Alfred Apps
Director & Chair

Alfred Apps is Senior Counsel, Wildeboer Dellelce LLP. He focuses on advising high-growth mid-market companies and leading private equity and venture funds.

Alfred's expertise is in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, equity/debt financings, structured finance, fund formation and corporate restructuring. He regularly advises on both public and private market transactions, and is recognized as one of Canada's leading counsel in relation to private equity firms and transactions. Alfred was counsel in a $32B restructuring of asset-backed commercial paper, the largest debt restructuring in Canadian history.

Alfred withdrew from the partnership in 1993 to become President and Chief Executive Officer of The Lehndorff Group, where he led the successful restructuring and recapitalization of the organization. In 1998, he was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Newstar Technologies.

Alfred is past Chair of the CAMH Foundation and The Empire Club of Canada, a Director of Quantitative Alpha Trading Inc., Chair of Byron Capital Markets, and President of the Liberal Party of Canada.

Alex Haditaghi
Founder and Executive Vice Chairman

Alex Haditaghi is a visionary entrepreneur, having built several companies from concept development to success in their respective industries.  He has been working in the mortgage industry in Canada since 2001 and has extensive experience in both residential and commercial mortgages. Mr. Haditaghi served as President of Lending Tree Canada for five years until he founded MortgageBrokers.com in January 2005, which has grown to become a successful brokerage brand in the Canadian mortgage marketplace. He focused MortgageBrokers.com around brokers looking for a technology-based brand that offered high tech tools to build their businesses, increase efficiencies, and position them for the future.  Since 2005, Mr. Haditaghi has been the CEO of MortgageBrokers.com Holdings, Inc. In 2008, he was recognized by Profit Magazine as leading Canada’s fastest emerging growth company. In 2009, he founded Pacific NA, which acquired Mortgage Architects and myNext Mortgage in early 2010. Mr Haditaghi is strong advocate of the mortgage brokerage channel and non-bank lenders, both of which help ensure that more Canadians can achieve their dreams of home ownership and financial security.

Barry Pickford, FCA
Director & Chair of Audit Committee

Barry Pickford is an experienced tax and accounting professional. He obtained his CA designation in 1971 and FCA in 1990.At the end of 2006 he retired from his position as Senior Vice President, Taxation for both BCE Inc. and Bell Canada, where he completed a number of complicated tax and M&A transactions spanning multiple jurisdictions. During his time with BCE, he led a group of 30 full time tax professionals and was deeply involved in all of BCE/Bell’s major financial transactions. Prior to joining BCE, Barry was the Vice Chairman Tax and a member of the Management Committee for KPMG Canada.

Barry earned a commerce degree from the University of Windsor and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario. He is currently president of Epilepsy Toronto, a member of the Advisory Board of CarbonFree Technology Inc., and a member of the independence committee for a mutual fund company.

Hon. James S. Peterson P.C.
Director & Chair of Corporate Governance & Compensation Committee

Jim Peterson is Counsel with Fasken Martineau LLP. He has extensive knowledge and first-hand experience in government affairs, having served in the Government of Canada as Minister of International Trade, Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions), and Chair of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance.

As Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions), Jim was instrumental in piloting significant financial institution reforms through Parliament including legislation permitting foreign bank branching, and aligning Canada with international standards in the fight against money laundering and terrorism. Jim approved major financial institution mergers including BNS/National Trust, Great West Life/London Life, Clarica/Met Life and TD/Canada Trust.

Jim retired from the House of Commons in 2007 after 23 years of public service as the Member of Parliament for Willowdale (Toronto). Before entering public life, Jim had a distinguished career as both a legal scholar and teacher and as a practitioner of international tax and business law. He was also a consultant for the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.

Todd Halpern
Director

Todd Halpern is the Chair and CEO of Halpern Wines and Halpern Enterprises, having been in the fine wine and spirits business for over 30 years. He serves as a Member of the Board of Mobilotto Systems Inc, and has been Chairman of the Board of Quantitative Alpha Trading Inc. (formerly known as RTN Stealth Software Inc.) since February 2011 and has been its Director since 2010. He has also been a Director for Loto Inc. since 2010. Todd served as a Director of Sentinelle Medical Inc., and was involved in the successful acquisition of it by Hologic Inc. He is a Board Champion of the Krembil Neuroscience Centre's Krembil Discovery Tower and Krembil Neuro Program at the Toronto General & Western Hospital. He is the Chairman of the Grand Cru Culinary Wine Festival, which benefits research at University Health Network. He has been a Member of the University Health Network Board of Directors and Toronto General Hospital since 2005.