Calin Rovinescu says trend is 'hollowing out' corporate Canada
Calin Rovinescu, former Air Canada CEO, is urging Canadian pension funds to boost their investments in domestic businesses, voicing concern about the potential consequences of insufficient support for Canadian companies.
“If Canadian institutions don’t support Canadian companies, it becomes this sort of self-fulfilling prophecy of the hollowing out of corporate Canada. The elimination of head offices here, the elimination of growth, the elimination of investment,” Rovinescu told BNN Bloomberg.
Rovinescu, currently serving on the boards of Scotiabank and BCE, made these remarks against the backdrop of ongoing discussions regarding the allocation of funds by the nation’s major investors within Canada. Recent initiatives by the federal government aimed at encouraging more investment within the country have sparked debates among pension fund communities, with concerns raised about potential risks to long-term returns.
However, the ex-Air Canada CEO’s stance aligns with that of Peter Letko, co-founder of Letko Brosseau Global Investment Management.
Letko previously expressed his disappointment with Canada's pension industry showing an inclination to invest outside of the country. He highlighted a significant decrease in investment in Canadian stocks, from nearly 30 percent in the year 2000 to just three percent at the end of last year.
“There's nothing of that in some of these pension portfolios. I don't quite understand what the logic is there,” Letko told BNN Bloomberg back in October.
Rovinescu echoed Letko's sentiments, stating that he is “personally, firmly on the Letko Brosseau side of this debate.”
