Advisory Council

Patti Shugart is Global Head of Corporate Banking and Global Credit and a member of the Operating Committee at RBC Capital Markets. In her role, Patti oversees a client-facing team of more than 500 professionals globally who specialize in lending, trading credit and loan portfolio management for the firm's corporate and institutional clients. She also chairs the Loan Portfolio Review Committee and the Commitments Committee which determines the firm’s global lending decisions.

Patti is a strong advocate for diversity and inclusion. She sits on the bank-wide RBC Diversity Leadership Council, is a co-founder of RWomen, a global internal forum dedicated to fostering and developing female talent, and she chairs the Women in Capital Markets’ Strategic Advisory Council. She is also the current Executive Champion for the Toronto RBC Race for the Kids and is RBC's Executive Sponsor for the United Way’s Women United group. Patti has been recognized for her outstanding contributions to the industry through the Champion of Change award from Women in Capital Markets in 2016. She was named one of Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women by Women's Executive Network in 2015 and 2017, and received the Women in Capital Markets Award for Leadership in 2010.

Patti is also a board member at Branksome Hall and sits on the Advisory Board for the Smith School of Business at Queen’s University. Patti has an MBA from the University of Toronto (Rotman) and a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) from Queen’s University.

Sunil Bhutani is Managing Director, Head of Government Finance and Syndication at National Bank Financial. He is also a member of the Fixed Income Management Committee.

In addition to his professional responsibilities, Sunil is the Financial Markets representative on National Bank’s Diversity Task Force. In this capacity, he plays an integral role leading the Bank’s diversity initiatives. Sunil serves as a Financial Markets co-Chair for the United Way Campaign and is also involved with a number of other educational and charitable organizations.

Sunil has more than 20 years' experience providing capital markets advice to all levels of government. He has an unparalleled track record leading deals for federal, provincial and municipal governments across Canada. Prior to joining NBF in 2013, he was Head of Government Finance at CIBC.

Sunil is a Chartered Accountant and has an MBA from the Schulich School of Business, York University.

Ozench Ibrahim is a partner in the financial services practice of KPMG, serving some of the firm's largest clients in the financial services industry. For almost two decades, she has audited and advised Canadian and global financial institutions. As audit partner for clients in banking, capital markets, wealth management, brokerage and other segments of the financial institutions industry, she has been very involved in some of the challenges and issues facing the financial services industry during the most recent financial crisis. As KPMG's designated IFRS champion for the financial services practice during the years leading up to the adoption of IFRS in Canada, she assisted clients and engagement teams on complex accounting issues, led KPMG's workshop series IFRS for Investment Dealers, and spoke at various seminars including those of OSFI and IIROC.

She is a mentor and sponsor for KPMG's top talent in its Women in Line for its Leadership program. Her community involvement includes service on the Board of Governors of York University as Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee, the Advisory Council of Women in Capital Markets and the Advisory Board of Schulich School of Business - Center of Excellence in Accounting and Society.

Heather-Anne Irwin teaches MBA and MFin Finance courses at the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management and brings the prospective of having been involved in capital markets for 19 years as an Investment Banker (both finance and M&A), New Issue Equity specialist (ECM) and Fixed Income specialist (DCM) at TD Securities, Nesbitt Burns and Citicorp. Heather-Anne is a member of the Board of Trustees for InnVest REIT (TSX:INN.un) and Chair of its Governance and Compensation Committee. She is also the Executive Director of the Canadian Securities Institute Research Foundation which encourages and supports research that will benefit Canadian capital markets through scholarships and grants.

Heather-Anne chaired the Steering Committee that founded WCM and then became its first President. She is still actively involved with the organization as a member of the Heather L. Main Scholarship Committee, the Mentorship Committee and WCM Awards judicator.

Trevor Kreel holds the position of Global Head of Portfolio Management and is responsible for Portfolio Management of the U.S., Canadian and Asia General Account assets as well as the Global Variable Annuity Hedging program.  Prior to this role, Trevor led the Global Asset Liability Management group, with responsibility to ensure asset and liability investment related risks were identified, measured and managed and that appropriate investment and hedging strategies were executed effectively in Manulife businesses around the world. 

Since joining Manulife in 1995, Trevor has also been the CFO of the Hong Kong business unit and prior to that was Vice President, Regional Actuarial in Hong Kong for three years. He also led the Structured Reinsurance group within Manulife’s Reinsurance Division and had a variety of financial roles within the US Insurance business unit.

