  He managed worldwide State Visits for the Reagans, traveled with them, and negotiated with host country government leaders including China, Japan, Korea, France, England, and Germany.  He negotiated with Russian officials for the historic bi-lateral meeting between Reagan and Gorbachev.

Mr. Rosebush has also had significant management experience in philanthropy.  He was director of corporate contributions for The Standard Oil Company, founding vice president for the National Chamber Foundation, and held management positions with the New England Association of Grantmakers and the CS Mott Foundation and was a founder of Grantmakers in Health, Inc. He has published on the topic of strategic philanthropy, given many speeches and hosted conferences on the subject as well.  The titles of two recent speeches were: “I’ve Made it—Now How do I Give It Away?”  designed for new philanthropists, and “Using the Power of Wealth for Good.”  He recently crafted a web-based Philanthropy Toolbox for a leading asset management firm.

He earned an MA degree in Public Affairs from Boston University and a BA in Business from The Principia College.  He has lectured and taught as an adjunct professor at Georgetown and George Washington Universities on corporate public issues and the history of philanthropy.  His book, First Lady Public Wife, was lauded as the first book that assessed the non-elected job of First Lady.  He has authored numerous articles, has appeared before many television, radio, and other audiences.  He was appointed by the President to become US Ambassador to UNESCO, and as a member of the National Museum Services Board, the grantmaking arm of the government to museums. He was invited to tour and lecture in Austria as a goodwill ambassador at the guest of the Austrian government.  He was cited as an “Outstanding Young Man in America,” received the Rotary International Award for studies in Russia and has been listed in Who’s Who since 1976.  He was appointed a Woodrow Wilson Fellow at Princeton University, elected at-large to the Republican Committee of the District of Columbia, and has served as the chairman of the board of his church, and a trustee of the art panel of the Federal Reserve Board. He is Chairman, Proactive School, Inc. and has served on the Board of the Cleveland Music School Settlement and the outreach committee of the Cleveland Orchestra and the grant selection committee of United Way and on the Board of the Concord Art Association.

A native of Flint, Michigan, Mr. Rosebush resides in Washington, DC area with his wife of forty-five years, the former Nancy Paull. They have two grown daughters and six grandchildren.

John Ruffolo is the Founder of OMERS Ventures and the Co-founder of the Council of Canadian Innovators. Over the course of John’s leadership, OMERS Ventures had invested over $500 million of capital in over 40 disruptive technology companies across North America, including growth investments in Shopify, Hootsuite, Rover, Desire 2 Learn, Hopper, DuckDuckGo, Wattpad, TouchBistro and League. John also formed Platform Investments, OMERS’ innovation arm, where he led investments in Purpose Financial, PointNorth Capital, District Ventures, OneEleven and ArcTern Ventures. The Council of Canadian Innovators is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping high-growth Canadian technology firms scale up globally. As Canada’s business council for a 21st century economy the Council is made up of CEOs from Canada’s most promising technology companies. The Council’s position is to promote, share, and collaborate with public policy leaders on key policy levers to optimize the growth of Canada’s innovation-based sector.

John currently sits on the boards of a number of leading innovative organizations including ArcTern Ventures, Canopy Rivers, Continuum Residential REIT and Ether Capital. John has also previously served on the boards of Hootsuite, Wave, Desire 2 Learn, Purpose Financial, MMM Group, Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE), Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), OneEleven and Cummunitech.

In addition, John sits on the board of a number of not for profit organizations including the David Suzuki Foundation as Vice-Chair, the Royal Ontario Museum, Caldwell’s Top 40 Under 40 and The Dean’s Advisory Council for the Schulich School of Business.

John was a Partner at Deloitte, as well as the Global Thought Leader, the Global Tax Leader and the Canadian Industry Leader for Deloitte’s Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) practice. He was also a member of the firm’s Tax and TMT Global Leadership teams and a member of Deloitte’s Board of Directors.

