Speakers

Jordan Blain, Director of ETFs, Manulife Investment Management

Curtis Davis, Senior Consultant, Tax, Retirement & Estate Planning Services, Manulife Investment Management

Pat Dunwoody, Executive Director, Canadian ETF Association (CETFA)

Bobby Eng, Vice President, Head of SPDR ETFs Canada, State Street Global Advisors

Ahmed Farooq, Vice President, ETF Business Development, Franklin Templeton Investments Corp.

Maxwell Gold, Head of Gold Strategy - State Street Global Advisors

Benjamin Gossack, Vice President & Director, Lead Portfolio Manager of TGED & TUED ETFs, TD Asset Management

Mary Hagerman, Portfolio Manager and Author, The Mary Hagerman Group at Raymond James Ltd

Neville Joanes, Chief Investment Officer, CI Direct Investing

Andrew Kirkland, Co-Founder & President, Justwealth

Alfred Lee, Director, BMO ETFs Portfolio Manager & Investment Strategist - BMO Global Asset Management

Sue Lemon, Chief Executive Officer & Board Member, CFA Society Toronto

Kelly MacDonald, Senior Vice President and Central Region Sales Leader, Aon

Christopher McGrath, Director, ETFs, Central Ontario & Manitoba, BMO Global Asset Management

George Milling-Stanley, Chief Gold Strategist - State Street Global Advisors

Yves Rebetez, Senior Executive Consultant, Credo Consulting

Ben Reeves, Chief Investment Officer, Wealthsimple

Benjamin Tal, Deputy Chief Economist, CIBC World Markets Inc.

Mark Webster, Director, Institutional & Advisory, Western Canada - BMO Global Asset Management

Jordan Blain, Director of ETFs, Manulife Investment Management
Jordan is Director of ETFs for Ontario and Eastern Canada, and based in Toronto. He spends his time building relationships, helping investors understand the evolving ETF landscape and how Manulife Investment Management ETFs can help create long-term, efficient portfolios. Advisors and clients alike benefit from his passion and experience.

Curtis Davis, Senior Consultant, Tax, Retirement & Estate Planning Services, Manulife Investment Management
Curtis joined Manulife in 2017 and has developed a solid background in tax and estate planning built on thirteen years of financial services experience. He works closely with advisors and sales teams to support the tax, retirement, and estate-planning needs of their clients. Curtis has published articles related to tax and estate-planning strategies in various industry publications.

Pat Dunwoody, Executive Director, Canadian ETF Association (CETFA)
Pat is also the Executive Director of the Canadian ETF Association, which was the first (and only) ETF Association in the world. She has spent over 35 years in the Financial Services industry as a client and relationship-focused executive with an in-depth background in all aspects of the industry. Some of her past roles include:

• Vice President, Member Services & Communications at Investment Funds institute of Canada

• Vice President, Business Development & Market Intelligence at IFDS

• Vice President, Service and Quality at AIM Funds Management Inc.

• Director of Customer Relations and Distributor Services at Fidelity Investments Canada

She has been an active member on many industry committees including:

• Co-chair of the first Industry Standards Committees

• Participation on FundSERV committees from the day it was launched and currently is a member of the FundSERV Standards Steering Committee

• Chairing of the IFIC Conference Committee and Operations Committee

• CCMA Committees

Pat is also actively involved in her community:

• Board Chair, Community Living Dufferin

  • Chair of the Governance Committee

• Board member, Prosper Canada

  • Chair of the Governance Committee

Bobby Eng, Vice President, Head of SPDR ETFs Canada, State Street Global Advisors
Bobby is a Vice President at State Street Global Advisors, Ltd and Head of SPDR ETF Business Development for Canada. Bobby is responsible for the distribution of SPDR ETFs to institutional investors throughout Canada including pension plans, endowments, foundations, insurance companies, investment consultants, asset managers and banks.
Prior to this role, Bobby was Senior Vice President and Head of Sales at First Trust Portfolios Canada responsible for overall sales and distribution.
He also spent 10 -years at Blackrock Asset Management, most recently as Director & Vice President, Head of National Accounts responsible for asset managers and brokerage senior executive relationships. Bobby was instrumental in the success of the iShares, Exchange Traded Funds business in Canada being responsible for sales and business development across Canada. Bobby also held sales and relationship management roles at Fidelity Investments and National Bank of Canada.
Bobby holds a Bachelor's degree in Finance from Concordia University and holds the Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA) designation from the Investment Management Consultant Association (IMCA).

