Investment bank Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. CF-T has named Nadine Ahn as its next chief financial officer, six months after Royal Bank of Canada RY-T terminated her as CFO.
Ms. Ahn, 53, is set to take responsibility for the finances of the country’s largest independent investment dealer at a time when it is expanding operations in England, North American and Australia. Toronto-based Canaccord has 2,800 employees at 42 offices and oversees $106-billion of client assets. RBC has $2-trillion in assets.
“Nadine brings a wealth of multijurisdictional financial leadership experience, making her exceptionally well-suited to support our continued long-term growth and delivery of significant shareholder value,” Canaccord chief executive officer Dan Daviau said in a Wednesday news release.
“I am excited to join Canaccord Genuity Group, and I look forward to bringing my experience to an organization that prioritizes innovation, entrepreneurial spirit and improving shareholder returns,” Ms. Ahn said in the release.
Ms. Ahn will initially serve as Canaccord’s deputy CFO and will take over as CFO next year from incumbent Don MacFayden. He will remain with the company, initially to ensure a smooth transition with Ms. Ahn and subsequently as New York-based CFO of the company’s U.S. division. Mr. MacFayden, 68, joined the dealer in 1986 and has served as CFO since 2017.
“Don is a valued partner and has made an incredible impact to Canaccord Genuity,” Mr. Daviau said. “We are fortunate that Don will continue to have ongoing involvement in our business, leading the financial oversight of our U.S. capital markets operation, while supporting a successful transition with Nadine.”
Canaccord has distanced itself from rival independent investment banks by acquiring 15 wealth management platforms or businesses in the past eight years. In Canada, the company has hired 56 teams of financial advisers with $24-billion of assets since 2016. Part of Ms. Ahn’s job at Canaccord will be dealing with regulators in multiple markets, a responsibility she also had as CFO at RBC.
Ms. Ahn started her career as an accountant at PwC, then spent two years at Toronto-Dominion Bank before joining the treasury group at RBC in 1999. She spent seven years as controller or CFO of RBC Capital Markets, the country’s largest investment bank, prior to being named CFO of RBC in 2021.
Ms. Ahn played a key role in the bank’s $13.5-billion acquisition of HSBC Bank Canada from its British parent last year, the country’s largest financial services takeover. Prior to leaving RBC, Ms. Ahn was considered a candidate to be its next CEO.
But in April, RBC dismissed Ms. Ahn, alleging she had an undisclosed personal relationship with colleague Ken Mason, an executive in the bank’s treasury group, which led to preferential treatment, including promotions and raises. RBC also terminated Mr. Mason’s employment. The bank began an investigation of the two executives after receiving a tip from a whistle-blower.
Over the summer, Ms. Ahn and Mr. Mason each sued the bank for wrongful termination, seeking more than $70-million in combined damages. RBC has made a counterclaim that seeks to claw back compensation and bonus pay from the two former executives.
In a filing with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Ms. Ahn claimed “RBC’s allegations are patently false.” She said the bank’s decision to detail the reasons for her departure “caused her devastating, worldwide reputational harm, and impairs her ability to earn a living.”
In an e-mail to The Globe and Mail last month, Ms. Ahn’s lawyer, Mark Fletcher, said “there is no policy against workplace friendships, and that’s all this was.”
Moving to Canaccord may mean a pay cut for Ms. Ahn. Last year, Mr. MacFayden made $1.7-million, down from $2.4-million the previous year. At RBC, Ms. Ahn earned $4.2-million last year and $3.5-million the previous year.
When Ms. Ahn becomes CFO next year and joins Canaccord’s 11-person global management committee, the leadership team will include three women. The group includes chief technology officer Fera Jeraj, who joined Canaccord two years ago after spending 12 years in senior technology roles at Bank of Montreal.
After Ms. Ahn left RBC, the bank named Katherine Gibson as its interim CFO. In September, RBC gave Ms. Gibson, a 22-year veteran of the bank’s finance group, the CFO role on a permanent basis.