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About Us
Leadership

See list of past presidents

Brenda King

Brian Madden, CFA

Chair

Brian is the Chief Investment Officer at First Avenue Investment Counsel. Brian began his investment career in 1997 with one of Canada’s foremost independent research firms. In 2003, Brian co-founded one of the predecessor firms to First Avenue Investment Counsel, where for eight years he served affluent and high net worth private clients as Vice President & Portfolio Manager in managing equity investments. Subsequently, he spent five years managing a suite of balanced funds at one of Canada’s oldest and largest mutual fund companies. Immediately prior to joining First Avenue, he spent five years as Senior Vice President & Portfolio Manager with a Toronto-based investment counsel firm, serving high net worth private clients in Canada and the United States. Brian has been a CFA charterholder since 2000, and also holds a CFP and CIM designations and graduated from the University of Toronto in 1997. Away from the office, Brian embraces an ethos of volunteerism, community and mentorship and is the proud father of a teenage son who enjoys spending time with family and enthusiastically exploring far flung corners of the planet.  
Heather Cooke V2

Heather Cooke, CFA

Vice Chair

Heather Cooke is the Chief Investment Officer of The Audra Group - a single family office and affiliate of The Woodbridge Company Limited where she is responsible for the management and oversight of the investment program.  Prior to joining The Audra Group, Heather worked at Fiera Capital Corporation where she was the Deputy Chief Investment Officer and SVP of Private Alternatives.  She was also the Chair of the Global ESG Committee and expanded the Multi-Asset Class Solutions platform as SVP of Investment Solutions. Over her 30-year investment management career, she has held senior investment management and Canadian leadership roles at global asset management and consulting firms such as Unigestion Asset Management, Mercer Global Investments, Rogerscasey and Northern Trust Global Investments. Heather earned her Bachelor of Commerce degree from the Smith School of Business at Queen's University and holds a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation. She also volunteers at the CFA Society Toronto as a Board Member at Large and is a member of The Ticker Club of Toronto. 

Mari Jensen

Mari Jensen, CFA

Past Chair

Mari is Head of Treasury at MUFG Bank Canada, where she oversees asset-liability management and foreign exchange sales for Canadian clients and serves on MUFG’s Executive Committee of Canada. Mari has over 25 years of progressive experience in capital markets, wealth management and banking. Previous to joining MUFG Bank Canada in 2019, Mari was Director, Institutional FX Sales at Scotiabank Global Banking & Markets, where she provided FX coverage to investment managers in North America. Mari has served on the Board of CFA Society Toronto since 2019. Mari served on the Board of Directors of Women in Capital Markets from 2011 to 2019, including a term as Chair. Her leadership and dedication were recognized as the 2013 recipient of the WCM Rising Star Award. Mari completed her MBA from Simon Fraser University in 2004 and holds a BBA in Finance, also from SFU. She holds the Chartered Market Technician and Chartered Financial Analyst designations.
Bobby Thompson

Bobby Thompson, CFA

Treasurer

Bobby Thompson is a Partner at KPMG to in the Audit Practice focusing on financial institutions in the insurance sector. Previous to his role at KPMG, Bobby was a Senior Manager at EY providing audit and accounting advisory services to insurance and financial services clients across Canada. In addition to holding the designation of Chartered Financial Analyst, he holds the designation of Chartered Professional Accountant, Chartered Accountant. He has served on the CFA Society Toronto Finance Committee since 2015. He has lectured senior finance and accounting courses at Wilfrid Laurier University and Conestoga College. A community member of Waterloo Region, he enjoys spending free time with his partner Jenna and three children, Brooklyn, Mason and Juliet.

 

Sadiq Alladina

Sadiq Alladina, CFA

Director

Sadiq has specialized in commercial real estate since 2006 with experience evaluating investment and development opportunities across all major sectors. He is the Founder and Principal of Arrowton Realty Advisors, a firm that serves institutional investors, family offices, and high net worth individuals. Previously, Sadiq carried out core, value-add and opportunistic mandates in development management. He began his career at LaSalle Investment Management where he invested in real estate across Canada on behalf of a series of commingled funds and separate accounts. Sadiq also volunteers at the CFA Society Toronto as the past Chair and current Senior Advisor to the Industrial Relations and Corporate Governance committee. His writing has appeared in Canadian Investment Review, FDI Magazine, and Benefits Canada.


Grace Cleary-Yu

Karl Cheong, CFA

Director

Karl is an ETF pioneer who has been at the forefront of the industry's recent change. Karl is responsible for setting the strategic direction for the region and leading a team of First Trust investment professionals delivering ETF solutions to investment advisors and portfolio managers which has organically raised over $1.3 billion in AUM since inception. Previous to First Trust, Karl was the Head of Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and Structured Product Development for Claymore Investments, one of the fastest growing asset management firms in Canada's history. Karl provides insightful market commentary on a variety of topics including current events and industry trends as a guest on BNN Bloomberg and has also been featured in a variety of publications such as The Financial Post, Globe & Mail, Reuters, Morningstar, Investment Executive, CTV and was featured as an "Industry Icon" by Wealth Professional.