Trevor received a Bachelor of Business Science degree and Post Graduate Diploma in Actuarial Science from the University of Cape Town and subsequently qualified as an Actuary through the Faculty of Actuaries in Edinburgh.  He is also a Fellow of both the Canadian Institute of Actuaries and the Society of Actuaries in the U.S.

As Chief Operating Officer of RBC Capital Markets and a member of its Operating Committee, Troy Maxwell is globally responsible for all operational and administrative matters of the firm, including optimizing cost base management and financial resources, and leading the response to regulatory change. Previously, Mr. Maxwell was Executive Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer of RBC Capital Markets and RBC Technology & Operations, overseeing all financial aspects of RBC’s wholesale business and its technology and operations platforms.

Mr. Maxwell is a champion for diversity and inclusion at RBC and across the financial services sector. He is a senior advisor for RWomen, RBC Capital Markets’ internal forum dedicated to fostering the development and career aspirations of women, and a member of Women in Capital Markets’ Strategic Advisory Council which advocates for the advancement of women in the industry. An active member of the community, Mr. Maxwell is a longstanding member of the United Way’s Major Individual Giving Cabinet, and is Co-Chair of RBC’s 2017 National Employee Giving Campaign.

Prior to joining RBC in 2005, Mr. Maxwell was Chief Financial Officer of CIBC World Markets. Before this, he was a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, where he led the financial institutions and corporate treasury risk management consulting and advisory business.

Mr. Maxwell is a Chartered Professional Accountant, and holds an Honours BA and a Master's Degree in Accounting from the University of Waterloo.

Mr. Tripp is the former President of BMO Capital Markets. Mr Tripp consults within the financial industry and serves on several boards both in the for-profit and not-for-profit sectors.   He is a past board member of the TMX Group and currently sits on the boards of the Canadian Market Authority Integration Office, Connor Clark and Lunn Financial Group, the Investment Management Corporation of Ontario and is Board Chair of the Michael Garron Hospital Foundation.

Dan Barclay was appointed CEO & Group Head of BMO Capital Markets in November 2018. In this role, he is responsible for BMO Financial Group’s interactions with corporate, institutional and government clients worldwide.

Previously, Dan was Co-Head, Global Investment & Corporate Banking (I&CB) where he oversaw relationships with corporate and government clients, including equity and debt underwriting, corporate lending and project financing, mergers and acquisitions advisory services and global trade and banking.

Dan has over 27 years of investment banking experience in a broad range of industries. He joined BMO’s investment banking group in 2003 as a Managing Director in the Mergers and Acquisitions group, and in 2009 was named Head of Canadian Mergers and Acquisitions. In 2014 he was appointed Head of Investment & Corporate Banking Canada and International. Prior to joining BMO, Mr. Barclay spent 13 years in investment banking at a global and Canadian investment dealer.

Dan serves on BMO Financial Group’s Executive Committee and chairs BMO Capital Markets’ Operating and Executive committees.

As a proud supporter of the United Way, Dan acted as past co-chair of the BMO Capital Markets Employee Giving Campaign and is a recipient of the Women in Capital Markets Champion of Change Award (2016). He also currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada.

Dan holds a Bachelor of Science with Honours from the University of Alberta and an MBA from the University of Calgary.

Jake Lawrence was appointed Co-Group Head, Global Banking and Markets in December 2018. In this role, Jake specifically holds oversight of Scotiabank’s Global Capital Markets businesses, focused on building alignment across product groups and priority markets to best serve our clients throughout our global footprint.

He continues to provide leadership and management of Scotiabank’s Global Banking and Markets in the U.S. including the overall strategic direction and execution of Scotiabank’s U.S. businesses.

Jake joined Scotiabank in 2002 and has held progressively senior roles in the Finance and Group Treasury and Global Banking and Markets teams since that time. He was, previously, Senior Vice President and Deputy Treasurer, responsible for Scotiabank’s wholesale funding activities, including securitization and regulatory capital, as well as liquidity management. Jake also served as Senior Vice President, Investor Relations for the Bank, and was responsible for the coordination of the office of Scotiabank’s President and CEO and related communications activities.

Jake holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree from Lakehead University and a Master of Business Administration degree from Wilfrid Laurier School of Business and Economics.

Riaz Ahmed was named President & CEO, TD Securities and Group Head, Wholesale Banking, TD Bank Group in September 2021.

His previous role was Group Head and Chief Financial Officer, TD Bank Group from 2016 to 2021. As CFO he was responsible for Enterprise Strategy, Finance, Chief Accountant’s department, Strategic Sourcing, Enterprise Real Estate, Treasury and Balance Sheet Management, Corporate Development, and TD’s Corporate Transformation Program and Strategy. Before assuming the CFO role, from 2013 to 2015, Riaz led Insurance and North American Credit Cards, two key growth businesses.

