Steve Hawkins at the Horizons ETFs office in Toronto on Oct. 29, 2020.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
Steve Hawkins has unexpectedly stepped down as president and chief executive officer of Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc. after seven years at the helm of one of Canada’s largest exchange-traded fund providers.
On Tuesday, Horizons ETFs, a subsidiary of Seoul-based Mirae Asset Financial Group, announced Mr. Hawkins’ retirement, effective immediately. Mr. Hawkins, who has been with the company for 15 years, will be replaced on an interim basis by Horizons ETFs’ chief operating officer Jasmit Bhandal.
In a statement, the company said the board intends to begin a global search for a permanent president and CEO, while Mr. Hawkins has agreed to “assist” in the transition and act as an adviser to the new leader.
The company and Mr. Hawkins, 54, declined to comment.
With more than $21-billion in assets in 107 investment funds, Horizons is Canada’s fourth-largest ETF provider. The company is well-known by investors for its actively managed ETFs, a group of funds that is one of the largest in the country with about $4-billion in assets.
As well, the company gained popularity with its BetaPro funds, a group of leveraged and inverse investment strategies aimed at more experienced investors.
Under Mr. Hawkins’ leadership, the company launched the Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences Index ETF (TSX:HMMJ), the world’s first cannabis exchange-traded fund in 2017. At the height of the cannabis boom, HMMJ hit $97.40 before falling sharply, closing at $14 on Tuesday.
In 2020, Mr. Hawkins played an integral part in conducting a complete overhaul of Horizons ETFs’ business model. With half of the company’s assets in tax-efficient investment funds, Mr. Hawkins had to act quickly to develop new investment funds when the 2019 federal budget revealed that the Canada Revenue Agency was going to crack down on tax deferral strategies.
In 2019, the industry veteran of more than 20 years was appointed to a two-year term as chair of the Canadian ETF Association, of which he remains a board member.
Clare O’Hara