Sebastian Becerra

Sebastian Becerra, CFA

Director

Sebastian Becerra is the Managing Director, Deputy Head Global Transaction Banking at RBC Capital Markets. He leads client coverage for the Americas, Australia and New Zealand as well as the Product Strategy and Data and Automation teams. Sebastian is a client-centric business development professional skilled at combining industry, product, and regulatory knowledge to provide clients with tailored advice, insights, and solutions. He has a deep understanding of international and domestic payments, the securities industry and trade finance. Sebastian holds a Bachelor of Industrial Engineering (honors), a Master’s in Software Engineering, an MBA from McGill University and is a CFA charter holder. 



Brian Madden

Sarim Farooqi, CFA

Director

Sarim Farooqi has been at Laurentian Bank since February 2018 as Senior Vice President and Treasurer. He is responsible for Balance Sheet Management and Funding Execution. This includes Cash and Liquidity Management, Funding Planning, the Management of Structural Interest Rate and Foreign Exchange Risk, and the Execution of Secured and Unsecured Funding programs. Sarim is also responsible for the Management of Banker, Dealer, Rating Agency and Debt Investor Relationships and Corporate Development. Prior to Laurentian, Sarim had over 20 years of experience, working in Canadian and Global Banks in roles of increasing seniority covering Treasury, Fixed Income, Money Markets, and Equities. 

Audrey Gan V2

Audrey Gan, CFA

Director

Audrey is a Senior Vice President at BNY Mellon with over 30 years experience in the Financial Services Industry of which 20 years in Investment System Conversion and Integration in North America, United Kingdom, Europe, and Asia. Prior to joining BNY Mellon, Audrey was a Principal at Barclays Global Investors (Now Blackrock) managing national and global technology projects. Previously she was with AEGON Capital Management managing day-to-day operations with overall responsibility for the technology strategy for the investment division. Audrey has also held senior positions at prestigious financial services firms such as PricewaterhouseCoopers and TD Asset Management. Audrey currently serves as the Vice Chair of the External Relations Committee. Audrey has been a CFA Charter holder since 1998 and completed her MBA in Finance and BBA in Marketing from Schulich School of Business in Toronto, Ontario. 

Jenifer Rush

Jenifer Rush, CFA

Director

In her role as Head of Responsible Investing and Manager Research, Jenifer is responsible for enhancing SLGI’s multi-manager capabilities and accelerating the focus on responsible investing. Jenifer joined SLGI in February of 2022 to work as part of the Multi Asset Solutions team. Prior to joining Sun Life Global Investments in 2022, Jenifer was AVP, Head of Global Manager Research, in Canada, at a leading wealth management firm. Jenifer played a key role in augmenting the focus on ESG for Managers on the platform in her previous role. She brings with her over 25 years of industry experience across manager research and portfolio management. Jenifer holds an MBA from Queen’s University as well as the CFA and CAIA designations. Jenifer is actively involved in the Toronto CFA Society. Jenifer is also a Board Member of the North York Women’s Centre.

Minal Upadhyaya3

Minal Upadhyaya, LLB

Secretary

Minal is Head of Legal for Capital Group Canada, where she oversees the legal and compliance functions for Capital Group’s Canadian business. She has been in the financial services business for more than 20 years, providing business practical legal advice to investment management firms, including for the Canadian wealth and asset management businesses of TD Bank Group. Immediately prior to joining Capital Group Canada, Minal was the General Counsel and Privacy Officer for Halton Healthcare Services. 

Kar-Wei Lam

Kar-Wei Lam, CFA

Director

Kar-Wei Lam is a Wealth Advisor & Portfolio Manager at Aligned Capital Partners Inc., collaborating with families, professionals, and corporations in creating customized wealth solutions. In addition to managing clients’ investment portfolios, she advises on financial planning, insurance solutions and estate planning. As part of her commitment to the community, Kar-Wei was a volunteer member of the CFA Society Toronto’s Mentorship Committee for nearly a decade. She is also an avid connector and ran a long-standing Bay Street executive networking group that met twice a month to share ideas, collaborate and make new contacts. She is currently completing her Certified Financial Planner designation.

 

Sue Lemon

Fred Pinto, CFA

CEO and Director 

Fred Pinto is CEO of CFA Society Toronto. Fred is responsible for CFA Society Toronto's overall strategic direction and management. Core to this mandate is continuing to deliver outstanding member value, promoting high ethical standards in the investment industry and increasing the visibility of the charter with multiple key stakeholders. He sits on the Board of Directors of CFA Society Toronto.  Fred brings over 25 years of leadership experience in the Asset and Wealth Management industry and also sits on other Boards and Advisory Councils.

Fred holds a BA (Honours) from the University of Toronto, an MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business at Western University and received his ICD.D designation.