Pender Financial's management team has significant experience in the area of strategic business development, corporate finance, capital raising, and corporate governance, enabling it to add true value to portfolio companies as part of its hands-on investment management philosophy.
Kelly Edmison is the President and CEO of Pender Financial. Mr. Edmison is supported by an experienced group of professionals in the areas of finance, technology assessment, corporate governance and portfolio administration
Kelly Edmison was one of the first lawyers in Vancouver to focus on the technology sector. As a lawyer for many venture capital financed companies, he learned the venture capital business from the point of view of the issuer. He was also a principal in a number of companies that were successful in the capital markets, either through real value creation (such as ALI Technologies Inc) or the 2000 dot-com boom. Mr. Edmison is well known in the British Columbia technology community and is respected as a driven achiever with a positive attitude.
A graduate of the University of Toronto and Queen's University, Mr. Edmison practised law for over 20 years. He spent his early career in Calgary and Hong Kong before joining Ladner Downs (now Borden Ladner Gervais), where he practised securities and commercial law from 1985 to 1995. Mr. Edmison then established his own practice focused exclusively on representing Vancouver-based junior technology companies. During the last five years of Mr. Edmison's practice, companies that he represented closed over 40 financings and raised more than $200 million.
Mr. Edmison ceased practising law in 2002 and founded Pender. He is currently President and Chief Executive Officer of Pender Financial; Chairman of Pender Growth Fund; a director of Carmanah Technologies Corp. (TSX:CMH), Radiant Communications Inc. (TSX-V:RCN) and the British Columbia Technology Industry Association; and is currently Chairman of Icron Technologies Inc. (TSX-V:IT) and IP Applications Corp. (TSX-V:IPX).
Bill Rand has been active in the public markets for the past two decades. Mr. Rand, a graduate of McGill University, Dalhousie Law School and the London School of Economics, spent his early career as a lawyer with Davis & Company. In 1973, Mr. Rand co-founded the law firm of Rand, McLaughlin, Gorham & Tolmie, which subsequently evolved into Rand Edgar and then into Rand Edgar & Sedun, where he practiced securities and commercial law for over 20 years.
In 1992, Mr. Rand and his partner, Brian Edgar established Rand Edgar Capital Corp. to pursue investment banking and other investment activities. Mr. Rand is a director of a number public and private companies including Lundin Petroleum AB and Tenke Mining Corp. Mr. Rand is also a past Associate Governor of Dalhousie University, a past chair of York House School, and is on the President's Advisory Committee of McGill University.
Mr. Roberts has 23 years of senior operational and investment related experience in British Columbia and has held executive positions and directorships of both public and private technology companies in the information technology, communications and life sciences sectors. Mr. Roberts received a BSc from University College London, England, emigrated to Canada in 1981, and passed the Canadian Securities Course. Mr. Roberts then held a number of senior management positions in the information technology and communications sectors and in 1988 was retained by Science Council of British Columbia as an industry champion as part of the SPARK Initiative. While at the Science Council, Mr. Roberts launched a range of strategic initiatives to accelerate the funding, development and commercialization of technology ventures across the Province of British Columbia. Following this, Mr. Roberts was the Chief Financial Officer of ProNet Communications, Inc. an internet services company which he co-founded.
In 1991, Mr. Roberts moved to the life sciences sector and was retained by the Canadian Genetics Diseases Network ("Network") at the University of British Columbia to develop a commercialization plan for discoveries made by Network. Subsequently, Mr. Roberts held the positions of Vice-President Corporate Affairs and Communications and Chief Financial Officer of Kinetek Pharmaceuticals, Inc. where he was responsible for raising over $20 million from institutional investors that included venture capital and pension fund sources.
Mr. Roberts was appointed Vice-President of Pender Financial from 2002 to 2004. In May 2003, Mr. Roberts was appointed President and CEO of PenderFinancial. In this capacity he was responsible for the successful restructuring and relaunch of Pender Growth Fund (VCC) Inc. Mr. Roberts has also served as a mentor to the MBA program at the University of British Columbia and on advisory boards to industry organizations that include the Vancouver Enterprise Forum, the British Columbia Institute of Technology, Science Council of British Columbia and New Ventures BC.
Currently, Mr. Roberts spends the majority of his time with ActiveState.
Robert Chase has been a businessman for thirty years. He is a graduate of the University of Manitoba and a Chartered Accountant. From 1975 to 1994, Mr. Chase was associated with the Westar Group where he was Senior Vice-President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer from 1989 to 1994.
Since 1995, he has been President and Chief Executive Officer of Lexacal Investment Corp., an oil and gas services company.
Scott Shepherd has been active in financial markets for two decades. A graduate of University of Toronto and Dalhousie Business School, Mr. Shepherd spent his early career with the Canadian Federal Government as a trade commissioner and as an officer of the Export Development Corporation. Mr. Shepherd then spent a number of years as treasurer of Chemetics, a subsidiary of Imperial Chemicals Inc.
In 1994, Mr. Shepherd founded Northstar Trade Finance Corporation ("Northstar"), where he continues today as its chief executive officer. Northstar provides assistance to Canadian companies in financing exports. Northstar operates in partnership with the Export Development Corporation and four of Canada's chartered banks. Northstar has over $100 million in assets.