Private Markets Conference
Montreal

Candice Bangsund is Vice President and Portfolio Manager of Global Asset Allocation at Fiera Capital. She is a member of the Global Asset Allocation Committee, focusing on central banks and fundamental macro analysis, and actively participates in the development and communication of the firm’s asset allocation strategy. Candice also serves as the global spokesperson for Fiera Capital relating to all economic and investment matters and is co-lead Portfolio Manager on the Fiera Diversified Lending, Diversified Real Estate, and Diversified Real Asset Strategies. 

Her career in the investment industry spans over 15 years, including several years as an investment research analyst for Franklin Templeton Investments. While working at Franklin Templeton and on the Franklin Templeton Global Asset Allocation Committee, Candice gained extensive experience in conducting global macroeconomic analysis focusing on asset classes, regions, sectors, commodities, and currencies. She also conducted multi-manager fund research and analysis with a focus on Canadian and Global Equity asset classes.

Candice joined Fiera Capital in 2012 upon its acquisition of Calgary-based Canadian Wealth Management Group Inc, where she managed North American equity portfolios as well as the asset allocation decisions for private wealth clients. She joined the Fiera Capital Global Asset Allocation team in 2014. Candice obtained her Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation in 2009 and holds a degree in Finance from the University of Regina.

Monique F. Leroux is Senior Advisor (Non-Executive) of Fiera Capital where she is bringing her broad business experience and international network.

Companion of the Canadian Business Hall of Fame and the Investment Industry Hall of Fame, Monique Leroux is a corporate director. She is Chair of the Industry Strategy Council of Canada. She serves as an independent board member of global companies such as Michelin, Bell/BCE, S&P Global and Couche-Tard. As such, she brings to these boards her diverse experience, among others as former partner at Ernst and Young (EY), Senior Executive of RBC Royal Bank and Chair of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Desjardins Group from 2008 to 2016.

Ms. Leroux is a Member of the Order of Canada, an Officer of the Ordre national du Québec, a Chevalier of the Légion d’honneur (France) and a recipient of the Woodrow Wilson Award (United States). She has been awarded Fellowship by the Ordre des comptables professionnels agréés du Québec and the Institute of Corporate Directors and holds honorary doctorates from ten Canadian universities in recognition of her contribution to the business sector and to the community.

Mathieu Desforges is a Partner at Fiera Comox. In this role, he leads the Private Credit strategy in the U.S. & Europe. He is also a member of the firm’s Investment Committee overseeing Fiera Comox’s three strategies: Agriculture, Private Equity and Private Credit.

Prior to joining Fiera Comox in 2019, Mathieu spent seven years with Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), where he was the Head of Junior and Opportunistic Credit. He launched the Junior and Opportunistic Credit strategy in 2013 and grew it to $3.3 billion. In this role, Mathieu was responsible for investing globally in debt instruments (subordinated debt, mezzanine, PIK and preferred equity) as well as in opportunistic credit and distressed debt. He ran direct investments, co-investments and fund investments. Mathieu was a Board member of three CDPQ investee companies: Hilco Global, an American financial services holding company; Avison Young, a full-service global commercial real estate firm; Edelweiss ARC, an investment and financial services company based in Mumbai. Mathieu was also a member of CDPQ’s Relationship Investing Investment Committee as well as Edelweiss ARC’s Distressed Debt Investment Committee.

Mathieu also spent 10 years at Lehman Brothers in London in the Investment Banking & Fixed Income groups, investing Lehman Brothers’ balance sheet and managing distressed debt & special situations across Europe. Mathieu started his career as a corporate lawyer in Montreal at Fasken and then in Paris at BBLP Moquet Borde. Mathieu holds an MBA from London Business School and a law degree (LL.B) from the Université de Montréal.

Sarah has over a decade of experience in the institutional and direct agriculture industry. Prior to Fiera Comox, Sarah held senior consulting roles at both Callan and Aon Hewitt. Most recently, Sarah was a Senior Vice President, Real Assets at Callan, a leading institutional investment consulting firm, where she was responsible for the firm’s farmland investment research. In this role, she also worked with clients on real assets strategic planning, investment research, and asset class education.

In addition to her institutional experience in farmland, Sarah has direct agriculture experience having managed a large dairy heifer growing operation for a dairy and cropping farm in Wisconsin.

