This week marked a groundbreaking event in the Canadian finance industry. CI Financial Corp., the parent company of CI Assante, announced that it is being acquired by Mubadala Capital. The transaction is targeted for completion in Q2 2025. For context, Mubadala Capital is the alternative asset management arm of Mubadala Investment Company which is one of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) sovereign wealth fund group, one of the largest such groups globally.
On Monday, The Steele Group attended a virtual town hall hosted by Kurt MacAlpine, CEO of CI Financial, to better understand the transaction and its implications for the Canadian investment industry. What makes this transaction unique is that, in typical acquisitions of this magnitude, the buyer requires substantial leverage or loans. However, due to the trillions of dollars managed across its various sovereign wealth funds, Mubadala Capital is acquiring CI Financial through an all-cash transaction.
Once CI Financial transitions to a private entity, it will no longer issue share buybacks or pay dividends. As reference, over the past 12 months CI Financial spent approximately $225 million on share buybacks and $247 million on dividend payments. Following the transaction's closure in Q2 2025, CI Financial plans to redirect this cash flow into its operations and strategic acquisitions to expand its business lines. Furthermore, Kurt MacAlpine shared that Mubadala Capital intends to inject an additional $700+ million into CI Financial.
Financial markets in Canada responded swiftly, with CI Financial's stock price increasing by over 30% in one day due to the fixed purchase price per share. Additionally, the value of CI Financial’s publicly traded bonds reflected a significant positive shift in credit quality. Once the transaction is finalized, CI Financial will become one of the most strongly backed financial entities operating in Canada.
What does this mean for clients of our office and for The Steele Group? In short, no material changes are expected. The Steele Group uses CI Assante as its back-office provider (dealership), and the expectation is that operations will remain stable going forward. We expect that CI Assante will overall benefit from having the strongest financial backing in Canada due to its new parent company.
You can read more in CI Financial’s official press release: Mubadala Capital to Take CI Financial Private via Premium All-Cash Offer.
We remain committed to helping you achieve your financial goals. If you have questions or need assistance, please feel free to reach out to Cliff, Mario, Mark, or any member of The Steele Group team.