Industry Veteran Lisa Skakun joins Mogo as Chief Legal & Administrative Officer

VANCOUVER, Oct. 22, 2015 /CNW/ - Mogo Finance Technology Inc. (TSX: GO), one of Canada's fastest-growing financial technology companies, today announced that Lisa Skakun, LLB, LLM, ICD.D, has joined the Company in the newly created role of Chief Legal & Administrative Officer, based in Mogo's Vancouver office. Skakun has more than 15 years of experience and most recently served as General Counsel, SVP Corporate Development & Corporate Secretary for Coast Capital Savings Credit Union, Canada's largest credit union by membership.

Skakun joins the growing list of senior professionals from traditional financial services companies who are choosing Mogo as it pursues its vision of becoming the leading digital financial brand in Canada.

"We're very pleased to welcome Lisa to our senior team as we continue to add best-in-class talent to drive and support our strategy of becoming Canada's leading digital financial services platform," said David Feller, Founder & CEO of Mogo. "With her leadership experience at Canada's largest credit union, she will play an important role as we continue to expand and scale our business."

"This is an exciting time to be joining Mogo given the fundamental transformation that technology is driving within the financial services industry," said Skakun. "When you look at traditional financial services organizations, I appreciate how disruptive Mogo's value proposition is and the significant advantages that their brand and technology platform enables.  I know how hard it is for long-established players to transform their organizations to a truly digital experience that the next generation of consumers are looking for.  Not only are they hampered by legacy technology, millennials do not relate to their brands. I believe Mogo is uniquely positioned to become the go-to financial brand in Canada for the next generation of Canadians."

Skakun will lead all internal and external resources related to Mogo's legal and administrative functions and will be part of the executive team tasked with developing and executing the Company's strategy.  In her most recent position with Coast Capital, she was a member  of  the  senior  executive  team  and  involved  in  establishing  the corporate strategy and operating plans, in addition to providing  legal  advice  on all  day-to-day  operations, including  regulatory  compliance, governance  policies,  contract  negotiation,  employment  law,  intellectual property, corporate structure and other corporate issues. Previously, Skakun spent four years as Senior Corporate Counsel for Xantrex Technology Inc.  where she was heavily involved in the $500 million sale of Xantrex Technology Inc. to Schneider Electric SA. Prior to this role, she worked in the corporate and securities practice at Farris, Vaughan, Wills & Murphy LLP and articled at Stikeman Elliot LLP.  

Skakun received her Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from the University of British Columbia and her Master of Laws (LLM) from Osgoode Hall Law School. In addition, she holds the ICD.D designation, having completed the Directors Education Program from the Institute of Corporate Directors.  Skakun was the recipient of the "Rising Star" award from the Association of Women in Finance and was named "Tomorrow's Leader" in the National Post General Counsel Awards.

About Mogo

Mogo (TSX: GO) is building a digital financial brand for the next generation of Canadians by offering convenience, transparency and a more engaging customer experience. With 135,000 members and growing, we are using technology and design to not only transform the way consumers access financial solutions (it takes only about three minutes to create a MogoAccount online), but also enable them to take control of their financial health. Savvy members can get out of debt faster through our unique Level Up program, spend responsibly with one of our cool free reloadable Mogo Prepaid Visa cards, and keep on top of payments by signing up for Mogo's text and email alerts. To learn more about Mogo—recently referred to as the potential "Uber of banking" by CNBC, Toronto Star, and others—visit mogo.ca.

SOURCE Mogo Finance Technology Inc

Craig Armitage, Investor Relations, [email protected], [phone]