Ahmed Farooq, Vice President, ETF Business Development, Franklin Templeton Investments Corp.
Ahmed Farooq is Vice President – ETF Business Development, responsible for directing and expanding the Franklin LibertySharesTM ETF business across major Canadian Investment Dealers and financial professionals.
Mr. Farooq has 10 years of experience in the ETF industry and 14 years in the investment industry.
Prior to joining Franklin Templeton in 2017, Mr. Farooq spent 10 years at BlackRock Canada supporting the promotion and growth of iShares ETFs. Recently, Ahmed was a senior wholesaler covering Toronto and Ottawa. Previously, he managed the internal sales team for the iShares ETFs business across Canada and lead wholesaler activities in Atlantic Canada.
Mr. Farooq earned his Bachelor of Commerce degree with a specialization in Commerce and Finance, and a major in Economics from the University of Toronto. He has completed the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and has earned his CIMA® designation from the Investment Management Consultants Association® in conjunction with the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Farooq has also completed the Canadian Securities Course (CSC), Conduct & Practices Handbook (CPH), Professional Financial Planning Course (PFP), Wealth Management Techniques (WMT) and has received the designation of Financial Management Advisor (FMA).

Maxwell Gold, Head of Gold Strategy, State Street Global Advisors
Maxwell Gold is the Head of Gold Strategy within the SPDR ETF business at State Street Global Advisors. Before joining SSGA in July 2019, he served as the Director of Investment Strategy at Aberdeen Standard Investments, heading macroeconomic and commodity thought leadership for its $3B U.S. ETF business. Prior to this he has also held roles within the Investment Research team at the World Gold Council, as an Investment Strategist with the Chief Investment Office at Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, and with the Global Portfolio Construction team within JP Morgan Private Bank’s Chief Investment Office. Maxwell holds an M.S. in finance from the Simon Business School and a B.A. in economics from the University of Rochester. He is a CFA charterholder and holds the series 7 and 63 registrations.

Benjamin Gossack, Vice President & Director, Lead Portfolio Manager of TGED & TUED ETFs, TD Asset Management

Mary Hagerman, Portfolio Manager and Author, The Mary Hagerman Group at Raymond James Ltd
Mary Hagerman is an award-winning portfolio manager and investment advisor with the Montreal office of Raymond James Ltd. Considered a female pioneer in building ETF-based discretionary portfolios for her clients, Mary is an expert columnist on ETFs for industry publications in French and English, and she is regularly quoted in the media. Mary combines her personal passion for karate with her professional experience in her book, The Black Belt Investor; how to kick butt and feel rich!

Neville Joanes, Chief Investment Officer, CI Direct Investing
Neville oversees investment strategy, asset allocation, ETF selection and investment operations at CI Direct Investing, a Vancouver based digital portfolio manager. His position at CI Direct Investing has enabled him to follow his passions around digitizing wealth management, spurring innovation in the financial industry and bringing transparency to clients across Canada. Neville has extensive experience in analysis, product development, trading and asset management. He is also a CFA charterholder.

Andrew Kirkland, Co-Founder & President, Justwealth
Andrew is an experienced investment professional who has an unwavering passion for investing, financial planning, and making things right for his clients.
He is a recognized leader within the financial services industry and was named a Finalist for the WP Young Gun of Year Award in 2018 and also nominated for Entrepreneur/Innovation Leader of the Year at the 2019 Canadian FinTech and AI Awards. Andrew obtained his education from the University of Guelph where he earned a Bachelor of Business Administration.
Andrew holds the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Chartered Investment Manager designations (CIM).

