Private Credit

Mathieu Desforges is a Partner at Fiera Comox. In this role, he leads the Private Credit strategy in the U.S. & Europe. He is also a member of the firm’s Investment Committee overseeing Fiera Comox’s three strategies: Agriculture, Private Equity and Private Credit.

Prior to joining Fiera Comox in 2019, Mathieu spent seven years with Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), where he was the Head of Junior and Opportunistic Credit. He launched the Junior and Opportunistic Credit strategy in 2013 and grew it to $3.3 billion. In this role, Mathieu was responsible for investing globally in debt instruments (subordinated debt, mezzanine, PIK and preferred equity) as well as in opportunistic credit and distressed debt. He ran direct investments, co-investments and fund investments. Mathieu was a Board member of three CDPQ investee companies: Hilco Global, an American financial services holding company; Avison Young, a full-service global commercial real estate firm; Edelweiss ARC, an investment and financial services company based in Mumbai. Mathieu was also a member of CDPQ’s Relationship Investing Investment Committee as well as Edelweiss ARC’s Distressed Debt Investment Committee.

Mathieu also spent 10 years at Lehman Brothers in London in the Investment Banking & Fixed Income groups, investing Lehman Brothers’ balance sheet and managing distressed debt & special situations across Europe. Mathieu started his career as a corporate lawyer in Montreal at Fasken and then in Paris at BBLP Moquet Borde. Mathieu holds an MBA from London Business School and a law degree (LL.B) from the Université de Montréal.

Antoine Bisson McLernon is a Partner and Chief Executive Officer of Fiera Comox.

He chair’s the firm’s Investment Committee and oversees its three strategies: Private Equity, Private Credit and Agriculture. Prior to establishing Fiera Comox in 2016, Antoine spent seven years with PSP Investments, where he last was Managing Director and head of Private Equity for the Americas and Asia. He ran both direct and fund investments, oversaw a $11.0 billion portfolio and a team of 25 people. In 2011, he started PSP Investments’ global Natural Resources group and led the group for five years, building a $3.0 billion portfolio of direct investments. Antoine was a member of PSP Investments’ firm wide Investment Committee from 2011 until he left PSP Investments in July 2016.

In the private debt space, Antoine was a member of PSP’s Private Debt Investment Committee as well as a Board member of Hayfin Capital Management, a multi-billion dollar debt manager. He led PSP’s equity investment in Hayfin which, alongside partners, created the firm in 2009.

Before joining PSP Investments in 2009, Antoine worked in private equity at Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and in investment banking at National Bank of Canada. He currently sits on the boards of directors of Golden Pear Funding (US), Rangitata Dairies (New Zealand), and Lassen Land Company (US). He has previously sat on the boards of directors of Telesat (Canada), AmWins Group Inc. (US), Haymarket Financial LLP (UK), TimberWest Forest Corp.(Canada), Kaingaroa Timberlands (New Zealand), YBY Agro (Brazil) and X2 Resources (UK). Antoine received a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor of Commerce (Great Distinction) from McGill University and is a CFA charterholder.

In his role, Mr. Dorais leads the due diligence, negotiation and structuring of the investments in the Fiera Comox Private Credit strategy. Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Maxime was a Director in the Private Equity group at CDPQ. In this role,  he specialized in junior and opportunistic credit where he invested ~US$1B through 15 transactions including a large partnership (equity + co-investment structures) with an investor in the distressed space. Prior to that, Maxime was a Director in the Subordinated Debt and Private Equity team at BMO Capital Partners where he completed numerous investments in the lower mid-market space in Canada and Northeastern US. He also spent 2 years in investment banking where he closed 4 M&A transactions totaling over US$5B and did multiple other advisory mandates.

Maxime holds a BCom in Finance from McGill University (with honors) as well as CFA and CBV designations. Mr. Dorais is also a Board member of the Fondation de l’Institut universitaire en santé mentale de Montréal.

Prior to Fiera Comox, Frédéric spent six years with PSP Investments where he last was Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer overseeing a team of 35 people. Prior to his nomination as CLO, Frédéric lead a team of transactional lawyers advising PSP’s natural resources, private equity, private debt, and infrastructure asset classes representing C$24 billion of net assets. He was also a senior member of the team that formed the Private Debt group at PSP Investment and was a member of PSP’s Private Debt Investment Committee.

His expertise in the debt space includes representing corporate and public borrowers in relation to several Canadian, U.S. and European public and private financings in excess of C$20 billion, including credit facilities, MTNs, high yield notes, convertible debentures, preferred shares and securitization programs, as well as working on more structured instruments (CLOs and credit risk insurance programs) for large European financial institutions.

Before joining PSP, he occupied the top legal position for a Montreal-based pharmaceutical company and held senior legal positions within the Quebecor group of companies. He started his career in private practice with Fasken Martineau (Montreal) and Clifford Chance (Paris). In 2005, he was recognized as one of Canada’s “Top 40 under 40” in-house counsel by Lexpert and the National Post. Over the years, Frédéric worked on transactions in more than twelve countries, including setting up JVs in the UK, NZ, Australia, Brazil, Italy and Egypt.

