MFDA Announces Retirement of Larry Waite and Appointment of Mark Gordon as New President and CEO

TORONTO, Oct. 4, 2012 /CNW/ - The Board of Directors of the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada has formally announced the retirement of Larry Waite as President and Chief Executive Officer effective September 30, 2012. Larry joined the MFDA on October 1, 1998 as its first employee and Chief Operating Officer and was appointed President and CEO in 2003. The Board of Directors of the MFDA thanks Larry Waite for his 14 years of outstanding service and accomplishment.

The Chair of the MFDA Board of Directors, Rod McLeod, commended Larry for "his leadership and ability to maintain strong stewardship of the MFDA since its inception in 1998." Mr. McLeod noted that Larry has "guided the MFDA through three Strategic Plans and, in doing so, has established a national self-regulatory organization whose standards of regulation are second to none. We owe him a debt of gratitude for his work on behalf of the investing public, Member firms and the Canadian capital markets."

The MFDA Board retained an executive search firm in early 2012 to conduct a national search for qualified candidates to serve as the MFDA's President and CEO. In June 2012, the Board appointed Mark Gordon, former MFDA Executive Vice-President, to succeed Larry Waite. Chair Rod McLeod commented "Mark's extensive securities and regulatory experience, gained through more than 25 years of working at the MFDA, the Ontario Securities Commission and in private practice, will help ensure the MFDA continues to fulfill its investor protection mandate, as well as continue to play a leading role in the ever evolving Canadian securities regulatory landscape. The Board is confident that Mark has the vision and skills necessary to successfully lead the organization into the next phase of its evolution as set out in the 2012-2014 Strategic Plan."

The MFDA is the self-regulatory organization for Canadian mutual fund dealers, regulating the operations, standards of practice and business conduct of its 120 Members and their approximately 80,000 Approved Persons with a mandate to protect investors and the public interest.

SOURCE: Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada

Ken Woodard
Director, Communications & Membership Services
416-943-4602 or [email protected]