A certified public accountant, John was formerly a partner with Arthur Andersen LLP and has also spent time as an instructor for both the Chartered Professional Accountants Canada and York University’s Schulich School of Business, from which he holds a Bachelor of Business Administration.

In 2018, John was honored with the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic which made him a 5​th class Knight. The highest ranking honour of the Republic, it is awarded for “merit acquired by the nation” in the fields of literature, the arts, economy, public service, and social, philanthropic a and humanitarian activities and for long and conspicuous service in civilian and military careers.

David Jarvis is the founder and one of the principals of Corton Capital Inc. and acts as the firm’s Portfolio Manager. From September 2017 to September 2018, Mr. Jarvis, was the President and Director of Kaleido Capital Ltd. From October 2015 to September 2017, Mr. Jarvis was the Chief Compliance Officer of Forge First Asset Management Inc. where he was primarily responsible for compliance and risk management. While at Forge First, David developed enhanced compliance systems, designed and ran “mock” compliance audits and developed internal risk management guidelines addressing key risk areas – market risk, liquidity risk and credit risk. From 2005 until September, 2015, Mr. Jarvis was a founding partner, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Compliance Officer and a Portfolio Manager of Spartan Fund Management Inc. During his tenure with Spartan, David conceived, designed and co-built the first hedge fund platform in Canada with over 15 funds, portfolio managers/traders/analysts including funds based in Canada and the Cayman Islands. At Spartan David worked closely with each fund group and customized compliance and risk management programs for each type of fund style. During his time with Spartan, the Spartan Multi Strategy Fund LP received Morningstar’s Gold Medal for Best Multi Strategy Fund (Canada) in 2011 after winning the Silver Medal in 2010.

David has also been a Director and Chair of the Audit Committee of Leviathan Cannabis Group Inc. (CSE: EPIC) since November 2018. Leviathan is a publicly traded cannabis company focused on creating brand loyalty while building medical and recreational distribution channels for hemp derived products. Since March, 2010, David has also provided expert witness reports and analysis from time to time in relation to compliance and operations for brokerage and asset managers dealing with such matters as suitability, “know your client”, disclosure obligations, and institutional operational practices. In this capacity, David has been retained by retail investors, institutional clients, and several law firms.

David played an important role in the establishment of the Canadian chapter of the Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA Canada) and served as the organization’s first Vice-Chairman from 2003 – 2005. David also served as an active member of the Practices & Standards Committee and the Compliance Officers’ Network, 2016 – 2018, of the Portfolio Management Association of Canada (PMAC).

David holds a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation and has an MBA (Queen’s University) and an Hons. BA – Economics (University of Western Ontario).

Kunal is a Senior Manager and Blockchain Lead with KPMG’s Risk Consulting practice with a focus on governance, risk and compliance for emerging technologies, specifically Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT). Kunal possesses over 8 years of experience in the technology and business process risk based services to clients in Financial Services (FS), Asset Management, Telecom, and Software Provider industries. Kunal has been actively engaged in the digital asset space with the objective of managing the legacy and new risks to foster innovation towards a tokenized economy, especially in private capital markets. He has experience working with companies ranging from startups to established organizations and consortia that are looking to leverage blockchain and other emerging technologies for digital transformation.

Prior to joining Brightspark Ventures, Sophie was a partner at CDP Capital Technology Ventures, a subsidiary of la Caisse de Dépôt et Placement du Québec. Sophie met Mark in 1997 when she became the lead investor in his start-up, Balisoft. They ended up collaborating on this exciting venture for three years and sold the company to Kana Software in 2000.

Since joining Brightspark in 2003 as a managing partner, Sophie has led and overseen more than 50 investments in technology companies. Notably, she has played a pivotal role in the investment, growth and exit of Radian6, leading to a 23x multiple on capital invested, and becoming one of the most successful technology exits in Canadian history.

