Media Release - IFIC’s President and CEO to Chair Third Annual Canadian Funds Summit

May 24, 2017

Toronto, ON - May 24, 2017 – The Investment Funds Institute of Canada (IFIC) announced today that its president and CEO, Paul C. Bourque, Q.C., will chair Strategy Institute's third annual Canadian Funds Summit in Toronto on May 25-26, 2017.

"I’m pleased to chair this year’s Funds Summit, to help industry members prepare to respond to the challenges and opportunities we face as we navigate through a period of profound change on many fronts including regulation, consumer demographics, and technology," said Bourque.

Bourque brings valuable experience and expertise to lead the industry through these unchartered waters. Immediately prior to assuming the helm at IFIC in July 2016, he served as executive director of the British Columbia Securities Commission for six years. Prior to that, he was an associate partner with Deloitte Inc. leading the national securities and regulatory investigation practice. Prior to that, he held senior positions with the Ontario Securities Commission and the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada, and served as a special prosecutor, deputy attorney general and deputy minister of justice in Alberta.

Bourque’s opening remarks will note the industry’s growth and innovation over the past two decades and its resilience in the face of regulatory change and technology. He will talk about the unprecedented technology driven disruption of traditional business models and note that, while technology plays a positive role in helping the industry serve clients, improve services and enhance competition, it also opens the door to new threats – such as cybersecurity – and it leads to new paradigms that create winners and losers.

Ross Kappele, executive vice president and head of distribution and client management for BMO Global Asset Management and vice chair of IFIC, will give the opening keynote address. Kappele’s remarks will provide insights on how firms can create a roadmap that ensures revenue stability in a fee squeezed environment, navigates the impacts of ever-changing regulations on the bottom line, and meets investor expectations and requirements to improve market positioning.

Panels of industry experts will discuss the latest developments in regulation, compliance strategies, new technologies, evolving products, and the shifting demands of consumers to unlock growth. Speakers will delve into the challenges and present solutions on a number of fronts, such as strategies to reduce margin stress and maximise profit, the role of ETFs, innovative solutions to meet advisor and client portfolio needs, and advances in distribution.

A panel of experts from industry, IIROC and the MFDA will talk about the present and future regulatory environment.

Day Two topics include the role of robo-advice, how to align products to reach millennials, responsible investing, blockchain and alternative investments. The day will conclude with insights from other jurisdictions to help companies innovate their domestic products and processes.

Conference attendees will gain information and insights to propel them forward so they can emerge as one of the winners in the transformed world that lies ahead.

About IFIC

The Investment Funds Institute of Canada is the voice of Canada’s investment funds industry. IFIC brings together 150 organizations, including fund managers, distributors and industry service organizations, to foster a strong, stable investment sector where investors can realize their financial goals. By connecting Canada’s savers to Canada’s economy, our industry contributes significantly to Canadian economic growth and job creation. The organization is proud to have served Canada’s investment funds industry and its investors for more than 50 years.

About Strategy Institute

Strategy Institute has been facilitating intelligence sharing for over 20 years. Independent and research-based, the Strategy Institute combines academic thinking with business acumen, aggregating information, connecting the dots, and bringing it all together for clarity and action. Its raison d’être is to produce “aha!” moments, allowing attendees to see their most pressing challenges in a new dimension and the world in a new light. Ultimately inspiring and challenging their abilities to make better judgments, identify new opportunities, solve problems, and collaborate for success.

– 30 –

For more information:
Sara Clodman, Senior Manager, Public Affairs sclodman@ific.ca │416-309-2317


For more information contact:
Sara Clodman
Senior Manager, Public Affairs
The Investment Funds Institute of Canada (IFIC)
Phone: 416-309-2317
Email: sclodman@ific.ca
Website: www.ific.ca

Click here to view our Sources Listing:

The Investment Funds Institute of Canada (IFIC)

Topics:

• Financial Services
• Funds Management
• Investment Funds
• Investment in Canada
• Investments
• Mutual Funds
• Mutual Funds Industry
• Registered Education Savings Plans (RESPs)
• Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs)