Register Now

Monday November 6th, 2025

Terminal City Club, Vancouver

Register Now
Add to Calendar

The 2022 Vancouver Family Office Conference

08:00 – 09:00 AMRegistration & Breakfast 
09:00 – 09:05 AMWelcome & Opening Remarks
 Mr. Denny Chared, Founder & CEO, DC Finance
 Ms. Elisabeth Finch, Partner, Family Enterprise Services, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP – Conference Moderator
09:05 – 09:10 AMWelcome from the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver
 Mr. Ezra S. Shanken, CEO, Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver
09:10 – 09:40 AMThe Real Estate Panel
 Mr. Braiden Goodchild, Head of Real Estate M&A, PwC LLP – Moderator
 Mr. Tim Yeung, Director, Development, Peterson
 Mr. Gabriel Millard, Vice President, Corporate Finance & Capital Markets, Avenue Living Asset Management
 Mr. Sean Hodgins, Second Generation Leader, Century Group Lands Corporation
 The real estate panel will discuss emerging trends impacting the industry, implications of COVID and geopolitical events on the sector, and investment considerations applicable to Metro Vancouver. The panel will also open the floor to questions from the audience.
THE LEGAL SESSION
09:40 – 10:00 AMEffective and Impactful Philanthropy: Current Canadian Trends and Tips 
 Ms. Brenda Lee-Kennedy CPA, CA, TEP, Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
 Mr. Dheeraj Bisla, Tax Senior Manager, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
 This session will bring forward a discussion on the state of Canadian philanthropy: How are Canadian private foundations and philanthropists doing their social good differently, rethinking their engagement with the charitable sector, and investing their philanthropic resources more optimally? Many of Canada’s private foundations that are family-sponsored have professionalized their operations and integrated the philanthropic distribution decisions with the family’s overall wealth distribution plan and investment strategy. The panelists will also look at the movement by today’s philanthropic leaders to bring diverse perspectives to the table and to find innovative and impactful way of doing things that go beyond the traditional transfer of new charitable dollars to charities.
10:00 – 10:20 AM The Top 5 Pitfalls – Navigating Legal Issues Before They Arise
 Ms. Alison Oxtoby, Counsel, Fasken – Moderator
 Mr. Eric Clavier, Partner, Fasken
 Ms. Tracey Cohen, Partner, Fasken
 Ms. Laura Smith, Partner, Fasken
 Mr. Mike Stephens, Partner, Fasken
 This panel of legal experts will provide guidance on the top 5 issues often overlooked by high net worth families. Topics will include business succession, technology and real estate holdings, as well as estate planning and litigation.
THE FINANCE SESSION
10:20 – 10:25 AMHorizon ETF’s Session Introduction
 Mr. Jaime Purvis, Executive Vice-President, Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc.
 Mr. Emerson Baker, Vice-President, Institutional Sales, Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc.
10:25 – 10:45 AMFamily Office Investment Trends
 Mr. Giuliano Celle, Managing Director, UBS Global Family Office Americas
 Giuliano Celle will discuss recent family office trends, with a particular focus on his experiences with international FOs. He will describe how FOs are positioning themselves in the current volatile macro environment, in addition to speaking broadly about a few strategies that these sophisticated investors have engaged in with UBS. Giuliano will also talk about certain evergreen and increasing interests of family offices, ranging from exclusive events to private markets, in addition to demand for bespoke financing.
10:45 – 10:55 AMA Score To Settle – Behind the Scenes with Credit Bureau 2.0 and its Award Winning, ESG-Forward Mission that Rights a $Multi-Trillion Wrong
 Mr. Evan Chrapko, Founder, Chairman & CEO, Trust Science
 This lecture will cover “credit invisibles” or “hidden prime” borrowers. These borrowers suffer under-banking or outright financial exclusion. The $multi-billion, established credit scoring industry does not have incentives to address inclusivity, and Trust Science® is now disrupting this industry. This creates very real, very human opportunities for marginalized people to join the modern economy.
10:55 – 11:05 AMEnabling Transformational Philanthropy
 Ms. Marilyn Anthony, Advisor, Business Development, PearTree Canada
 PearTree’s unique and proven platform enables transformational gifts across Canada at a lower after-tax cost of giving. Learn more about PearTree so you can increase and accelerate your charitable giving. Since 2007, PearTree has completed well over $2 billion in structured financings for donation purposes.
