John Stewart

Canadians need to feel comfortable and have a deep sense of security with their wealth management.  In this complex and difficult financial world, "comfortable and easy" are hard to find, and harder to keep.  Success in being able to live well and confidently, in retirement planning, in charitable giving and finally in trans-generational wealth management, is more challenging and elusive than ever.  To be successful necessitates collaborating with a team of well-qualified professionals, conducting a searching analysis, seeking their expertise, and then really understanding your position and your potential.  Only when the "unknown" has become "known" can you feel confident in crafting a comfortable plan that considers all of the aspects of your family's present, in order to shape its successful future.

In the long term, success comes from adhering to a disciplined process by acting intelligently on research and facts will bring comfort and success.  The journey is not easy to take alone and is fraught with frustration.  Seeking professional advice will enable you to succeed in rising above the noise and misinformation that inundates investors and markets.  You will be better able to successfully navigate through the many risks that threaten your financial comfort and enjoyment of life.  My approach to wealth management is a holistic one and includes a disciplined and process oriented approach to:   retirement planning, risk management, investment management and inter-generational wealth transfer.  Although I enjoy serving a diverse clientele of families who benefit from broad experience and a strategic approach to wealth management, I also enjoy advising small and medium businesses, educational institutions, and the foundations which support them.

My career began over 30 years ago on the bond desk of a major broker/dealer and evolved to a retail practice in the same firm. I eventually made my way to pension and custodial services at another firm, and in time, joined TD Asset Management in 2000 as an investment specialist and eventually a team leader.  In 2003 and 2004, TD gave me leave to serve with the Canadian Army in Afghanistan (I am a Major in the active Army Reserve with many years of service in many parts of the world). After service in Afghanistan, I came back TD and made my way back to the role of Investment Advisor, which I thoroughly enjoy!

In addition to my various financial designations, I hold a degree in Latin American Studies with a concentration in Developmental Economics (B.A.) from University of Toronto, and a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Commercial Law - litigation, which I earned in England. I have also graduated from U of T with programmes in Business, Human Resources Management, and Alternate Dispute Resolution. In autumn of 2010 I graduated from the United Nations OCHA programme conducted in Buenos Aires by the UN. I continue to serve two nights a week and one weekend a month and command some of Canada's finest soldiers. I am deeply involved in the University of Toronto where I have been on Governing Council, was Vice-Chair of the University Affairs Board and Chaired the Boundless Campaign for Woodsworth College.  I also have served for many years in the role of Board Member and Treasurer for Academics Without Borders, St. John Ambulance Council For Ontario and have been involved in the governance of many organizations.