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George Cope, president and CEO of BCE Inc. addresses the company's annual meeting Thursday, April 28, 2016 in Montreal.The Canadian Press

One of the Canadian wireless industry's consummate deal makers has struck again.

BCE Inc.'s $3.1-billion deal to buy Manitoba Telecom Services Inc., announced on Monday, is the latest notch in chief executive George Cope's belt. Acquisitions have been a hallmark of the BCE boss's career – from scooping up wireless retailers such as the Source and half of Glentel Inc., to media-rich properties such as CTV for $1.3-billion and Astral for $3-billion, to grabbing stakes in some of Canada's most beloved sports franchises, such as the Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Raptors.

But this latest purchase may be the purest bet he has made since arriving at BCE in 2006 on wireless telecommunications, the business that was his training ground and first love before he took the helm of the Montreal-based behemoth.

Mr. Cope, 54, knew how to strike a big deal well before his BCE days, having sold Clearnet Communications Inc., a pioneer in cellular service at a time when only about one in 10 Canadians had a cellphone, to Telus Corp. for $6.6-billion in 2000. But the picture of Mr. Cope that emerges from those who have watched him at a negotiating table is that of a disciplined deal maker whose tactics have changed little in the years since.

"He sticks to a game plan," said Thomas O'Neill, who just retired as BCE's board chair and rode shotgun with Mr. Cope on an array of transactions. Mr. Cope's predecessor in BCE's top job, Michael Sabia, echoed that sentiment almost exactly, adding: "Relentlessly."

Mr. Cope is meticulous in preparing and pitching deals, say those who know him, and the guiding force is always the bottom line – shareholder interest, dividends, ways to mitigate risk.

"When he brought a [slide] deck to the board on any given acquisition, you knew what was going to be in it from the inventory of past deals. It wasn't a mystery," Mr. O'Neill said. "His analytical mind is just frightening."

At first glance, Mr. Cope cuts an imposing figure, too. His 6-foot-7 frame helped make him a talented basketball player until weak joints steered him to less punishing sports (his golf swing reportedly suffers from a tendency to slice the ball).

But neither does his penchant for analysis make him plodding or overcautious. "He's remarkable at seizing opportunities quickly," said Robert Prichard, chairman of Bank of Montreal's board of directors, of which Mr. Cope is a member. The portrait of a man capable of capitalizing on a fast-break opportunity is borne out by the fact that this week's deal for MTS came together in about two weeks.

When bargaining with Mr. Cope, "It's all on the table. This is what we'd like to do. This is what I need. What do you need?" said Jim Leech, the former CEO of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, who has found himself on both sides of Mr. Cope's deal making. "There's not a lot of wasted time. You get to the point quickly."

Those who know Mr. Cope say he doesn't lack confidence. But it is clear he has lived and breathed the wireless market throughout his career, beginning with a job in his mid-20s at Brooktel Communications Inc., a seller of first-generation cellphones. That led him to Clearnet, where he was president by 1987 and one of the executives who understood early how valuable wireless spectrum would become. After selling to Telus, he ran that company's wireless business for five years before joining Bell Canada.

Bill Downe, the CEO at BMO, now describes him as "a trusted acquirer" and his deals have helped revive BCE's fortunes.

At one time, before Mr. Cope arrived, BCE was a Canadian company that "was on its knees," Mr. Leech said.

He can be tough and competitive, but has also shown a willingness to put rivalries aside if there's a business case. When bidding for the Teachers' stake in Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment, owner of the Raptors and Toronto Maple Leafs among other franchises, he formed an early alliance with archrival Rogers Communications Inc. Throughout the bidding, those strange bedfellows "stuck together so there wouldn't be an auction," Mr. Leech said, and eventually split the $1.07-billion price tag, each acquiring a 37.5-per-cent stake.

His tenure hasn't been altogether without stumbles. In 2013, BCE lost out to Rogers in bidding for the $5.2-billion National Hockey League broadcast rights. Under his tenure, BCE has also occasionally sparred publicly with the federal government, and the $3-billion acquisition of Astral was initially spiked by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission in 2012, sparking tensions with the federal regulator that are still evident today. (A second crack at an amended deal was approved in 2013).

"I don't know if [clashing with regulators] was a mistake, but it was a difficult time for the industry," said Pierre Boulin, the former CEO of Manitoba Telecom.

Even so, "you look at the performance of BCE, it's still very strong performance."

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SymbolName% changeLast
BCE-N
BCE Inc
-0.58%34.2
BCE-T
BCE Inc
-0.64%46.31
BMO-N
Bank of Montreal
+0.07%93.92
BMO-T
Bank of Montreal
+0.05%127.17
CE-N
Celanese Corp
+1.41%162.31
E-N
Eni S.P.A. ADR
-0.93%30.93
E-T
Enterprise Group Inc
+1.18%0.86
RCI-N
Rogers Communication
-0.87%42.21

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