Sophie was involved in the creation and growth of Jewlr.com and iStopOver.com. She is still an active board member of Jewlr inc., a leading online personalized jewelry company.
She sits on the Board of Directors of a number of companies, including Hopper, nGUVU and Jewlr. Sophie works closely with the startups she invests in and is known for her nurturing and listening qualities. In October 2017, Sophie was awarded the NACO Angel of the Year Award.
Sophie is a member of the Science and Technology Council of Canada, which provides external advice to the federal government in the domain of science, technology and innovation.
She is the proud mother of three teenage daughters and is passionate about opening up doors for women to the VC and tech world. Through her career, she has often been the

Dr. Ranjan Bhaduri is the Founder, President & CEO of Bodhi Research Group. Bodhi Research Group is focused on research and education in the alternative investments industry.

Dr. Bhaduri has extensive experience in hedge fund research, hedge fund factorization, portfolio management, and due diligence (investment, operational, and structural). Dr. Bhaduri has designed and implemented an institutional due diligence and research program. Dr. Bhaduri has worked closely with pensions, sovereign wealth funds, endowments, and family offices globally. Dr. Bhaduri has ten years of experience at managed account platforms. Dr. Bhaduri’s experience also includes being on an Investment Committee at Morgan Stanley where he conducted due diligence and helped design customized portfolios of Alternatives. Earlier, he was at a Canadian Fund of Funds, and at a multi-billion dollar capital management firm where he was involved in all aspects of its fund of hedge funds and structured finance business. He has also worked with two major Canadian investment banks in the Financial Strategy Consulting Group and in Global Risk Management & Control, respectively.

Dr. Bhaduri has a winning track record of leadership and training. Several of his former analysts and interns have gone on to have successful careers and have held positions at prestigious organizations, including the following firms: Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, Goldman Sachs, J.P Morgan, Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), Neuberger Berman, and Crabel Capital Management.

Dr. Bhaduri has held an advisory role at the East-West Center, a leading think tank on the Asia-Pacific region. He has taught finance and mathematics at several universities and lectured on Derivatives for the Montreal Exchange. Dr. Bhaduri has published papers on, and been invited to speak worldwide regarding hedge fund issues, and advanced portfolio and risk management techniques. Dr. Bhaduri was invited by the CME to be part of a special delegation that met with regulators in Beijing and Taipei to discuss hedge fund issues.

Dr. Bhaduri holds both the CFA and CAIA charters. He is a member of the American Mathematical Society, the Mathematical Association of America, the Toronto CFA Society, and PRMIA. Dr. Bhaduri previously served as a member of the All About Alpha Editorial Board, and has previously served on the CAIA Chicago Chapter Executive and is currently a CAIA Toronto Chapter Executive. Dr. Bhaduri previously served on the Board of Directors of AIMA Canada, co-chair of AIMA Canada Managed Futures Committee, and on the AIMA Global Research Committee.

Naveed has more than 13 years of investment industry experience and joined the BMO Nesbitt Burns team in 2010 as an analyst on the Investment Fund Strategy team.

In his role of as Head of MASA, Naveed leads a team of investment professionals focused on manager research across BMO Private Wealth’s various platforms including SMA, mutual funds, ETFs, alternatives and structured products. The team is responsible for manager selection, oversight, recommendations, product approval, model portfolios and supporting Investment Advisors and Investment Councillors at BMO Private Wealth.

Prior to BMO, Naveed was at CI Institutional Asset Management as an Account Manager where he was responsible for managing strategic relationships including fund-of-funds, sub-advised accounts and fund analysts.

