Bank of Nova Scotia BNS-T has named telecom and media analyst Jeff Fan as its new global head of equity research, succeeding John Henderson, who is retiring after three decades on Bay Street.
Mr. Fan takes over a team of more than 100 analysts and associates at the only Canadian investment bank with significant coverage of Latin America, along with domestic and U.S. companies.
Scotiabank’s new head of research is stepping up at a time when Canadian dealers are competing for a share of a shrinking commission pie. In a report done two years ago, consulting firm Brendan Wood International said institutional investors are paying dealers US$330-million annually in commissions, down by 50 per cent over the past decade.
“Canadian investment research, traditionally a competitive business, has been faced with a declining commission revenue pool over the last few years,” said Brendan Wood. “This intensifies sell-side research competition for the remunerative attention of asset managers, who have fewer commission dollars at their disposal.”
Brendan Wood and rival consulting firm Greenwich Associates both ranked Scotiabank as the number two Canadian equity research team in recent surveys.
Mr. Fan has been with Scotiabank for 13 years; prior to that, he covered telecom stocks for UBS Securities. Last year, he took a leadership role in his department as co-head of equity research product management.
In an e-mail, Scotiabank global head of equities Pruyn Haskins said: “Jeff Fan has a long track record of success and we look forward to his further contributions as the leader of our award-winning equity research team.”
This is the second time Mr. Fan has taken the baton from Mr. Henderson. Scotiabank’s current head of equity research, who finishes up on Friday, spent 27 years at the bank, running the global research team for the past 13 years. Prior to that, he was the firm’s telecom and cable analyst.
Mr. Henderson also worked as the technology analyst at BMO Capital Markets predecessor Burns Fry and started his career at KPMG. Mr. Haskins said: “We want to congratulate John Henderson on his long and successful career at Scotiabank and wish him well in his retirement.”
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