JPMorgan Bolsters Canadian Equities Team Amid Government Investment Drive

JPMorgan Chase has made significant strides in expanding its equities platform in Canada by hiring Chris Finora, the head of equities trading at Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. Finora joins JPMorgan this month after nearly two years at CPPIB and 27 years at TD Securities.

According to JPMorgan, the bank has hired 18 executives and managing directors in Canada over the past year, increasing its director headcount in the country by 20%. This expansion is seen as a vote of confidence in Prime Minister Mark Carney's government, which aims to attract $1 trillion in investment over the next five years.

David Rawlings, JPMorgan's Canada CEO, stated that the bank believes inbound Canadian investment will accelerate over the next decade and wants to be better positioned to capture these flows in both private and public markets. JPMorgan has been investing further in its Canadian equities business through senior hires, additional capital, and likely expansion of its research team over time.

The bank's Canadian arm has grown its local headcount by about 50% in the past five years, with revenue nearly doubling through market share gains and client growth. JPMorgan has worked on major deals recently, including Rockpoint Gas Storage's TSX IPO and Alimentation Couche-Tard's deal to buy Poland's Zabka.