Sarah holds a Bachelor of Science, College of Agriculture with a concentration in Food Animal Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Caroline Grandoit leads the Total Portfolio Solutions group which is our client-focused and goal-based portfolio management business. She is responsible for structuring, implementing and monitoring customized multi-asset mandates and pooled funds as well as risk targeted and immunized liability driven portfolios. Furthermore, she oversees the research and development supporting Fiera’s MACS model (multi-asset class solutions), our proprietary risk factor-based asset allocation tool, and is a frequent speaker at industry conferences. She works closely with all segments of Fiera to offer the best solutioning capabilities to our global institutional and private clientele.

Ms. Grandoit joined the firm in 2017. Her career in the financial industry spans over 15 years working both in the United States and Canada, helping clients in her portfolio management, financial strategy and actuarial roles. She specializes in asset-liability modeling, portfolio projections and customized strategic asset allocation optimization.

Ms. Grandoit is a graduate of Concordia University in Montreal where she studied Actuarial Mathematics and Finance. She is also a CFA charterholder (CFA), a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries (FSA) and a Certified Enterprise Risk Analyst (CERA).

Andrée Mayrand is Director, Investment Management at Université de Montréal (Pension Fund and Endowment Fund). From 2015 to January 2020, she was Chair of the Conseil consultatif de régie administrative de l’Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF Advisory Board), of which she had been a member since 2007. She previously held various positions in institutional asset management and consulting, including Vice President, Asset Management for Groupe-Conseil Aon (now Aon Hewitt), and Director of Investments for the Bombardier Pension Funds. She was also a member of the investment committees of the Caisse commune des régimes de retraite de la Ville de Montréal, the McGill University Pension Plan and the Investment Advisory Committee of the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation. She currently sits on the Investment Committee of the Fondation Lucie et Andrée Chagnon and the Fondation de l’Athlète d’excellence du Québec. Prior to beginning her career in institutional asset management, she worked as an economist in the financial sector of the Economic Council of Canada and the Department of Finance Canada. Ms. Mayrand is a certified corporate director (administrateur de sociétés certifié – ASC) and holds a Master of Science in Management degree from HEC Montréal, with a specialization in Applied Economics.

Bradley Mashinter is a Partner at Fiera Comox. In this role, he leads the Private Equity strategy. He is also a member of the firm’s Management Investment Committee overseeing Fiera Comox’s three strategies: Agriculture, Private Equity and Private Credit.

Prior to Fiera Comox, Brad was a Managing Director at CPP Investments where he was a member of the firm-wide Global Leadership Team and Investment Committee member of CPPIB’s $125 billion global private equity portfolio. His career spans both private equity and private credit. Brad was one of the early leaders in CPPIB’s private debt group and was instrumental in building the Fund’s high performing global private credit franchise and was a member of its Investment Committee. He managed CPPIB’s investment in Antares Capital, the largest North American senior lender to middle-market private equity sponsors with over $50 billion in AUM and was the Head of the Antares Holdings Credit Committee.

Prior to CPP Investments, Brad was in the Direct Private Equity group at Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan in Toronto and at Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners in New York. Brad holds a BBA from the Schulich School of Business at York University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He is a CFA charterholder.

Katherine McElroy is a Senior Director in Fiera Private Debt’s Infrastructure Private Debt Group. Prior to joining the company in October 2020, Ms. McElroy was a founding member of the Clean Energy Infrastructure Credit strategy at Capital Dynamics, a leading clean energy investor, where she also served on the firm’s Responsible Investment Committee.

Prior to Capital Dynamics, Katherine McElroy was a Senior Vice President at General Electric Energy Financial Services (GE EFS), where she was an originator on the Debt team and was also responsible for opportunistic trading activity for the Debt portfolio. Prior to GE EFS, Ms. McElroy spent twelve years at The Royal Bank of Scotland/RBS Greenwich Capital where she held a variety of credit-focused roles across capital markets, loan portfolio management, and credit risk management. 

Ms. McElroy holds a Bachelor of Science (magna cum laude) in Finance and International Business, from Georgetown University in Washington, DC.

Alina Osorio is responsible for leading Fiera Infrastructure and overseeing the firm’s investment, asset management and finance teams.

Alina is a seasoned professional in the utility and infrastructure investment and financing sector. She has worked as an infrastructure investment professional and has been a key player in the sector for more than two decades.

Her many years of experience stem from her roles as an equity research analyst covering Canadian utility companies, an investment banker in the infrastructure sector , a principal investor, and finally, as a portfolio strategist for a major Canadian pension fund. She has extensive experience and a solid track record in her field.

