The 2025 Wealth Skilled Awards

July 29, 2025

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Bounce to winners | Bounce to methodology | Bounce to judging panel

Charting the following decade of wealth on the 2025 Wealth Skilled Awards

For the eleventh consecutive 12 months, Wealth Skilled introduced collectively a large cross-section of Canada’s wealth trade for a night of recognition, networking, and celebration.

The 2025 version of the WP Awards unfolded at a gala full of dancing, dinner, and reunions. Amid the festivities, standout corporations and people had been honoured throughout a spread of classes, with a choose group named WP award-winners on the evening.

“It’s actually necessary that we acknowledge what we’re doing to assist Canadians, to assist buyers, and to essentially showcase top quality and that nice shopper expertise,” mentioned Wan Kim, managing director of nationwide gross sales at Trez Capital.

Trez Capital sponsored the Seller of the Yr award, which was introduced to Nicola Wealth.

Trez was one among a number of sponsors supporting this 12 months’s occasion. Others included Franklin Templeton, PPI, Worldsource, Avenue Residing, CMI, Desjardins, Equiton, ICM, Newlook Capital, Pier 4, SIMA, and FP Canada. Many sponsors mentioned their participation displays a broader funding within the trade’s future, past monetary returns.

“Sponsoring the Monetary Literacy Champion of the Yr Award is a approach to spotlight these staying forward of the curve,” mentioned Christina Ashmore, managing director of IFSE Institute. “It evolves along with your life, and the data retains altering. That’s why we expect it’s so necessary to maintain supporting the trade’s work on this area.”

Themes of shopper service, innovation, and affect on Canadian households recurred all through the night.

“Investing is my ardour, however it’s additionally my pastime,” mentioned David LePoidevin, lead advisor on the LePoidevin Group of Canaccord Genuity Wealth Administration, after receiving the Franklin Templeton Award for Advisory Group of the Yr (10 employees or extra).

“Once I get up within the morning, I examine the bond market; on the finish of the day, I examine the futures. I prefer to generate income, and shoppers wish to generate income, so we’re all in it collectively.”

Liz Bouthillier, head of promoting and communications at Franklin Templeton, mentioned the agency’s award displays the elevated complexity of the advisory occupation.

“This award acknowledges how advanced the trade has develop into – with extra product selection, extra advanced shopper calls for, and a rising have to take a holistic view of how shoppers can obtain their objectives.”

Cameron Smith, VP of personal wealth at Nicola Wealth, emphasised the agency’s dedication to understanding shoppers earlier than providing any suggestions.

Smith, who took dwelling each the Trez Capital Award for Seller of the Yr and the PPI Award for Holistic Advisory Group of the Yr, defined their course of with shoppers. “We give no recommendation till we’ve spent hours attending to know our shoppers, financially and by way of their values, feelings, and household. Deep discovery is the important thing to every part.”

Justin Janas, VP of personal wealth options at Hamilton Lane, named Non-public Asset Funding Supplier of the Yr, emphasised the significance of “customer support, actually getting in entrance of nice individuals who use options.” He added, “I’d say the benefit of accessing our fund – I feel that basically units us aside in comparison with different suppliers.”

“To win this award again to again – it’s actually concerning the crew,” mentioned Rohit Mehta, CEO of International X, which received ETF Supplier of the Yr for the second consecutive 12 months. He added that their success additionally displays their connectivity with the markets and shoppers, and their skill to reply to evolving calls for and wishes.

Maili Wong of Wellington-Altus Non-public Wealth was introduced with the Equiton Award for Canadian Advisor of the Yr once more, creating a chance for a 3rd win in 2026.

“Being a key decision-making advisor is extraordinarily impactful,” mentioned Geoff Lang, SVP of enterprise improvement at Equiton. “A lot funding selection, a lot media noise — we’re proud to sponsor advisors who put shoppers first and rise above the noise.”

New classes additionally featured at this 12 months’s occasion. Skyline acquired recognition because the inaugural Actual Property Funding Supplier of the Yr and in addition received Employer of Selection.

“Actual property is crowded in Canada,” mentioned Wayne Byrd, CFO at Skyline. “If we take into consideration the Canadian inhabitants, 39 p.c of the Canadian inhabitants is in Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver. The place do the remainder of the 61 p.c dwell? In the remainder of the nation! And that’s the place we deal with investing.”

Courtroom Elliott, VP of promoting at AGF, pointed to longevity and flexibility after the agency received Mutual Fund Supplier of the Yr. “AGF has been round for nearly 70 years. We’ve obtained a protracted monitor report of efficiency, unbelievable PMs, an unbelievable crew… it actually comes all the way down to the individuals behind the group.”

“As increasingly individuals are retiring and want extra stability, that’s what different investments are for,” mentioned John Courtliff of ICM Asset Administration, which sponsored an award centered on the choice area.