Naveed is a Chartered Financial Analyst and a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst and has a Bachelor of Commerce (Hons.) from Carleton University

Enzo Gabrielli has been with the family office of the Right Honorable Paul Martin for the past 15 years and is currently the Executive Vice President and CFO. The principal holding is CSL Group (Canada Steamship Lines) which is the world’s largest commercial manager of self-unloading vessels, and operates highly specialized fleet for off-shore transhippers and bulk carriers. Horizon Capital Holdings Group is a broad-based investment vehicle and management organization that provides diversification to marine logistics. Our portfolio includes North American real estate and direct investments in private companies, with a primary intent to buy and hold for expansion and growth. In his capacity, Enzo holds the title of President for various subsidiaries companies and also serves as a director and audit committee chairman for several portfolio investments and not-for-profit entities. He oversees the real estate and investment portfolio, assists with various philanthropic initiatives and manages the various facets of a family office. Prior to joining Horizon, Enzo worked for accounting firms in the financial advisory services, with significant experience in corporate finance, M&A transactions, insolvency and corporate restructuring in Canada and United States. Enzo pursued his graduate studies at McGill University where he graduated with Great Distinction. He holds both a chartered accountant and chartered financial analyst designation as well as the ICD.d designation. He lectured in the business program at McGill University.

Enzo Gabrielli fait partie du bureau de gestion du patrimoine familial du Très Honorable Paul Martin depuis plus de 15 ans et agit présentement en tant que vice-président exécutif et chef de la direction financière. L’actif principal est le Groupe CSL (Canada Steamship Lines) qui détient et exploite une flotte hautement diversifiée de navires autodéchargeurs spécialisés, de transbordeurs en mer et de vraquiers de petit tonnage. Horizon Capital Holdings est une société de gestion et d’investissement qui offre une diversification à l’industrie du transport maritime. Le portefeuille comprend des actifs immobiliers en Amérique du Nord ainsi que des participations dans des sociétés privées, avec comme objectif principal la détention à long-terme axée sur la croissance. Il agit également à titre de président de plusieurs filiales du groupe ainsi qu’administrateur et président du comité de vérification de plusieurs des sociétés en portefeuille et organismes à but non-lucratif. Il assure un suivi du portefeuille d’investissement en immobilier, supporte les activités philanthropiques du groupe et gère différents aspects du bureau familial. Avant de se joindre au groupe, Enzo a acquis de l’expérience au sein de bureaux comptable dans le domaine du financement corporatif, transactions de fusions et acquisitions, insolvabilité et restructuration tant au Canada qu’aux États-Unis. Enzo a poursuivi ses études supérieures à l’université McGill où il a gradué avec la mention « Grande Distinction ». Il est détenteur du titre de CPA et CFA ainsi que du titre IAS.A. Il a donné plusieurs cours dans la faculté de gestion de l’université McGill

Bonnie-Lyn is the Founder and CEO of The S Factor Co., a MacCormick Inc. company.  She brings over two decades of Social Impact, International Business, Finance and Technology background to the leadership of MacCormick Inc. and The S Factor Co.

Bonnie Lyn has won several entrepreneurial and technology awards, led the creation of both firms, expanding globally and has worked across 57 countries, and has led the creation of several proprietary products including the MSPI™ and the S Factor™ Solutions.

Her company has developed and is bringing to market, a proprietary algorithm and index that measures corporate social impact against, international standards, public sentiment and financial performance. She is a widely acknowledged expert and much sought after speaker on social impact and risk issues.

A graduate from Saint Mary’s University, in International Development Studies (Development Economics) and International Politics, Marketing, Finance and Micro-computer Technology.

Craig encourages his clients to think differently about investing in order to ensure a positive impact in his clients’ financial circumstances.  He works beyond traditional portfolio management in the equity and bond markets alone to include conservative and predictable alternative assets, offering more effective diversification and a benchmark that offers protection and peace of mind regardless of market conditions.  Craig is a frequent commentator on alternative asset allocations for various media outlets, and a panelist and speaker at industry events.