Before joining Fiera Infrastructure, she was CEO of Aquila Infrastructure, where she oversaw the creation of the firm and its growth to more than $225 million in assets under management. Prior to that, she was CEO of the Macquarie Essential Assets Partnership (“MEAP”), North America’s first unlisted infrastructure fund, which invested in Canada and the United States. Under her leadership, MEAP pursued and assessed numerous opportunities, completed five acquisitions and one divestment. Alina went on to lead the infrastructure program at OPTrust, with a capital allocation of $2.5 billion. In this role, she was responsible for setting strategic direction, overseeing investment strategies and acquisitions, and managing an infrastructure portfolio in excess of $1 billion.

Alina holds a bachelor’s degree in Engineering from McGill University and an MBA from the Schulich School of Business. She is also a Chartered Financial Analyst and a Professional Engineer in the Province of Ontario.

Pierre Pelletier oversees the investment decisions, asset allocation, investor relations, and capital raising efforts for the development strategy at Fiera Real Estate (“FRE”). He and his team manage a real estate development portfolio worth over $4.2 billion that includes significant developments in major sectors such as multi-residential (10,500 units) and industrial (1.9 million square feet) and yields superior returns that consistently exceeds market expectations.

Pierre began his career in 1999 at a major accounting firm where he developed his passion for real estate primarily due to the influence it has on the urban landscape. After eight years in the real estate investment team with a large Canadian pension plan, Pierre joined a focus-oriented investment development firm for six years. Over the last 22 years, he has been actively involved in managing and raising capital for seven real estate development funds that total $700 million in raised capital, $6.4 billion of assets, and 20 million square feet.

With three children and a wonderful wife, Pierre manages to recharge his batteries by practicing many sports such as swimming.

Martin Saulnier joined the Real Estate Financing Team in July 2016.

Mr. Saulnier has more than 20 years of experience in real estate financing. He has notably held a manager position at a private investment firm, where he was involved in all aspects of the company’s operations, including partnerships, investment and financing analysis and project implementation. Mr. Saulnier also worked several years in the banking industry, in commercial real estate financing. He specializes in construction financing for large-scale residential, commercial, office, industrial and institutional projects. He is able to create financing structures that meet the needs of real estate developers, and has maintained strong business relations in the industry.

Martin Saulnier holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration (BBA) from HEC Montréal.

Theresa Shutt is Senior Vice President for Corporate Private Debt at Fiera Private Debt. Prior to joining the company in July 2019, she was the Chief Investment Officer of Private Debt with Integrated Asset Management.

Ms. Shutt is responsible for the overall strategic direction and operation of the Corporate Debt Financing Team. In this role, she provides leadership in support of business development, investment approval, fund strategy and portfolio management. With over 20 years of experience in corporate lending and capital markets, she contributes to the success of the business by growing AUM through strategic capital deployment and the development of innovative private debt strategies.

Prior to Fiera Private Debt, Ms. Shutt was a Managing Director with BMO Corporate Finance where she developed customized financing solutions for mid-market Canadian Companies. Previous to this role, she held a variety of roles at RBC and Scotiabank structuring fixed income and equity derivatives for corporations and asset managers. She began her career working as an economist for the Conference Board of Canada.

Theresa Shutt holds a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Economics (Honours) from the University of Alberta, a Master of Arts (MA) in Economics from McMaster University and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the Rotman School of Management of the University of Toronto. Ms. Shutt is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder.

As an expert in responsible investment, Rosalie advises market leaders in retail and institutional investment management, including banks, insurers and pension plans. She assists them in planning and deploying strategies that effectively take into consideration environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors.

Rosalie works hand in hand with experts and industry associations to drive industry change. She was heavily involved in developing the Canadian Transition Finance Taxonomy as well as the recent Canadian Pensions Dashboard for Responsible Investing. She is also active in developing Finance Montreal’s sustainable finance strategic plan and in the adoption of a new ISO standard on sustainable finance.

Rosalie often speaks at industry events and offers her insight to media and news outlets. She also enjoys sharing her knowledge with the many students at McGill and Sherbrooke university faculties where she teaches sustainable finance and responsible investment.

For 10 years, Rosalie Vendette headed responsible investment at Desjardins Group and served as an ESG group expert. She has also collaborated with the Quebec network of PRI signatories.

In 2019, Rosalie launched her own consulting service, DecodESG, aimed at helping organizations master ESG.

Sarah Butcher is Head of Private Markets Distribution within the Canadian Institutional Distribution team. She is responsible for generating new business opportunities amongst Canadian institutional investors for Fiera Capital’s private credit strategies. Sarah also has a leadership role in supporting Fiera Capital’s global growth across its private markets business.