Darren Gazdag, VP of gross sales at Pier 4, described the gala as “a privilege” and “a discussion board to acknowledge expertise, innovation, and management.”

Now in its eleventh 12 months, the Wealth Skilled Awards continues to have a good time the professionals and suppliers shaping the way forward for Canada’s wealth trade.

The 2025 winners showcase what’s doable when technological intelligence meets human perception – and why each matter greater than ever.

A phrase from editor

The crew at Wealth Skilled Canada are so proud to be internet hosting the WP Awards for our tenth consecutive 12 months! It looks like a milestone to host these awards for a decade. That tenure highlights WP’s place as a number one media useful resource to monetary advisors and the monetary companies trade. Maybe extra importantly, it highlights our need to be of service to this trade, to supply advisors and trade leaders a spot to have a good time their successes.

It’s been a 12 months the place each success is price celebrating. Canadian advisors have taken a lot in stride over the previous 12 months. Elections on each side of the border, the existential menace of tariffs, a inventory market correction, and a local weather of unprecedented uncertainty.

By way of all that, advisors have made themselves a port within the storm for his or her shoppers. I’ve listened to so many tales of reassurance, perseverance, and knowledge by way of this time and been constantly impressed by the extent of service advisors supply. As this trade’s shoppers stay up for the nice and cozy summer season months, I do know they’re grateful to have sturdy monetary recommendation. Tonight, we have a good time that exceptional achievement

Yearly, the judging panel is impressed by the standard of excellence awardee submissions, commenting on the complexity, professionalism, innovation, and enterprise acumen demonstrated by insurance coverage professionals – 2025 is not any exception. Thanks to everybody who submitted a nomination. Tonight, we’ll reward the best within the trade!

On behalf of our entire crew at Key Media, I wish to thank the panel of judges who contributed their appreciable time and information to the judging course of. We had a whole lot of high quality nominations from throughout Canada and our judging panel had the unenviable activity of narrowing that area to the listing of excellence awardees you will notice tonight.

Congratulations and good luck to all of the excellence awardees. We hope you all have a incredible evening.

Lastly, we wish to thank all our sponsors whose beneficiant assist of those awards is vastly appreciated. Our thanks exit to Avenue Residing, CMI Monetary Group, Desjadins, Equiton, ICM Asset Administration, FP Canada, Franklin Templeton, Newlook Capital, Pier 4, PPI, SIMA (previously IFIC), Trez Capital, Worldsource Monetary Administration Inc., Impartial Advisor Options, PWC, Dean Davidson, and Bovine Wine Membership.

David Kitai

Editor

Wealth Skilled

Stage 1 – Nominations

The decision for nominations was open to all wealth administration professionals and organizations – together with monetary advisors, advisory brokerages, BDMs, fund suppliers, and repair suppliers – from throughout Canada.

Nominations ran from November 12, 2024, and had been prolonged till February 21, 2025, at 11:59 pm EST.

To submit a nomination, entrants visited the Nominate web page of the web site, offered the nominee’s contact particulars, and shared a quick purpose for nomination inside a 300-word restrict. There was no price to submit a nomination.

Stage 2 – Analysis

The Wealth Skilled Awards crew performed analysis and drew on information and data gained by way of Wealth Skilled to assist and complement the nominations acquired, making certain no deserving candidate was ignored. Excellence awardees had been decided from each swimming pools of knowledge.

Stage 3 – Excellence Awardees

As soon as all nominations had been thought-about and analysis was full, excellence awardees had been chosen in every class (besides the Lifetime Achievement class) and notified through e-mail or cellphone.

All excellence awardees had been then invited to finish an in depth submission, offering a chance to deal with the class standards extra totally. All submissions remained confidential except in any other case marked and weren’t shared with any third events past the judging panel.

Excellence awardees had been formally introduced in March 2025 on the occasion web site and promoted by way of WP journal and on-line channels. Promo packages to leverage their achievement throughout advertising and marketing and promotional efforts had been made accessible for buy.

Stage 4 – Judging

All submissions from the excellence awardees had been forwarded to the impartial judging panel, composed of trade leaders and senior representatives. Every part of the submission kind was scored towards an analysis scale.

The cumulative scores from every part created a complete rating for every finalist. Every class had a minimal of three judges voting, and the mixed complete scores had been used to find out the winners. The analysis scale and questions had been primarily based on particular class standards.

Voting commenced in April 2025. Judges had been neutral, balanced, and truthful of their assessments. Any decide with a battle of curiosity recused themselves from judging the related class.

Stage 5 – Winners

Winners had been introduced on the awards present on June 5, 2025, and on the official occasion web site. They had been additionally promoted in Wealth Skilled. Promo packages to assist amplify their win throughout advertising and marketing and promotional channels had been made accessible for buy.