Wealth Professional Awards winners revealed!

Well-known Canadian television personality, Ben Mulroney, hosted the gala, held at the Liberty Grand in Toronto. Mulroney, who first came to Canadians’ attention as the young son of former Prime Minster Brian Mulroney, was a co-host of CTV’s daily morning show, Your Morning, and CTV’s premier entertainment show, Etalk. He is now a preeminent MC who regularly hosts a variety of philanthropic events.

Among the awards highlights was Maili Wong, of Wellington-Altus Private Wealth, who won the Equiton Award for Canadian Advisor of the Year, while ETF Provider of the Year went to Harvest ETFs, and CEO of the Year was awarded to Steve Hawkins, of Horizons ETFs. In a stirring speech, Catherine Metzger-Silver, of Edward Jones, won the Harvest ETFs Award for Female Trailblazer of the Year in recognition of the work she is doing to financially empower women.

Metzger-Silver told WP: “When I started, someone in the industry told me I wouldn’t get anywhere because I was a Barbie. That was really eye-opening and surprising.”

The prestigious Harbourfront Wealth Management Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Financial Planning Industry was given to Thomas Caldwell, of Caldwell Securities, who joked that to be in the running for this particular honour you have to “not die and not retire”. He added: “The beauty of the ‘don’t retire’ is that I’ve enjoyed this business so much. I enjoy coming to work every day – and that’s the beauty of our industry.

“When you feel you’re helping people and families, it’s the X-factor beyond the money. You’re making a difference in the world and I’m so grateful for that opportunity. So let me just say, ‘don’t retire’, and if you want to retire, you’re in the wrong job! Find something you like, that you love, that makes you come alive and stay in it as long as you can. And that’s coming from a man in his late 70s who still enjoys coming to work.”