Riaz joined TD in 1996 as an investment banker within TD Securities’ infrastructure and independent power team. In 1999, he was appointed the firm’s Chief Financial Officer and subsequently Vice Chair and Chief Administrative Officer. In November 2004, Riaz was appointed Senior Vice President, Corporate Development, TD Bank Group. Joining its Senior Executive Team in August 2009, Riaz guided TD’s acquisition and treasury strategies. Prior to joining TD, Riaz held various roles with Citibank Canada and Financial Trustco and articled with Coopers & Lybrand (now PWC).

A passionate promoter of inclusivity and diversity in the workplace, Riaz chaired TD’s Inclusion and Diversity Leadership Council between 2015 and 2018. He also co-chaired TD’s United Way fundraising campaigns in 2013 and 2014. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Aga Khan Museum and is Chairman of Aga Khan Foundation Canada, National Committee.

Riaz holds a Bachelor of Commerce (with Distinction) from the University of Calgary. He obtained his Chartered Accountant designation in 1985 and was elected as a Fellow Chartered Accountant (FCA) by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario in 2013.

He grew up in Tanzania and later moved to Canada. He lives in Toronto with his wife and they have two grown children.

Samantha Paisley is the Capital Markets Consulting Leader for PwC Canada.

With more than 15 years of experience, Samantha has assisted the world’s largest capital markets participants on topics including risk management, regulatory, and technology programs. Samantha has worked extensively across the European and North American markets as well.

Samantha holds an Honours Bachelor of Science in Computer Science as well as an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration from Wilfrid Laurier University.

Susan Rimmer leads Global Corporate and Investment Banking for CIBC Capital Markets. Susan is a member of CIBC’s Capital Markets Executive Committee and chairs the Capital Market Global Deals Committee.

Most recently, Susan was Managing Director & Head of Global Corporate Banking, overseeing CIBC Capital Markets corporate banking, cash management and correspondent banking across Canada, U.S., Europe & Asia. Previously, Susan was Managing Director & Head of CIBC’s Global Debt Capital Markets business. She joined CIBC in 2009 following at 15 year in global capital markets and investment banking at another major financial institution in London, U.K. and Toronto.

Susan is a member of the Michael Garron Hospital Foundation board as well as a member of the Greenwood College School Board of Directors. Susan was inducted into the WXN “Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada” Hall of Fame in 2018 and has served as the Co-Chair of the CIBC Employee Giving campaign, an Executive Sponsor for the Capital Markets Diversity & Inclusion Committee, a board member of CIBC-Mellon and a board member of CIBC World Markets Inc.

Ms. Rimmer holds an MBA from INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France and an Honours Bachelor of Arts From Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario.

Gillian Brown leads the Capital Markets group, which manages Total Fund exposure to the equity, fixed income, credit, inflation-sensitive and absolute return asset classes. The Capital Markets team supports all of Ontario Teachers' investment groups and is responsible for executing on a centralized trade strategy that allows the Fund to focus on the needs of today's more sophisticated trading environment and its increasing regulatory complexity.

Since joining Ontario Teachers' in 1995, Gillian has held progressively senior roles; she was most recently the Managing Director, Credit, Insurance Linked Securities, Equity Products in our Capital Markets team, and prior to that she was the Director of Derivative Strategies and Trading within the Tactical Asset Allocation and Natural Resources department.

Gillian has more than 20 years of industry experience in equity and derivatives investment management. She holds a B.Comm. from McGill University and is a CFA charterholder.

David Ouellet is Senior Vice President and Chief Technology and Data Officer at the Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments).

In this role, David focuses on sustaining PSP Investments’ growth with effective tools and technologies that meet and exceed technological trends, including digital, cloud and artificial intelligence solutions. He also oversees Business Information Security, Business Governance, Data Management and Digital Innovation.

Prior to his appointment in 2020, David was Vice President and Head of Technology and Digital Strategy. Between 2016 and 2019, he was Vice President and Head of Strategic and Business Planning. David led PSP Investments’ five-year strategic planning, including the monitoring of strategic initiatives and key performance indicators and metrics.

Prior to joining PSP in 2012, David worked in Technology and Risk Consulting at KPMG for over 10 years. He spent two years of his mandate in China, where he managed the information technology aspect of the liquidation of Lehman Brothers Hong Kong entities, a project where IT played a significant role.

David holds a Bachelor of Commerce from McGill University and is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA).