A team diverse in thought and experience

Richard Abboud

Founder & Chief Executive Officer

• richarda@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

As Forum’s CEO, Richard provides strategic direction, leads the senior team, and oversees the Firm’s balance sheet and investment decisions.

Richard is an accomplished entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience in the areas of real estate investment and development, infrastructure development, public private partnerships, power investments, and private equity. He founded Forum as a real estate brokerage company in 1996. Forum made its initial principal investments in 2002. The firm has since generated investment, development, divestiture, and fully committed financing of more than $3 billion, with principal investment activities having yielded a cumulative return on invested capital in the top 1% of alternative asset managers. Today Forum’s enterprise value of assets under management is $1.7 billion. Richard lives in Toronto with his wife and two daughters. He enthusiastically supports the community with time and money, and has served in numerous not-for-profit board positions. He is an active member of the Young Presidents’ Organization.

Tate Abols

Managing Partner, Corporate Development and Private Equity

• tate@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Tate leads Corporate Development and Private Equity at Forum.

Tate is responsible for the Corporate Development and Private Equity activities at Forum and a member of the investment committee. Tate has spent the majority of his career in the private markets and is responsible for building out new asset classes and platforms as Forum grows its business. Prior to joining Forum, Tate spent fifteen years with Onex Corporation. During his career at Onex, Tate worked both as an investor in Onex’ private equity fund and as corporate development for the parent public company. Tate was directly involved in investing over $5 billion of capital in businesses covering sectors including asset management, healthcare, services and building products. Tate combines his investing capability with operating expertise, having held senior executive positions at two operating businesses owned by Onex. Prior to joining Onex, he worked in the Mergers & Acquisitions Group at RBC Capital Markets where he was involved with over $18 billion of transactions. Tate holds an Honours Business Administration degree (with Distinction) from the Ivey School of Business, University of Western Ontario, and a B.A. in Philosophy from Huron University College, University of Western Ontario.

Aly Damji

Managing Partner, Real Estate

• alyd@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Aly leads the Real Estate business at Forum.

Aly is focused on originations and overseeing real estate investments. He leverages his exposure to a broad range of asset classes as an urban developer, institutional asset manager and operator of value add/opportunistic investments, to drive growth for Forum and its partners. Aly has transacted and managed on behalf of several institutional, UHNW investors, and believes transparency leads to the sustainability of partnerships. Prior to joining Forum, Aly was EVP, Investments & Asset Management for Hullmark, a private urban real estate investor/developer in Downtown Toronto. Aly co-led direct acquisitions and led the firm’s asset management and operations functions. In his 7 years at Hullmark, Aly drove significant growth for the company, helping to increase AUM 15x to just under $1B, and co-led the development of partnerships with large scale institutional partners including a REIT, a Toronto-based university and one of Canada’s largest life insurance companies. Over the course of his tenure, Hullmark won several awards of excellence for various projects including two Toronto Urban Design Awards, an Architectural Journal (international) award as well as two NAIOP REX Awards for “Investment Deal of the Year” and “Mixed-Use Development of the Year”. Prior to Hullmark, Aly spent over 5 years with Westmont Hospitality Group in Toronto, most recently as a Director, Investments. In this role, he was involved with various acquisitions across North America and the asset management of several trophy hotel assets in major markets including Washington DC, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and Seattle. Over the course of his career, Aly has been involved with principal investments valued at more than $4 billion, arranged debt financings of more than $500 million, and secured over 300 leases resulting in NOI of $40 million.

Rajeev Viswanathan

Managing Partner & Chief Financial Officer

• rajeev@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Rajeev Viswanathan has worked with some of the largest Canadian real estate and asset management firms with global platforms, joining Forum to help the firm achieve its strategic growth objectives.

At Forum, Rajeev is responsible for the overall financial management of the firm, including financial strategy, planning, controls, risk management, tax, information technology and reporting. Rajeev is also responsible for ongoing asset management oversight of the firm’s investments and sits on Forum’s investment committee. Prior to joining Forum, Rajeev was the CFO of Dream Global REIT, a Western European, $6 billion office and industrial platform that was acquired in 2019 by Blackstone. Previous to his appointment at Dream Global, Rajeev was CFO for Dream Office REIT. At Dream Office, Rajeev was instrumental in transforming the REIT from a cross-Canadian to a Toronto-centric office portfolio, to drive future value through development and intensification. Before Dream, Rajeev spent almost a decade at Brookfield holding various senior finance roles, including corporate treasury and helping to establish Brookfield’s Private Funds group. During his tenure with Brookfield, Rajeev also worked at General Growth Properties (“GGP”), a US$40 billion shopping mall REIT, where he rebuilt and upgraded various finance capabilities following GGP’s bankruptcy emergence. Rajeev also serves on the board of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority. Rajeev is a CPA, CA and CFA charterholder, with a Master of Accounting and Bachelor of Mathematics from the University of Waterloo.

Kathleen Beaumont

Director, Impact & ESG

• kathleenb@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Kathleen is responsible for driving positive ESG outcomes for the Firm, Forum Real Estate Income and Impact Fund (REIIF), and Forum's growing real estate development projects and private equity business.

Kathleen is an analytical, client-focused investment professional with over 15 years of experience in asset management and rooted beliefs in sustainable investing. Prior to joining Forum, she held senior research and portfolio management positions at Russell Investments (RI) where she had primary accountability for the performance and ongoing oversight of recommended developed equity investment managers. In addition, she was a key contributor to RI’s broader ESG research efforts where she evaluated the risk and return impact of ESG issues and developed a foundational understanding of ESG best practices. Kathleen also serves on the board of Journalists for Human Rights, which is a Canadian charitable organization that empowers journalists to cover human rights stories objectively and effectively. Kathleen received a Bachelor of Commerce from Dalhousie University, holds the CFA Certificate in ESG Investing and is a CFA Charterholder.

Jonathan Bissada

Executive Director, Institutional Investments

• jonathanb@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

As a bilingual private markets specialist, Jonathan offers a wealth of experience and knowledge to our institutional partners across Canada and beyond.

With close to two decades of industry experience, Jonathan seeks to provide our institutional partners with insights and strategies to navigate today’s economic environment. He is responsible for developing a deep understanding of our partners’ priorities and providing investment-related services and solutions. Jonathan began his career in the financial industry in 2005. Prior to joining Forum, he held progressively senior roles at Invesco, most recently as Vice President of Institutional Investments, working closely with consultants, plan sponsors, family offices, endowments, and foundations. Prior to this, Jonathan was a product Management Director where he specialized in growing Invesco’s alternatives and private markets platform covering real assets, absolute return and asset allocation strategies. Jonathan earned an International Bachelor of Business Administration (IBBA) from the Schulich School of Business, York University, with a concentration in finance. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA) and the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designations.

Brendan Brooks

Director, Real Estate Asset Management

• brendanb@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Brendan’s main focus is to advance strategic objectives of the Forum Real Estate Income and Impact Fund (REIIF) and optimize portfolio management.

Brendan has a versatile background in real estate investments and financial services. Formerly as Director of Asset Management with Revera Inc., he oversaw the development and operations of high-end assisted living and memory-care facilities in Canada, the USA and UK. Most recently, Brendan was a Vice President at Northern Trust working with large institutional investor clients. Brendan also serves on the board of not-for-profit organizations for Eli's Place as well as Advanced Gerontological Education (AGE) Inc. Brendan is a CFA Charterholder and has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Guelph.

Sebastian Colville-Reeves

Director, Real Estate Investments

• sebastianc@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Sebastian underwrites and executes real estate investment and development opportunities with a focus on multi-family, PBSA, and self-storage assets.

Sebastian works on Forum’s Real Estate Investments Team where he focuses on financial analysis and underwriting. Prior to joining Forum, Sebastian worked as an Investment Banking Associate for Berkshire Global Advisors in both London and New York where he advised on the transfer of more than $40 billion of assets under management with a focus on real estate and alternative asset management companies. Sebastian holds a Master of Real Estate Development from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts from Middlebury College.

Collin Drosdoski

Director, Real Estate Acquisitions

• collind@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Collin is focused on origination, underwriting and deal execution of potential investment opportunities for the Forum Real Estate Income and Impact Fund (REIIF) and Forum’s balance sheet capital.

Collin started working in the Commercial Real Estate industry in 2017 and has over 5 years of direct investing and commercial lending experience. Collin has been actively involved in $1 billion plus of transactions in major markets across Canada, on both the equity and debt side. Prior to joining Forum in 2021, Collin worked as an Analyst in Real Estate Private Equity for CanFirst Capital Management. During his time at CanFirst, he evaluated more than $2 billion in potential investment opportunities for closed and open-ended investment funds with an emphasis on value-add and opportunistic strategies. Prior to CanFirst, Collin worked as an Analyst in a $13 billion commercial mortgage investment fund at Canada Life. Collin holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) from the University of Manitoba with a major in Finance and is a CFA Level III candidate.

Domenic Gallippi

Managing Director, Alternative Assets

• domenicg@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Domenic’s efforts are focused on the origination and development of new and existing client relationships for Forum Asset Management across private wealth channels, institutional, portfolio manager, and family office clients.

Domenic has over 14 years of experience in the investment business, combining investment management and research, business development, and secured lending. Prior to joining Forum, Domenic spent six years with Russell Investments where he provided insight and guidance on portfolio construction, asset mixes, private pools, and the implementation of alternative investments, including real estate, infrastructure, and private equity strategies to leading private wealth advisors and platforms across Canada. He also held roles within TD Bank Financial Group with a focus on real estate secured lending. Domenic holds the Chartered Investment Manager (CIM®) designation and has an Honours Degree from York University in Toronto. Domenic is a registered Portfolio Manager (Advising Representative) for Forum Asset Management in Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia.

Dayna Gilbert

Managing Director, Real Estate Development

• daynag@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Dayna Gilbert leads the real estate development team at Forum.

Dayna is focused on leading teams that execute on complex development initiatives that create value through acquisition, design, entitlement, and construction of a variety of asset classes. Prior to joining Forum, Dayna was the Director of Development at Canadian Apartment Properties REIT (CAPREIT), Canada, Ireland and the Netherlands largest residential rental asset manager. Dayna led and managed all new development, along with building the department, where she established a short and long-term pipeline for future asset growth on existing land in all portfolios. Prior to CAPREIT, Dayna was the Director of Development at Fieldgate Urban, a new arm of the real estate developer, focused on mid to high rise development. In this role, she was involved in the acquisitions and development of various mixed use residential projects. Dayna holds an undergraduate degree from the School of Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Waterloo and a Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of Guelph.

George Geracimo

Senior Advisor, Real Estate

George Geracimo is advisor to Forum’s Real Estate group.

George is an independent consultant specializing in commercial property asset management & development. With over 35 years of experience in various facets of commercial real estate, including urban & suburban office, industrial and retail, George has extensive knowledge working with major local, national & international owners, private equity investors and managers & developers of commercial real estate. In addition to Forum, George has worked with other organizations such as, KingSett Capital Partners (Toronto), RBC Financial Group (Montreal & Toronto), Technoparc Montréal, Triovest Realty Advisors Inc., and more.

Lara Iannucci

Managing Director, Real Finance

Lara is responsible for finance across Forum’s real estate platform, overseeing financial operations and reporting.

Prior to joining Forum, Lara was the Senior Vice President of Finance, Canadian Commercial at Starlight Investments responsible for the financial reporting, long term debt financing, acquisition due diligence, financial operations management, and investor relations for True North Commercial REIT, as well as the institutional commercial portfolio asset managed by Starlight. During her tenure with Starlight, Lara assisted in the completion of over $3 billion of investment transactions. Prior to Starlight, Lara spent eight years with BDO Canada LLP as a Manager in the Audit and Assurance Group, working predominantly on real estate clients. Lara is a CPA, CA and holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from York University.

Rob Kaplan

Partner, Private Equity

• robk@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Rob is a finance professional with over 11 years of principal investment, capital markets and advisory experience across a variety of industries including consumer, business services, casino gaming, technology, insurance and healthcare.

Over the course of his career, Rob has played a key role in the origination, assessment and execution of over 20 completed transactions totaling over US$16 billion. Prior to joining Forum, Rob was Vice President, Penfund, a North American junior capital provider, where he focused on mid-market subordinated lending and private equity investments. Prior to Penfund, Rob spent over six years with Macquarie Capital in Toronto and Los Angeles, most recently as a Vice President, Consumer, Gaming and Leisure where he focused on M&A advisory and leveraged finance transactions. Rob holds a JD / MBA from the University of Toronto and a Bachelor of Administrative and Commercial Studies from the University of Western Ontario. Rob is also a CFA charterholder.

Ali Khoja

Managing Director, Real Estate Operations

• alik@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Throughout his tenure Ali has always focused on delivering exceptional customer service and superior KPI driven profits.

Ali began his career in hospitality and multifamily residential over 30 years ago. His first job out of university was valet parking at the Westin where his desire grew for hospitality. Since then, he has been part of many successful companies and has had the opportunity to manage and oversee multiple hotel brands including Westin, Hilton, Holiday Inn, Radisson, as well as luxury independent boutique hotels. He eventually transitioned to residential real estate as President of a large Toronto based organization with a portfolio of over $1B in assets. As President, Ali opened and operated 5 new purpose-built rental apartments and led his team to multiple awards in service, renovations, and new construction. Ali also ran best in class luxury retirement residences and has worked with seniors living for close to a decade.

Tony Leone

Partner, Corporate

• tonyl@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Tony is Forum’s Partner, Corporate, responsible for various firm and platform-related financial matters.

In Tony’s role, he is assisting to build the firm’s capabilities to achieve its strategic growth objectives, while working closely with Forum’s platform teams on deal structuring and on-going investment oversight. Most recently, Tony was the AVP and CFO of the Wealth Advice Business at TD Bank, where he led the financial reporting, forecasting, planning and advisor compensation teams and served on several of TD Wealth’s project committees and corporate boards. Prior to TD Bank, Tony served as the Executive Director at the Hillcore Group (“Hillcore"), a leading mid-market investment firm in the real estate, life sciences, seniors living, forestry and energy sectors. As a senior member of Hillcore’s investment team over a period of 13 years, Tony was responsible for sourcing, negotiating, structuring and closing on over $2 billion of investments across all asset classes and industries. Tony is a CPA, CA and began his career with KPMG in the Financial Institution and Real Estate practice.

Sydney MacDougall

Associate Director, Marketing and Communications

• sydneym@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Sydney leads Forum’s marketing team

With over a decade of experience working in asset management and private equities, Sydney oversees Forum's marketing team. Her primary focus is on enhancing Forum's marketing and communications strategy. Leading the marketing team with a dynamic and collaborative approach, Sydney ensures that every initiative aligns with overarching business goals. With a background and passion for brand development and management and event marketing, she brings a great combination of understanding an asset management business and a wide range of experience and capabilities needed to enhance Forum's marketing strategy, setting a distinctive path in a competitive landscape. Prior to joining Forum, Sydney was most recently with Paradise Developments Inc. (Paradise) where she was in the role of Manager, Corporate Operations & Human Resources. Prior to the Paradise, Sydney was at Hullmark Asset Management for almost 7 years. Sydney has a B.A. in Health Sciences from Brock University and a Human Resources Management Certification from the Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University), with a focus on organizational behaviour.

Dave Pendrith

Executive Director, Alternative Assets

• DaveP@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Based in Toronto, Dave supports full-service investment professionals in the downtown core and is responsible for business development and client relationship management.

A highly motivated sales professional, Dave has a passion for helping Investment advisors find the best solutions for their clients. With a proven track record of success, he has developed a deep understanding of the financial industry and the specific needs of the modern Investment advisor. Dave provides valuable insights and guidance to help advisors meet their clients’ needs and achieve their financial goals. Prior to joining Forum, Dave spent 9 years at one of Canadas leading alternative asset management firms supporting wealth management teams to help develop their asset allocation with a focus on private markets.

Steven Pink

Director, Real Estate Project Management

• stevenp@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Steve leads Forum’s project management group.

Steven has over 9 years of experience and has constructed close to 3 million square feet of commercial and residential real estate, totaling to a value of over $1.5B+. He leads Forum’s project management group that is responsible for project delivery and oversight of third-party constructors.

Susan Podolsky

Director, People & Culture

• susanp@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

With over twelve years of experience in Talent Acquisition, People and Culture, and Employee Development, Susan provides strategic human resources support to Forum’s team.

She is a high energy, results driven senior HR and Talent leader with experience working in large organizations and entrepreneurial start-up firms. Susan brings her passion in human resources to actively develop trusted partnerships with the business to achieve desired results. Susan is excellent at relationship management and provides strategic support to leaders with a focus on data driven insights that inform people solutions. She leverages her strong business acumen to ensure strategic partnerships and successful delivery of objectives and results. As a proven Change Champion, Susan is known for leading large scale organizational change management programs and provides excellent service delivery in employee engagement, succession planning and onboarding. Susan has a Bachelor of Arts (Hons), Specialization in Psychology, Industrial Organizational Psychology from the University of Western Ontario. She also has a certificate in Human Resources Management from George Brown College.

Nadia Somani

Senior Vice President, Legal

• nadias@forumam.com
• LinkedIn

Nadia is responsible for legal and compliance matters as well as corporate governance and corporate secretarial functions for the Forum group of companies including its funds. She also serves as Forum’s Chief Privacy Officer.

Prior to joining Forum, Nadia worked in Geneva, Switzerland where she served in a senior global legal and compliance role at one of the world’s largest private international development organizations operating in over 20 countries with a mandate to improve the quality of life of those in need, mainly in Asia and Africa. She has also served as Director of Legal Affairs for a network of charitable organizations including a partnership initiative with the Government of Canada. Previously, Nadia was partner at a downtown Toronto law firm where she was a corporate and securities transactional lawyer for private and public companies for several years. Nadia is dually licensed in Canada and the USA and holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. Nadia was called to the Ontario Bar in 2007.

Peter Aghar

Principal - Crux Capital Corporation

Peter is the president of Crux Capital, a value-add real estate investor, developer and venture capital investor active across Canada.

Since 2013, Crux and its partners have purchased over 3 million square feet of commercial property and have participated in over 1 million square feet of development. Peter was a founding partner, President and Chief Investment Officer of KingSett Capital and began his real estate career at GE Capital. He has been responsible for more than one hundred real estate transactions, totaling more than $10 billion in value, including investments in Canada, the United States and across the globe. Transactions involved equity investments, developments, joint ventures, structured and mezzanine debt, open and closed end private equity funds, as well as the privatization and launch of public entities. A graduate of the University of Waterloo with an Honours Mathematics degree, Peter participates on a variety of public and private boards and is a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization.

Tania Carnegie

Partner - KPMG LLP

Tania is the Global & US Practice Lead for ESG and impact investing services for KPMG’s Private Equity and Asset Management clients.

A Partner based in New York, Tania is part of KPMG’s Global Asset Management Leadership Team and KPMG IMPACT, an enterprise-wide platform that accelerates KPMG’s global ESG strategy. She advises institutional investors on strategies that integrate social & environmental factors into decisions that create long-term value. Since joining KPMG Canada’s Financial Services practice over 20 years ago, Tania has taken an entrepreneurial path that included creating and leading the firm’s first social impact strategy, serving as its first Chief Impact Officer, and launching the Impact Ventures practice to support clients who were early adopters of impact investing. She contributes to key national and international sector-building initiatives including the G8 Social Impact Investment Taskforce and a federal Steering Group that drafted a national social innovation & social finance strategy. She also leads KPMG’s relationship with FCLT Global. Tania is a Director of The Prince’s Trust Canada, was the inaugural Chair of the TELUS Friendly Future Foundation, and is the Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel of 32 Service Battalion. She has been recognized with the Royal Victorian Order, the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers, and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal. Tania is a CPA, holds a Masters of Business Administration from the Rotman School of Management, and Bachelor of Science from Western University.

David Fleck

Co-President - Forthlane Partners

David has had a 30 year career in the financial services industry starting as an investment banker with Merrill Lynch Canada in 1986.

In 1989 he joined the Institutional Equity team at Burns Fry and remained with the firm after it was bought out by the Bank of Montreal in 1994. A few years later he became Global Co-Head of the Equity Group at the bank. In 2008, David resigned from BMO and started an interesting career path in the midst of a global financial crisis. In 2009 he became president of an international quantitatively based money manager called Mapleridge. In 2011 he accepted the position of President and CEO of Macquarie Capital Markets Canada, a full service capital markets business. David is a board member of Alamos Gold Inc. and Kew Media Group and has served as a director of a number of Canadian based charities. He is currently Vice-Chair of Soulpepper Theatre Company and a board member of the Art Gallery of Ontario Foundation. He received his MBA from INSEAD and completed the Institute of Corporate Directors program at the Rotman School of Management.

Tom Flynn

Advisory Board

Tom Flynn is a corporate director and retired as Vice-Chair of BMO Financial Group in 2022

Tom Flynn is a corporate director and retired as Vice-Chair of BMO Financial Group in 2022. Tom was Bank of Montreal’s Chief Financial Officer from 2011 to 2020 and Chief Risk Officer from 2008 to 2011. Tom also held other leadership positions, including Executive Vice-President, Finance and Treasurer, and Head of the Financial Services Corporate and Investment Banking Group in BMO Capital Markets. Tom is a director of Telus and Ontario Health and previously served as Chair of the Boards of Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital and Symcor Inc. Tom obtained his MBA and his Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Business Administration from the Ivey School of Business at Western University. Tom also holds an ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors and is a Chartered Professional Accountant and a Fellow of CPA Ontario.

Mark Maybank

Co-Founder and Managing Partner - Maverix Private Equity

Mark is a Co-founder and Managing Partner with Maverix Private Equity where he leads the collective team and firm operations.

As an active investor, director, advisor and entrepreneur, he has a wealth of experience spanning across multiple industries and geographies. This includes financial services, technology, health and wellness, media, telecom, oil and gas, services, and advanced manufacturing. With a passion to drive growth with a focus on human elements, Mark strives to scale Canada’s strong and vibrant innovation-based ecosystem. Prior to Maverix, Mark was the President and COO of Canaccord Genuity Corp, where he led the expansion of their wealth management and international capital markets businesses, positioning the firm as a global leader in commodity and technology financing. In addition to being EVP, Corporate Development at Itemus Inc., a technology firm, he was also a Senior Technology Analyst with Yorkton Securities, and CFO of ECS Enhanced Cellular Communications, a US-based cellular services company. Mark earned his Chartered Accountant and Chartered Business Valuator designations at Deloitte in the audit, tax, and valuation advisory practices. Currently, Mark is the Chairman of Fleet Canada Inc. and serves on other boards including Forum Equity Partners and New Latitude Capital. Previously, he served on several boards including Executive Chairman (Advisory) of the Kirchner Group, Knix Wear, Entrec, Empire State Connector, Biologix, Moraine Capital, and Canaccord Genuity Financial. Mark is an active philanthropist with former roles as Co-Chair of Gold Medal Plates, a Canadian Olympic Foundation program, Special Advisor to the Treasury Board of Canada, Ambassador for World Bicycle Relief, Advisor to SpiderTech cycling, member of the Corporate Advisory Board of the Art Gallery of Ontario and guest lecturer at the Director’s College.

Satish Rai

Senior Advisor and former Chief Investment Officer at OMERS

Satish Rai was previously Chief Investment Officer at OMERS overseeing all asset classes globally.