Alfred Lee, Director, BMO ETFs Portfolio Manager & Investment Strategist, BMO Global Asset Management
Alfred is a portfolio manager at BMO Asset Management Inc. where he manages fixed income and preferred share related mandates for both institutional and retail clients. As part of the global fixed income management team, he is involved in the management and trading of a wide variety of portfolios including Canadian bonds, U.S. investment grade, high yield, European and Asian bonds, emerging market debt and others. Previously, he worked for a large Canadian based brokerage developing ETF related strategies and sat on the firm’s investment committee. Alfred is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario, majoring in economics and holds the CFA, Chartered Market Technician and Derivatives Market Specialist and DMS designations.

Sue Lemon, Chief Executive Officer & Board Member, CFA Society Toronto
Sue Lemon is CFA Society Toronto’s Chief Executive Officer and leads the Society’s strategic direction which includes promoting high ethical standards in the financial industry and increasing the visibility of the charter with key partners in the financial community. CFA Society Toronto is one the world’s largest group of charterholders among 160 Societies globally. An experienced and successful investment executive with over 20 years of experience in fixed income markets, Sue formed MSL Advisory Corp in 2008.

Throughout her career Sue has held progressively senior roles at Canada Trust, CT Investment Counsel, Nesbitt Thomson, and CIBC World Markets. As Managing Director and Head of Global Fixed Income Distribution at CIBC, Sue was responsible for research, analytics and sales teams across Canada, US, Asia and Europe. Sue is a Past President of the Society and has been an active volunteer for over 20 years, notably mentoring young industry professionals. Sue is a cum laude graduate of Ryerson Business Management and earned her CFA charter in 1988.

Sue has been on boards and committees of various not-for-profit organizations including Bridgepoint Hospital Foundation finance and investment committees, Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation investment committee, Holland Bloorview Hospital Investment Committee, Investment Dealers Association and CFA Society Toronto.

Kelly MacDonald, Senior Vice President and Central Region Sales Leader, Aon
As the Sales Leader for Aon Canada’s largest region, Kelly is responsible for setting the sales strategy for Aon’s Central Region ensuring all staff sales targets are achieved, as well as providing training and sales support for 60+ employees. Given her love of business development, Kelly continues to personally produce new business in addition to coaching and supporting the sales team.
Kelly started her career at Baird MacGregor Insurance Brokers as a personal lines broker, taking on progressively larger roles throughout her career including two years as an Account Manager at HKMB prior to joining Aon in 2004. Kelly has held progressively senior positions at Aon including her most recent positions as Financial Institutions Practice Leader and Risk Management Unit practice leader prior to assuming the role of Central Region Sales Leader at the end of 2018.
Kelly holds a BA from the University of Western Ontario and has earned the following designations during her 20-year insurance career: Fellow Chartered Insurance Professional (FCIP), Canadian Risk Manager (CRM), Registered Professional Liability Underwriter (RPLU) and Canadian Professional Insurance Broker (CPIB). In addition to her professional designations, Kelly has also completed numerous Schulich School of Business and Ivey Management designations.
Kelly is a regular presenter on Risk Management and Best Practices strategies for Financial Institutions clients with a focus on Life Insurance Companies, MGAs, Mutual Fund, Securities and Exempt Market broker/dealers.
Kelly is currently chair of the Big Brothers Big Sisters (Toronto) Big Night Out Gala fundraising committee, a role that she has held for the past two years. Kelly is also actively involved with the SickKids Foundation specifically as a SickKids Innovator in 2017 and 2018.
Kelly lives in midtown Toronto with her family. When she is not at work, you can usually find her at a hockey arena cheering on her two daughters playing hockey.

Christopher McGrath, Director, ETFs, Central Ontario & Manitoba, BMO Global Asset Management
A passionate 22 year veteran of the financial services industry, Chris oversees the proliferation of BMO ETFs throughout Central Canada, providing support to portfolio managers from downtown Toronto to Winnipeg. He transitioned from Corporate Treasury at RBC to the wealth business in 2005. Between 2006 and 2014, Chris was a significant sales contributor at IA Clarington, helping to grow the asset management company from $5 billion to over $16 billion. Chris joined BMO Global Asset Management in 2014 as Vice President Sales, Downtown Toronto, and has since cultivated many strategic relationships and partnerships, primarily in the IIROC channel.
Chris holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Saint Mary’s University, and numerous CSI accreditations. He has conducted hundreds of presentations, and has also been trained in both the Dale Carnegie and Sequoia Systems.

George Milling-Stanley, Chief Gold Strategist, State Street Global Advisors
George Milling-Stanley is Chief Gold Strategist with State Street Global Advisors. He joined SSGA as a Vice President and Head of Gold Strategy in November 2014. Before joining SSGA, George ran the independent consultancy George Milling-Stanley on Gold, LLC. He retired from the World Gold Council in 2011 after a 15-year career there. Most recently he had been responsible for all programs involving central banks, governments, and regulatory authorities. Before that, he was a key member of the small team that pioneered the development of goldbacked Exchange Traded Funds. His earlier career included six years on the precious metals trading desk of Lehman Brothers. Previously he worked for Consolidated Gold Fields in London, and before that spent 10 years as a reporter and columnist with the Financial Times. An acknowledged authority on all aspects of the gold business, George Milling-Stanley is a regular speaker at international conferences.

Ben Reeves, Chief Investment Officer, Wealthsimple
Ben Reeves is Chief Investment Officer at Wealthsimple. Prior to Wealthsimple, Ben was an analyst at Bridgewater Associates, focused on asset allocation research and overseeing portfolio construction. He has also worked as a consultant with McKinsey and Company. He has an MBA (high honours) and MPP in finance and economics from the University of Chicago.

Yves Rebetez, Senior Executive Consultant, Credo Consulting
One of Canada’s leading ETF experts, Yves’career in the financial services industry spans over three decades, serving in a variety of positions and functions from foreign exchange markets to international private banking, HNW portfolio management, institutional asset management, research, and product analytics.
A former Vice President of ETFs and Structured products at RBC Dominion Securities, Yves recognized the coming wave of disruptive innovation early, and launched ETFinsight - a website dedicated to the Canadian ETF space - in 2011. As senior consultant with CREDO and ETF content specialist for Mindpath Financial Conferences, Yves is a recognized thought leader in ETFs and often presents at industry events.
Yves is a CFA charter holder and a Swiss Federal Certificate in business graduate from Ecole Professionnelle Commerciale de Lausanne, Switzerland.

Benjamin Tal, Deputy Chief Economist, CIBC World Markets Inc.
Mr. Tal is responsible for analyzing economic developments and their implications for North American fixed income, equity, foreign exchange and commodities markets. He also acts in an advisory capacity to bank officers on issues related to wealth management, household/corporate credit and risk.
Well-known for his ground-breaking published research on topics such as labour market dynamics, real estate, credit markets, international trade and business economic conditions, Mr. Tal not only contributes to the conversation but also frequently sets the agenda.
He has close to 20 years of experience in the private sector advising clients, industry leaders, corporate boards, trade associations and governments on economic and financial issues.
National and global media regularly seek him out for his insight and analysis on economic issues that impact financial markets, consumers, corporations and public policy. He is also a frequent lecturer in the economic programs of various Canadian universities.
Mr. Tal is a member of the Economic Committee of The Canadian Chamber of Commerce, The Economic Development Committee of the Toronto Board of Trade. He is also a member of board of Governors of Junior Achievement of Central Ontario, and a board member of the Toronto Financial Services Alliance.

Mark Webster, Director, Institutional & Advisory, Western Canada, BMO Global Asset Management
Mark is the BMO ETF team's representative for Western Canada. With over 25 years of experience in the financial services industry, Mark has covered many diverse forms of financial risk. He began his career as a professional indemnity broker, becoming a vice president at Minet International Professional Indemnity Ltd. (now part of AON), conducting risk analysis for the Big 8 global accounting firms, as well as some of the top U.S. law firms. He is responsible for overseeing the proliferation of ETFs throughout Canada's vast western region and providing support to portfolio managers from the Pacific (Duncan B.C.), to the Lakehead (Thunder Bay, Ontario). He has worked as a retail investment advisor with RBC DS; in the mutual fund industry with First Trust Portfolios; and has held several other positions in the pension industry. He brings with him a Master’s degree in Russian History from McGill University and several CSI accreditations.