Sarah’s career in the institutional asset management industry spanned nearly two decades before joining Fiera Capital in 2022. Before joining the firm, she was a Dealing Representative assisting global investment management firms cultivate new relationships with institutional investors and their consultants in Canada. Prior experiences include roles within the Institutional Client Group at Neuberger Berman and BlackRock. 

Sarah holds a Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) in Finance from the University of British Columbia and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from York University. 

Frederick Chenel is responsible for Fiera Capital’s Canadian Institutional business namely investors interactions and team management. Frederick joined Fiera Capital in 2010. He has since held roles with progressively increased responsibilities; most recently, Head of Consultant Relations and Business Development, Institutional Markets. Frederick has more than 15 years of industry experience. Prior experiences include Practice Leader and Research Analyst positions at a leading Canadian investment consulting firm.

Frederick graduated from McGill University with a Bachelor of Commerce (BCom), majoring in Finance. He later obtained the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation. Frederick was also President of CFA Montreal from to 2017 to 2019.

Stéphanie Lachance is a recognized sustainable investment expert and experienced corporate director. Stéphanie is Head of Sustainable Investment at Fiera Comox.  In her role, she namely leads Fiera Comox’s sustainability strategy and plays a key role in the organization’s investment strategy in ensuring that environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors are integrated in investment decisions across all investment strategies.

Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Stéphanie spent 15 years at PSP Investments where she was most recently Managing Director and Head of Responsible Investment.  She played a central role in the development of PSP Investments’ responsible investment strategy and led the Responsible Investment group of PSP Investments.

Lawyer with a strong background in corporate governance, responsible investment, securities law and regulations, Stéphanie was providing legal advice to public issuers, stock exchanges and securities regulators prior to joining PSP Investments.  She namely held senior positions at Québecor Media, Autorité des marchés financiers, Toronto Stock Exchange and Montréal Exchange.

Stéphanie holds a Law Degree (LL.B.) from the Université de Montréal and is a member of the Quebec Bar. She is a holder of the Institute of Corporate Directors Director designation (ICD.D). She serves on the board ofTSX Trust,, is a member of the Investment Committee of the Canadian Medical Protective Association, is a member of the Independent Review Committee on Standard Setting in Canada, and she also serves on the board of Food Banks of Quebec.

Stéphanie is an instructor at the Institute of Corporate Directors for the sustainability module. She is also the co-author of ‘The Origins of ESG in Pensions: Strategies and Outcomes’, published by Wharton University Pension Research Council in 2021.

Claude is a member of the Institutional Markets team and acts as Senior Advisor. In this role, Claude leverages his expertise in working with institutional clients across Canada to best understand and assist them in achieving their investment objectives while furthering Fiera Capital’s position as a well-recognized solutions provider.

Claude has a long tenured career and joined the firm in 2022. Prior to Fiera Capital, he has spent his entire career at a major consulting firm, where he gained extensive credibility in the pension industry. In his most recent role as an Executive Partner, Claude was responsible for a portfolio of major clients, primarily in pension fund financing and investment management. He also led their Canadian Retirement and Investment Management practices.

Claude has a Bachelor of Actuarial Science degree from Laval University and is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries (FSA) and the Canadian Institute of Actuaries (FCIA). Claude also serves on the Quebec Regional Council of the Association of Canadian Pension Management (ACPM) and on the Canadian Investment Committee and Programs Committee of the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP).

Sophie Lemieux is a member of the Institutional Markets team, where she provides customer service for institutional clients.

Sophie has some twenty years of experience in finance and communications. During her career, she has worked as a business relations director for a portfolio manager, a communications consultant for a financial institution and an analyst for a pension fund. From 2004 to 2016, she was a journalist and newsreader for Groupe TVA’s Argent channel, as well as a journalist and anchorperson for LCN and TVA Nouvelles.

Sophie is a graduate of Université Laval. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in business administration specialized in finance as well as a Master’s degree in finance.

Michael Quigley leads Fiera Capital’s Global Institutional Distribution activities across all investment platforms.

Michael has a deep understanding of the institutional business environment and an extensive knowledge of both traditional and alternative asset classes. He brings more than 30 years of investment management industry experience having achieved great success with asset management firms of varying sizes in Canada, the United States and Europe, and has developed and established a very strong network with pension plans, foundations, endowments and investment consultants. Under his leadership our teams of professionals focus on advancing the evolution of distribution practices while continuing to enhance the depth, value and sophistication of investor interactions. Michael is a member of the firm’s Global Executive Committee and the Managing Partner of our Boston Office.

He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Sherbrooke and is a holder of the CFA and CAIA designations.