Tanya Woods brings nearly two decades of successful strategic advocacy experience to her role at the Chamber of Digital Commerce Canada. Most recently she served as the Interim Executive Director for the Blockchain Association of Canada and is a champion for Canada’s digital and social innovation ecosystem, domestically and globally. Tanya is a skilled technology lawyer, policy strategist, and former trade negotiator who has held senior level positions in industry representing national and multinational organizations in the telecommunications, technology and entertainment sectors, including BCE Inc., Microsoft and Nintendo. She has also advised and represented the Government of Canada in global trade negotiations and on the growth of the country’s digital and social innovation ecosystems.  Tanya is a published author and global public speaker with degrees from London School of Economics, Ottawa University and American University Washington College of Law. She was named among the top 10 “Leading TechWomen in Canada” by the Government of Canada, a “Trailblazer” by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, a Global Civic Leader by the Obama Foundation, and a “Top 40 under 40” in Canada’s Capital by the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce and the Ottawa Business Journal.

Yash is Principal at Morgan Stanley Alternative Investment Partners (AIP) Private Equity Group focused on GP-led Secondaries transactions. Yash brings over nine years of industry experience. Prior to his current role, Yash was an analyst with AIP, focusing on due diligence of secondary transactions. Before joining Morgan Stanley, Yash held roles in investment banking at Credit Suisse and management consulting at the Boston Consulting Group. Yash received a B.Sc. in Economics from the London School of Economics and a M.Sc. in Financial Economics from the Said Business School at the University of Oxford where he placed on the Dean’s Distinction Honor List. Yash also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

Shez Samji is the managing director of the Private Equity Services practice for Silicon Valley Bank in Toronto, where he is responsible for leading the bank’s practice across Canada. In his role, he works closely with existing and new venture capital and private equity firms, leveraging SVB’s specialized financing solutions to help them execute quickly. With SVB, Shez is positioned to leverage his deep understanding of client needs to increase their value by parlaying the bank’s unique platform, unparalleled expertise and powerful global network.

Prior to SVB, Shez was a vice president at Third Eye Capital, Canada’s largest private debt and special situations investor. Shez has more than ten years of private equity and credit investing experience. He began his career at BMO Capital Partners, the Bank of Montreal’s principal investing division.

Shez lives in Toronto with his wife and daughter. Outside the office, Shez serves on the Investment Committee for Community Development Venture Fund, a nonprofit micro-loan company founded to support entrepreneurship, particularly among immigrants to Canada.

Mike joined Alquity as Head of Asian Investments in 2014.

He graduated from the University of Southampton in 1994 with a first class degree in Economics and joined Baring Asset Management. Over the next 8 years he was manager of the Baring Peacock Fund, an open ended investment fund focusing on Indian equities. He also was appointed a Divisional Director of the firm, a member of the Emerging Markets Asset Allocation Committee and the Deputy Manager of the Global Resource Funds.

In 2004 he joined the Emerging Markets team at Thames River Capital as an Asian Fund Manager, a division which demerged to become Nevsky Capital. Over his 7 years at Thames River/Nevsky Capital, Mike was part of the team that grew the Emerging Market equity assets from US$150 million to US$3.5 Billion. In 2001 he moved to F&C, along with the management of the Traditional Funds Emerging Asia and Global Emerging Markets Funds where he was respectively the Manager and Co-Manager. He was additionally appointed Manager of the F&C Asian Alpha Fund in November 2012.

Michael Schnitman was appointed Senior Vice President, Head of Alternative Investments at Mackenzie in October 2019. He has overall responsibility for leading the vision and strategic growth of Mackenzie’s alternative investments business across the full spectrum of liquid alternative strategies and private asset classes.

Michael brings over 20 years of financial services industry experience in progressively senior positions to his role. Michael joined Mackenzie in 2014 as Head of Product, where he transformed the product shelves and organizational structure for delivering investment solutions to the marketplace.

He holds a BA in economics from Trinity College in Hartford, CT and an MBA from Harvard University. Michael serves as a Trustee of the Perkins School for the Blind in the Boston area.