Frederic received a MBA from Université Laval, a LL.L and LLB from University of Ottawa and a B.B.A. from HEC Montréal.

Stéphanie Lachance is a recognized sustainable investment expert and experienced corporate director. Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Stéphanie spent 15 years at PSP Investments where she was most recently Managing Director and Head of Responsible Investment.  She played a central role in the development of PSP Investments’ responsible investment strategy. She led the Responsible Investment group of PSP Investments which played a key role in the organization’s investment strategy in ensuring that environmental, social and governance factors are incorporated in investment decisions and across all asset classes.

Lawyer with a strong background in corporate governance, responsible investment, securities law and regulations, Stéphanie was providing legal advice to public issuers, stock exchanges and securities regulators prior to joining PSP Investments.  She namely held senior positions at Québecor Media, Autorité des marchés financiers, Toronto Stock Exchange and Montréal Exchange.

Stéphanie holds a Law Degree (LL.B.) from the Université de Montréal and is a member of the Quebec Bar. She is a holder of the Institute of Corporate Directors Director designation (ICD.D). She serves on the board of the Food Banks of Quebec, is a member of the Investment Fund Review Committee of the Corporation de services du Barreau du Québec, is a member of the Investment Committee of the Canadian Medical Protective Association and is a member of the Independent Review Committee on Standard Setting in Canada.

Stéphanie is an instructor at the Institute of Corporate Directors for the sustainability module. She is also the co-author of ‘The Origins of ESG in Pensions: Strategies and Outcomes’, published by Wharton University Pension Research Council in 2021.

Kam is a Vice President at Fiera Comox. He is responsible for screening, assessing, and structuring new deal opportunities in the Fiera Comox Private Credit strategy.

Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Kam worked in private equity at Silver Lake in the San Francisco Bay Area where he worked on numerous transactions worth in excess of US$1B. Prior to Silver Lake, Kam worked in investment banking at Moelis & Company in Los Angeles, where he was involved in executing M&A and capital markets transactions totaling US$7B across a diverse range of industries.

Kam graduated from the University of Western Ontario (Ivey Business School), where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Honours Business Administration (with Distinction, Ivey Scholar).

In his role, Klemens is responsible for screening, assessing and structuring new deal opportunities in the Fiera Comox Private Credit strategy.

Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Klemens was a Vice President in the Leveraged Finance team at HSBC in London, leading the underwriting and syndication of over $20bn in transactions across a wide range of sectors with a focus on Sponsor backed leveraged buyouts in Europe. While at HSBC, he also worked in Healthcare investment banking, executing Sponsor focused M&A Advisory and IPO mandates.

Klemens holds a Masters degree in Finance and Economics from the University of Cambridge, as well as a Bachelors in Economics (Honors) from the University of California, Berkeley (High Distinction).

In her role, Naomi is responsible for completing the analysis and due diligence of investments in the Fiera Comox Private Credit strategy.

Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Naomi worked in Private Equity at Sagard in their Montreal office where she spent most of her time contributing to all key aspects of the investment process, from opportunity evaluation to portfolio management. Before joining Sagard, she worked at GardaWorld, a privately owned security company, where she was working in the Corporate Development team and was focusing on M&A transactions and other strategic opportunities. Naomi also spent over 2 years in the Private Equity group at CDPQ.

Naomi holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from HEC Montreal (with Great Distinction).

In his role, Philippe is responsible for completing the analysis and due diligence of investments in the Fiera Comox Private Credit strategy.

Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Philippe worked in investment banking at CIBC Capital Markets in Montreal where he was involved in executing M&A and Going-Private transactions as well as equity and debt financings across a diverse range of industries in Canada and the United States.

Philippe received a M.A. in Economics and a Bachelor of Commerce Joint Honours in Economics and Finance (First Class Honours) from McGill University.

Max William Dunberry is an Analyst at Fiera Comox for the Private Credit, Agriculture and Private Equity Strategies. Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Max worked in the strategic partnership group of CDPQ where he analyzed multiple strategies across different asset classes in order to source investment opportunities for CDPQ’s Private Credit, Private Equity and Infrastructure’s investment teams. He previously also worked at Deloitte and BMO Financial Group.

Max holds a BBA from HEC (with high distinction).

Joshua Nagalingam is an Analyst at Fiera Comox for the Agriculture, Private Equity and Private Credit strategies. Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Joshua worked in private equity at CDPQ, where he was involved in multiple equity transactions in sectors such as information technology, financials and industrials. He previously worked at Wood Mackenzie covering Canadian energy and PSP Investments. Additionally, he is a member of the Canadian Armed Forces Reserves.

Joshua holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Distinction) from Concordia University and is a Calvin C. Potter Fellow.

Jasmine Mussani is an Analyst at Fiera Comox for the Agriculture, Private Equity, and Private Credit strategies. In her role she is involved in financial analysis and due diligence processes.

Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Jasmine worked as a healthcare equity analyst at Desautels Capital Management during her graduate studies. She has also worked in various clinical and academic research settings in healthcare, including at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute.

Jasmine holds a Masters in Finance from McGill University, a BScH (Honors) from Queen’s University, and is a Marcels A. Desautels Fellow.

Michel Piette is a member of the Institutional Markets team and is responsible for client servicing and business development for institutional clients for private investment strategies.

Michel has 19 years of industry experience. Prior experiences include various positions as analyst and portfolio manager within investment management firms in the United Kingdom. Additionally, he held various business development roles within Deutsche Bank AG, based in London (UK). Prior to joining Fiera Capital, Michel was in charge of business development for Mercer’s Outsourced Chief Investment Officer and alternatives solutions in Montreal.

Michel graduated from University Laval with a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA), majoring in Finance. He also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation.

Sophie is responsible for leading the firm’s Finance function, which includes the management of the financial accounting, performance, valuation, treasury, taxation and budgeting functions.

Sophie has 20 years of experience in the accounting and finance fields. She joined Fiera Comox in 2020. Prior to leading the finance team of Fiera Comox, Sophie served as Chief Financial Officer, Vice-President Finance and Administration at the securities dealer arm of the Laurentian Bank, where she led finance, human resources and operations, overseeing a team of 35 people. Prior to Laurentian Bank Securities, Sophie held senior accounting positions in large financial institutions such as Société Générale and National Bank Financial.

Over the years, Sophie has developed significant expertise in accounting, financial disclosure, audit, compliance and operation optimization. She also lived and worked in Boston (USA) for 5 years primarily with a real estate investment management firm.

Sophie is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA) since 1999.

In her role as Corporate Controller, Anna oversees the financial accounting and reporting of investments and investment-related activities. Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Anna spent the last 10 years in asset management, as Manager of Corporate Finance at PSP Investments and as Head of Operations for Private Equity and Infrastructure at CDPQ. 

She holds a Bachelor’s degree in commerce and a graduate diploma in accountancy from Montreal’s HEC, as well as the CPA, CA designation.

Matteo Pisano is a Senior Accountant at Fiera Comox.

Matteo is responsible for supporting the firm’s financial accounting and reporting functions, as well as overseeing the investor reporting activities, for the Agriculture, Private Equity and Private Credit investment strategies.

Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Matteo worked as a Senior Auditor at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP where he led external audits across an array of large international public and private clients operating primarily in the Asset & Wealth Management, Pension, and Real Estate sectors. Matteo is also a part-time professor at Concordia University, where he teaches core courses in Strategic Managerial Accounting and Control as part of the University’s MBA program.

Matteo holds the Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA auditor) designation. He earned his Bachelor of Commerce (with Distinction) and his Graduate Diploma in Chartered Professional Accountancy at Concordia University, where he graduated as Valedictorian of his 2017 cohort.

Kevin is senior account for Fiera Comox.

He is responsible for supporting the firm’s financial accounting and reporting functions, as well as overseeing the investor reporting activities, for the Agriculture, Private Equity and Private Credit investment strategies.

Prior to joining Fiera Comox, Kevin worked as a Senior Auditor at PricewaterhouseCoopers where he led external audits across an array of large international public and private clients operating primarily in the Asset & Wealth Management sector. Prior to that, he worked in the accounting department at Canadian National Railway. Kevin holds the Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA auditor) designation. He earned his Bachelor of Commerce (with Distinction) and his Graduate Diploma in Chartered Professional Accountancy at Concordia University.

In her role as a Fund Accountant, Mihaela is responsible for supporting the firm’s financial accounting and reporting functions for the Agriculture, Private Equity and Private Credit investment strategies.

Mihaela has over 16 years of experience in financial preparation and reporting, personal and corporate taxation and audit. Prior to joining Fiera Comox, she was a property accountant at Cogir Immobilier and served as Assistant Controller for Restaurants Pacini .

For more than 12 years, Acting as Taxation and Accounting Analyst and as Senior Accountant at RSM Richter LLP and Messier Udashkin CPA Inc.for, Mihaela was implicated in various accounting and taxation projects and mandates across an array of clients operating primarily in Real Estate, Management, Information Technology, Investments, Restauration and Catering sectors.

She holds a Bachelor’s degree in business administration with specialization in professional accountancy from Montreal’s HEC.

Stacey is executive assistant to the CEO and the Fiera Comox team. Prior to joining the firm, she was office manager at an IT training school where she was responsible for day-to-day correspondence, client care and accounting duties.  Entrepreneurial by nature, she was previously the owner of a small business in downtown Montreal where she oversaw all financial, marketing and management responsibilities.
Stacey has trained in several accounting and management courses and is currently completing her web development certification at McMaster University.