Prior to joining OMERS in January 2015, he served as Chief Investment Officer at TD Asset Management. Currently he is a senior advisor at OMERS. In addition he serves on the Board of Brookfield Asset Management, Fairfax India, Richcraft Homes and Second Harvest and on the Advisory Committee for Capitalize for Kids. At TD Bank Mr. Rai chaired the Committee of the Advancement of Visible Minorities in Leadership Roles and a Diversity Leadership Council member. He is a past member of the respective Boards of the University of Waterloo, Michael Garron Hospital Foundation (formerly Toronto East General Hospital Foundation), Toronto Global and Women in Capital Markets. Mr. Rai holds both a Bachelor of Mathematics (University of Waterloo) and a CFA and a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization/World Presidents’ Organization. In 2002, he was recognized as one of Canada’s Top 40 Industry Leaders Under 40, and in 2006 he received the Alumni Achievement Medal.

Bruce Robertson

Vice President, Investments - The Woodbridge Company Limited

A Chartered Accountant with experience as a director of public, regulated and not-for-profit organizations, Bruce Robertson is responsible for overseeing overall investment positions at Woodbridge.

He previously worked as Chief Restructuring Officer at AbitibiBowater Inc., where he and his team received a number of industry awards for restructuring the company – the world’s largest newsprint producer – and successfully turning it around. Prior to AbitibiBowater, Bruce was a Senior Managing Partner at Brookfield Asset Management Inc., where he was on the Management Committee and Co-Head of its Specialty Funds business, managing capital in distressed private equity, bridge lending and real estate mezzanine finance strategies.

David Rogers

Vice Chair, CBRE Investment Management, Private Infrastructure

David is a seasoned professional in the private market investment sector, with a distinguished career spanning various leadership roles and significant contributions to the industry. He recently served as the Vice-Chair at CBRE Investment Management (CBREIM), Private Infrastructure, where he played a pivotal role in guiding the firm. Presently, he continues to lend his expertise to the firm as an Advisor.

Before his entrepreneurial venture into Caledon Capital Management, David had a successful tenure with OMERS Private Equity group. His journey there began as a Senior Portfolio Manager, where he was instrumental in initiating and managing a globally diversified portfolio of private equity funds and co-investments. Later, he ascended to the position of Senior Vice President, Private Markets, a role that also included the responsibility of sitting on the Board of the Borealis Infrastructure group. In 2002, David became a founding board member of the Institutional Limited Partner Association (ILPA), where he served diligently for several years. His passion for sharing knowledge and insights in the field has led him to be a frequent speaker at various North American and European private market investment conferences. His areas of expertise notably include infrastructure and Private Equity investing.

Walied Soliman

Chair - Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP

Walied Soliman is the Canadian chair of Norton Rose Fulbright.

He is also co-chair of our Canadian special situations team, which encompasses Canada’s leading hostile and complex M&A, shareholder activism and complex reorganization transactions. He is widely regarded as one of the leading special situations practitioners in Canada. Over the past several years, Mr. Soliman has been involved in almost every major proxy battle in Canada, acting for both issuers and activists. In addition, his practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, financings, corporate governance and structured products. Sought after for his depth of knowledge and experience, Mr. Soliman was appointed in February, 2020 by the government of Ontario to serve as chair of the Capital Markets Modernization Taskforce, whose mandate was to conduct a full review of the capital markets regulatory regime. Mr. Soliman was the only lawyer recognized in the Globe and Mail’s Report on Business Magazine Power 50 list for 2017; was designated as a “Star Lawyer” by Acritas in 2017 for ranking in the top 28 lawyers globally (over 5,000 lawyers) as selected by a panel of over 3,000 senior in-house counsel; ranked as a leading Canadian corporate lawyer by both Chambers Canada and Lexpert Canada since 2016; named one of the 25 most influential lawyers in Canada by Canadian Lawyer magazine in 2014; ranked by Best Lawyers in Canada since 2013; and was ranked as one of the Top 40 Lawyers under 40 in Canada by Lexpert magazine in 2009. Mr. Soliman sits on the board of the BlackNorth Initiative against anti-Black racism, and among other philanthropic endeavours, he is a board member of the Toronto SickKids Hospital Foundation.