11:05 – 11:10 AMNeurotech-Driven Patient Impact
 Mr. John Clarkson, SVP/COO, Ontario Brain Institute
 The mandate for the Ontario Brain institute is to drive patient-based impact through coordinated research networks, accessible high quality data, and direct outreach to Canadian communities with leading edge brain technologies.  We specialize in the diseases related to your parents and your children and also the most pressing post-COVID issue – mental health.
11:10 – 11:40 AMCoffee Break Sponsored by Ontario Brain Institute
11:40 – 12:00 PMInflation, Interest Rate Hikes, and Geo-Political Risks – and How Investors can Profit from Them
 Mr. Elie Nour, Founder & CEO, Nour Private Wealth (NPW)
 How to navigate an elevated inflation environment, especially with the recent developments in Europe coupled with the ongoing supply constraints, strong demand, and labour shortages? Interest Rate Hikes: “It’s not the first hike you have to worry about, it’s the last.” What tactical changes to portfolios are needed in a rising rate cycle? What parallels can we draw from the humanitarian crisis we are dealing with in Ukraine to previous geopolitical risks?
12:00 – 12:10 PMThe 40 is Broken
 Ms. Allison Taylor, CEO, Co-Founder & Portfolio Manager, Invico Capital Corporation
 With billions of dollars currently allocated to fixed income investments that are stuck in negative territory and volatility continuing to impact equity and public markets, a conventional portfolio is no longer positioned to address the income or cash flow needs of today’s investors. There is growing sentiment amongst the industry’s best that allocating to alternative investments is an ideal solution to address these headwinds and that products like private debt can offer high-yielding options that help mitigate volatility.
12:10 – 12:30 PMYou Don’t Need Life Insurance…
 Mr. John Hutson, CA, Principal, The Targeted Strategies Group (TTSG)
 This session will recap the reasons why an ultra high net worth family should want life insurance as an asset class even if they do not need it. And importantly discuss the current top 5 issues to be aware of related to acquiring and owning this asset class.
12:30 – 12:40 PMHow to Not Get Fooled in Private Credit 
 Mr. Colin Kilgour, Principal, Kilgour Williams Capital
 Mr. Daniel Williams, Principal, Kilgour Williams Capital
 Private credit is an important source of alternative yield for income-seeking investors in the low rate environment, and it will likely become more attractive as rates rise.  Recent miscues in the Canadian private credit space have led to investor losses and suspension of investor redemptions. We will provide guidance for investors in their assessment of credit alternatives to avoid potential pitfalls and to invest confidently in the private credit space.
THE REAL ESTATE SESSION
12:40 – 12:50 PMWestern Canadian Residential Real Estate through an Alternative Lending Lense
 Mr. Ches Hagen, Director & Chief Executive Officer, AP Capital Mortgage Investment Corporation
 Western Canada has for decades possessed an asset class that attracts some of the world’s wealthiest individuals and families. That asset class is residential real estate. Metro Vancouver’s population of 2.6M is expected to surpass 3.8M in 30 years, and with unique challenges supplying housing to meet sustained demand, many believe the residential market will continue to see price appreciation. AP Capital’s Ches Hagen will look at how this asset class is intertwined with the mortgage industry and share the firm’s insights. As CEO of AP Capital MIC and current President of the BC MIC Managers Association (comprised of 30 alternative lenders in BC), Ches will share a well-rounded look at the mortgage market in BC’s residential real estate.
12:50 – 01:00 PM Doing Well by Doing Good – What Difference will You Make Today?
 Mr. Andrew Cockburn, Chief Operating Officer, Sarmaya Capital Corp.
 Doing Well While Doing Good: What difference will you make today? $1 out of every $4 invested today in the U.S. goes to sustainable impact investments in order to help make positive change in the world. This talk will walk you through how we can help break the cycle of poverty one multi-family community at a time, creating a more environmentally friendly asset, all while providing solid returns.
01:00 – 01:10 PMTwenty-Five Years of Capitalizing on Growth and Opportunity in North America’s Real Estate Sector
 Mr. Vikram Rajagopalan, Executive Managing Director, Global Head of Capital Raising, Trez Capital
