Investment Committee

Prior to joining Bastion Asset Management, Aniss worked at Formula Growth as an investment analyst, sourcing equity investment ideas for the company's hedge fund platform. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Concordia University's John Molson School of Business, with a major in finance and a minor in financial reporting. During his university years, Aniss completed internships at Ivanhoe Cambridge, Ernst & Young, DNA Capital and Formula Growth. He is also an alumnus of the Van Berkom Investment Management Program.

Stephen Hui, CFA is a partner and portfolio manager at Pembroke Management Ltd., a boutique investment firm focused on investing in North American small and mid cap growth stocks. He has been named as a TopGun Investment Mind by Brendan Wood International on several occasions, most recently in 2017. Stephen joined Pembroke in 2000 after graduating from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Commerce degree in 2000 as a Leslie Wong Fellow, and is a CFA charterholder.

Philippe Hynes joined Tonus Capital in 2009 and has been the President since 2011.

Before joining Tonus Capital, Philippe Hynes was partner of Van Berkom & Associates Inc. ("VBA"), where he was a member of the U.S. small-caps team. His main duty was finding and analyzing U.S. companies with a market capitalization of less than US$3 billion in which to invest.

Philippe has also worked for Standard Life Investments as a research analyst in the oil and gas sector and for the Caisse Centrale Desjardins in the Treasury Department. He is also an adjunct faculty member at Concordia University’s John Molson School of Business, where he teaches a class in practical equity analysis and portfolio management.

Philippe holds a Master’s Degree from the École des hautes études commerciales (HEC, Montreal) and a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance from Concordia University. He obtained his CFA designation in 2004 and is a member of the Montreal CFA Association.

Elizabeth is involved in the management of International, Global, and US Equity portfolios. She has been at Addenda Capital since 2021 and became a Portfolio Manager covering Global Equities in 2024. Prior to her role at Addenda Capital, she worked as a Research Analyst at Laurentian Bank Securities and began her career at Mackie Research Capital Corporation in Institutional Sales and Trading. Elizabeth holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with a Canadian Studies and Political Science specialization from McGill University.

Balal joined Van Berkom in August 2021 as a Research Intern on the Canadian team and was promoted to Analyst in January 2023. He is responsible for conducting fundamental research across a broad spectrum of the Canadian small-cap equity market.

Prior to joining Van Berkom, he interned at EdgePoint Wealth Management in Toronto.

Balal graduated as a Stephen A. Jarislowsky Fellow at the John Molson School of Business, where he earned a Bachelor of Commerce in Finance. During his studies, he was a member of the Van Berkom Investment Management Program (Class of 2021) as well as the Sustainable Investing Practicum (Class of 2021). 

Over 30 years of financial and investment management experience.  Sector generalist focusing on North American publicly traded equities for individual and institutional accounts.  Have conducted thousands of interviews with senior executives of public and private companies, focusing on the strategic and tactical merits of investing in their companies, including in-depth analysis of their company financial metrics.  Significant experience cultivating and managing client relationships.

J. Sebastian van Berkom, B.Comm., LL.D. founded Van Berkom and Associates Inc. (“VBA”) in 1991 and is Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer. He is also Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer and Responsible Officer ("RO") of Van Berkom Golden Dragon Limited ("VBGD") in Hong Kong that was incorporated on February 22, 2012. 

In his roles, J. Sebastian ensures that the investment philosophy, process and disciplines at VBA and VBGD are properly implemented, resourced and incented.  His investment career commenced in 1971 at the Bell Canada Pension Fund.  In 1979, he became a Partner of LRM Investment Management, and in 1984 co-founded Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc.  He has won the Small-Cap Manager of the Year Award in 1997 and was a Finalist at the Annual Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards in 1998.  In 2003, he funded the Van Berkom Endowed Chair in Small-Cap Equities at the John Molson School of Business ("JMSB") at Concordia University ("Concordia") in Montreal.  In 2005, he became a Founding Director of the Institute for Governance of Private and Public Organizations in Canada (“IGOPP”), and on August 29, 2010, he was appointed to the Audit and Investment Committees. In December 2013, he was appointed President of the Investment Committee. 

In 2011, he funded the Van Berkom JMSB Small-Cap Case Competition at Concordia. On February 19, 2013, J. Sebastian was appointed to the Investment Committee of the Montreal Children's Hospital Foundation. On November 28, 2014, J. Sebastian founded the Van Berkom Small-Cap Investment Management Program ("VBIMP") at the JMSB at Concordia.

Since September 16, 2015, the Stephen A. Jarislowsky Fellowship was established under the VBIMP at the JMSB at Concordia. On June 6, 2017, J. Sebastian received an Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree (honoris causa) from Concordia University.

François Watier, CFA, CBV joined Van Berkom in December 2019. He is responsible for conducting fundamental research on specific sectors of the Canadian equity market. Prior to joining VBA, François was senior analyst at Allard Allard & Associés (2016-2019). Previously, he was equity analyst at Duncan Ross Associates (2012-2016). François holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Finance from Concordia University – John Molson Business School (2008). He is a CFA charter holder (2012) and he is a Chartered Business Valuator (CICBV) (2016).