An incredible moment for the GPFA community as we joined the Toronto Stock Exchange to close the market at the TMX Market Centre following our Regional Beneficial Owner Meeting in partnership with Canadian Securities Lending Association (CASLA) on 26 May.

The closing bell ceremony was a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the continued growth and engagement of the GPFA beneficial owner community across Canada and the broader global securities finance industry.

We were honored to hear remarks from GPFA Chair Robert Goobie CPA CMA from HOOPP (Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan) during the ceremony before members gathered for the official market close countdown and bell ringing.

GPFA would also like to extend a special thank you to Charles Lesaux, MBA from BCI and Ivoneke Taylor from Ontario Teachers'​ Pension Plan (OTPP), our regional leads in Canada, for their leadership, dedication, and continued support in helping strengthen GPFA’s presence and member engagement across the region.

Thank you as well to the Toronto Stock Exchange, Steve Everett and the rest of the TMX team for hosting this memorable experience, and to all members and industry participants who joined us for the celebration.

What a week - another outstanding gathering in Toronto!

GPFA was pleased to host our Regional Beneficial Owner Meeting in partnership with Canadian Securities Lending Association (CASLA) on Tuesday 26 May, bringing together members and industry peers for a day of engaging discussion, valuable market perspectives, and meaningful networking opportunities.

A sincere thank you to our host member firm, BMO Global Asset Management, for once again welcoming our beneficial owner group and supporting another successful event in Toronto. We were fortunate once again to hear from former Governor of the Bank of Canada, Stephen Poloz on the current economic climate. Thank you to Bipan Rai, Head of ETF and Alternative Strategy at BMO for moderating the session.

We were also honored to conclude the day at the TMX Market Centre where members of the GPFA community participated in the Toronto Stock Exchange closing bell ceremony — a memorable way to celebrate the strength and collaboration of our community.

Thank you as well to all speakers, moderators, and attendees who contributed their insights and participation throughout the meeting – Nick Chamie, CFA, ICD.D, IMCO, Millan Mulraine, OTPP, John Kwan, IMCO, Andrea Ruiz, SWIB, Bryce Shelton, CFA, OTPP, Mike Vainchtein, OPTrust, Chris Benish, SWIB and GPFA Board/Treasurer, Sara D., La Caisse, Lisa Mantello, Osler, Charles Lesaux, MBA, BIC and GPFA Regional Lead in Canada, Jesus Alva, BCI, Jean-Sébastien Leroux, Trans-Canada Capital, Prasanth Pugal, HOOPP.  Events like these continue to demonstrate the value of bringing together beneficial owners and market participants from across the industry.

Lastly, we could not have hosted such a successful meeting without the leadership from our regional leads in Canada, Ivoneke Taylor, OTPP and Charles Lesaux, MBA, BCI as well as Daniel Stanley, CFA, Marc Kitay, Jasmina Patel-Khatri, Satya Shrestha, and the rest of the team at BMO Global Asset Management for hosting such a successful gathering. Thank you again!

We appreciate the continued support from our members and partners and look forward to seeing many of you at upcoming GPFA events around the globe.

Up next for GPFA is the International Securities Lending Association (ISLA) conference in Lisbon. Join us 16 June for a closed-door beneficial owner meeting co-lead by, Matthew Brunette and Sharon Terry.  See you in Portugal!

This week, GPFA was pleased to host our New York Regional Beneficial Owner Meeting, bringing together beneficial owners and industry peers for a thoughtful exchange of ideas on several timely topics shaping today’s securities finance landscape.

A sincere thank you to GPFA member, GIC for graciously hosting the meeting at your New York office. We would also like to extend our appreciation to meeting co-leads Chris Benish from State of Wisconsin Investment Board and Jennifer Xu, CFA from GIC for leading the discussions and helping facilitate a highly engaging and valuable session.

Thank you to everyone who joined us this week. We look forward to continuing these important regional conversations across the beneficial owner community.

We’re pleased to share that the Global Peer Financing Association will once again partner with the International Securities Lending Association (ISLA) for a beneficial owner (closed-door) briefing during ISLA’s 33rd Annual Securities Finance & Collateral Management Conference in Lisbon, Portugal! This closed-door session taking place on Tuesday, 16 June will be co-lead by industry leaders, Matthew Brunette, Global Head of Financing at Norges Bank Investment Management and Sharon Terry, Securities Lending Specialist at L&G – Asset Management and will bring together some of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, and asset managers for focused discussion on the evolving securities finance landscape, current market developments, and the issues shaping the year ahead. We look forward to welcoming all qualifying Beneficial Owner delegates to what promises to be another insightful and engaging discussion.

If you are interested in attending, please make sure you register for the main conference at the link below and then RSVP for the closed-door session at events@islaemea.org. Qualifying Beneficial Owners can attend the conference for free.

Creating community. That is one of the best things about bringing Global Peer Financing Association (GPFA) members together for networking across the regions. Watching our members deepen their relationships with other global buy side asset owners and expand the trust and transparency they have with one another is how we know there is value in the continued growth of GPFA. Thank you to all our GPFA members and other beneficial owner friends that joined together during the PASLA conference in Bangkok this week. We can’t wait to get together again soon! hashtag#gpfa hashtag#bettertogether hashtag#pasla

What happens when buy‑side peers come together with a shared vision?Years of peer‑to‑peer conversations and collaboration ultimately sparked the creation of the Global Peer Financing Association five years ago—a volunteer‑led, global not‑for‑profit committed to advancing the securities financing industry.In this anniversary podcast episode, Board Members Chris Benish, Robert Goobie CPA CMA, Mike Johnson , and Jerry May reflect on GPFA’s journey, the expansion of its membership, and the cross‑disciplinary working groups shaping its future.With more than 40 global members representing over $11T in assets, the momentum is only growing!Listen to the full discussion here: https://lnkd.in/eB7bAqsk

Our growth is global! We’re pleased to welcome Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) as the newest member of the Global Peer Financing Association (GPFA) and our first member from Japan!

GPIF is one of the world’s largest public pension funds and we are thrilled to welcome them to our growing global beneficial owner network. We look forward to their participation in GPFA discussions, collaboration, and knowledge-sharing across the peer financing community.

Welcome GPIF to GPFA—we’re glad to have you as part of the community.

We’re pleased to announce the newest members of the GPFA Board of Directors:

Amy Borgquist (Armour), Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA)
Cherie Jeffries, State Board of Administration of Florida

Amy and Cherie bring exceptional experience and perspective to the GPFA, and we are excited to welcome them into their new leadership roles. Their contributions will help guide our strategic direction as GPFA continues to expand globally across the beneficial owner market.

We also want to extend our appreciation to all individuals who were nominated and to our membership for their continued engagement and support of the GPFA community.

We look forward to a productive and collaborative year with our newly elected Board members. Congratulations and thank you for all your support, Amy and Cherie!