 Looking for new opportunities? Trez Capital has leveraged its size and scale to find new opportunities in the real estate market and deliver reliable and consistent returns to investors for over 25 years. After Trailblazing into the U.S. real estate market in 2010, we have been at the forefront of real estate investing in the Sun Belt states. People are speaking with their feet and our boots-on-the-ground research identities where opportunities for investors will arise.
01:10 – 01:20 PMInvesting in the Future: Robotics & AI
 Mr. Oliver Mitchell, Managing Director, ff Venture Capital
 As early-stage investors, our job at ff Venture Capital is to invest ahead of trends. Even before the pandemic, we observed huge inefficiencies in the global supply chain and seeded innovations utilizing drones, robotics, and applied AI to overcome labor shortages. This talk will profile a number of these ground-breaking technologies, as well as sharing ffVC’s process that has led to so many exits and pre-IPO unicorns.
01:20 – 02:20 PMLunch
02:20 – 02:40 PMThe Social and Economic Imperative of Music in our Community
 Ms. Angela Elster, President & CEO, The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and the VSO School of Music
 Ms. Elisabeth Finch, Partner, Family Enterprise Services, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP – Moderator
 We will create a foundation for the day with a discussion of the transformative power of music. Backed by global, regional and local data and perspectives, you will learn the critical role that music plays both in our economy and the social fabric of our community – and most especially our mental health.
02:40 – 02:50 PMThe Digital Evolution of Pharmacy through Technology
 Mr. Karim Nassar, Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder, Mednow Inc.
 We have seen how transportation has evolved through Uber, and how Airbnb is bigger than the world’s top 5 hotel brands, UberEats and Skip the Dishes has made food delivery more accessible, yet the pharmacy market, which is a $264B industry in Canada hasn’t changed its model of service in over 100 years. The market is ripe for disruption and Mednow Inc. plans to revolutionize the pharmacy industry through technology, with our people-first approach, best-in-class pharmacy service, and fast, free delivery to every Canadian.
02:50 – 03:10 PMA Fireside Chat with Mr. Paul Desmarais III, Next Generation & Entrepreneur
 Mr. Paul Desmarais III, Next Gen, Chairman & CEO, Sagard, Executive Chairman & Co-Founder, Portage Ventures, and Chairman & Co-Founder, Diagram
 Ms. Sabrina Fitzgerald, National PwC Private Leader, PwC LLP – Moderator
03:10 – 03:40 PMThe Next Generation Women in Leadership Panel
 Ms. Deena Chochinov, Therapist, Management Consultant & Family Enterprise Advisor – Moderator
 Ms. Linda Solomon Wood, Founder & CEO, Observer Media Group
 Ms. Carol Lee, Chair & Co-Founder, The Vancouver Chinatown Foundation
 Ms. Zahra Salisbury, Managing Director, Design & Special Projects, Pacific Reach
 This conversation will focus on the leadership qualities and lessons the Next Gen panelists have learned growing up in an enterprising family. They will share how this experience has influenced their journey in becoming successful, purposeful and inspirational women leaders in their own right.
03:40 – 04:10 PMThe Addiction Panel 
 Opening Speech: Mr. Zak Williams, Entrepreneur, Investor, Mental Health Advocate
 Dr. Peter Hotz, Clinical & Forensic Psychologist – Moderator
 Dr. Yonatan Kupchik, Neurobiologist, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
04:10 – 04:15 PMDear Younger Me: Wisdom for Family Enterprise Successors – A word by David C. Bentall
 Mr. David C. Bentall, B. Comm., Founding Principal at Next Step Advisors
04:15 – 04:45 PMUnlocking Technology Trends for Return of Value for Business and Investments
 Mr. Stephen Ibaraki, Chairman & Managing General Partner, REDDS Capital and Founder, UN AI for Good – Moderator
 Mr. Ronald C. Shon, President, Shon Group of Companies and Founding Managing Partner, REDDS Capital
 Dr. Yossi Vardi, Entrepreneur & Investor; One of Israel’s Early Entrepreneurs
 Digital reshaping and transformation, biomedical innovation, quantum computing, NFTs and blockchain, AI, edge devices / computing, 5/6 G, cloud, wearables, the metaverse are impacting all of our lives in uncountable ways. In 2022, more than 70% of the global population is online, mobile time exceeds 6 hour daily. As operators of businesses and investments, how do you manage and ingest these tech trends? How and why should you be more attuned and invested in tech innovation, why is the 500 Trillion in global wealth moving towards tech disruption, and what does this means for your next generation of Gen Y / Z / Alpha?