The Beginning
The Croft Financial Group Founder and CIO Richard Croft made the transition from public service to the investment world in the early 70’s. Driven by his passion for education and with a knack for writing, he entered the world of financial market journalism in the early 80’s writing for the Globe and Mail and developing a number of investment indices and benchmarks that are still in existence today.
In 1993, at the request of many of his followers, Richard became licensed as an investment counselor/portfolio manager and has been navigating the markets ever since, while having written nine books and thousands of articles and commentaries for Canada’s largest media outlets.
The Vision
Richard’s vision was to build a platform where financial professionals across the industry could access active, discretionary investment management for their clients, offering investment products and solutions not accessible under their existing regulatory framework. The goal was (and continues to be) to reduce the related regulatory, compliance and administrative burdens on the advisors that come with this high level of service, placing it on his experienced team, many of whom are still with the firm.
Where we are today
Our entire team of professionals remain guided by a set of core principles which include honesty, integrity and openness. Our focus is on serving our partners and investors by delivering value ethically and within a culture of compliance, while fostering the same entrepreneurial spirit within the firm and in our partners that the Croft Group was founded on over 30 years ago.
The Power of 3
The Accounting Place and Castlemark Wealth Management, two wholly owned subsidiaries of R N Croft Financial Group Inc., play a strategic role in delivering this integrated wealth management approach. By combining the tax expertise of The Accounting Place with the advanced financial planning services of Castlemark Wealth Management, we provide our advisor partners with added bench strength to address the complex and diverse needs of their clients.
This partnership ensures that every aspect of a client's financial needs is addressed under one roof, empowering advisors with the resources and expertise to deliver exceptional value. This fully integrated approach is designed to optimize financial outcomes and deliver lasting value—ensuring that every decision positively impacts your financial future.
The Commitment
As a licensed Portfolio Manager and Investment Fund Manager, we work with our advisor partners and clients across Canada to deliver an exclusive High-Net-Worth Service that is typically reserved for investors with over one million dollars in assets. Our commitment to each of our clients ensures that we take an unbiased approach to security selection and portfolio composition based on their best interest and financial goals. We work with our associated Financial Planners, Tax Specialists and other industry professionals to implement this approach to the highest standard of care.
The Beginning
The Croft Financial Group Founder and CIO Richard Croft made the transition from public service to the investment world in the early 70’s. Driven by his passion for education and with a knack for writing, he entered the world of financial market journalism in the early 80’s writing for the Globe and Mail and developing a number of investment indices and benchmarks that are still in existence today.
In 1993, at the request of many of his followers, Richard became licensed as an investment counselor/portfolio manager and has been navigating the markets ever since, while having written nine books and thousands of articles and commentaries for Canada’s largest media outlets.
The Vision
Richard’s vision was to build a platform where financial professionals across the industry could access active, discretionary investment management for their clients, offering investment products and solutions not accessible under their existing regulatory framework. The goal was (and continues to be) to reduce the related regulatory, compliance and administrative burdens on the advisors that come with this high level of service, placing it on his experienced team, many of whom are still with the firm.
Where we are today
Our entire team of professionals remain guided by a set of core principles which include honesty, integrity and openness. Our focus is on serving our partners and investors by delivering value ethically and within a culture of compliance, while fostering the same entrepreneurial spirit within the firm and in our partners that the Croft Group was founded on over 30 years ago.
The Power of 3
The Accounting Place and Castlemark Wealth Management, two wholly owned subsidiaries of R N Croft Financial Group Inc., play a strategic role in delivering this integrated wealth management approach. By combining the tax expertise of The Accounting Place with the advanced financial planning services of Castlemark Wealth Management, we provide our advisor partners with added bench strength to address the complex and diverse needs of their clients.
This partnership ensures that every aspect of a client's financial needs is addressed under one roof, empowering advisors with the resources and expertise to deliver exceptional value. This fully integrated approach is designed to optimize financial outcomes and deliver lasting value—ensuring that every decision positively impacts your financial future.
The Committment
As a licensed Portfolio Manager across Canada, we work with our partners to deliver an exclusive High-Net-Worth Service that is typically reserved for investors with over one million dollars in assets. Our fiduciary commitment to each of our clients ensures that we take an unbiased approach to security selection and portfolio composition based on their best interest and financial goals. Working with Financial Planners, Tax Specialists and other industry professionals to implement this approach to the highest standard of care.
meet the team
CROFT FINANCIAL GROUP EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Jason Ayres
Kenneth Mulders
Christopher Croft
Diane Bode
Richard N. Croft
Jason Keogh
Jordan Rosenberg
OUR TEAM OF PROFESSIONALS
FILTER BY:
Our Team of professionals hold a range of industry designations and accreditations including:
The Croft Financial Group is committed to a multi-stakeholder approach to Integrated Wealth Management: a long-term, multi-generational strategy, designed to keep all stakeholders on the same page under one holistic and unified plan.
We are proudly supporting the REAL WEALTH MANAGER™ (RWM™) DESIGNATION 
OUR VALUES & CULTURE
At Croft Financial Group, we are motivated by key guiding principles.
INTEGRITY
We value all our stakeholders equally – including our clients, employees, colleagues, and the community at large – irrespective of age, gender identity, ethnic affiliation, education, livelihood, and regardless of religious, political or philosophical perspectives.
OPENNESS
We believe that the ability to make informed decisions is of critical importance, and in the value of complete, clear, and honest communications with our stakeholders to support good decisions.
HONESTY
We believe in the fundamental value of effective investment capital management to achieve the financial objectives and security, and to enhance the quality of life of our clients and stakeholders.
KNOWLEDGE
We value and will always strive to maintain a level of skill and knowledge necessary to support good investment decisions to fulfill our commitments and obligations to all our stakeholders.
Reason One:
A committee approach adds the benefit of gaining multiple perspectives. When an investment idea is presented to the IRC, the committee has a chance to ask more questions or offer additional insights that the primary analyst might not considered.
Reason Two:
A committee approach often leads to the gathering of additional information. This rigorous vetting process helps in making a more informed/higher quality decision.
Reason Three:
A committee ensures continuity. If one or more Portfolio Managers are absent, the committee is always present to ensure the process continues.
INVESTMENT PHILOSOPHY
INVESTMENT REVIEW COMMITTEE (IRC)
Investment Review Committee (IRC) Our mission is to deliver superior investment advice and discretionary portfolio management expertise with outstanding service, holding all Portfolio Managers on the Croft platform to the highest standard. All Advising Representatives (Portfolio Managers) and Associate Advising Representatives are accountable to the IRC. With a committee-based, rigorous portfolio building process, our portfolio management team seeks out which assets, sectors and geographical exposures make the most sense for meeting clients’ investment objectives under real-time market conditions. To minimize investor risk and maximize returns, we combine this methodology with targeted active investments and sophisticated option strategies. While each Portfolio Manager may have their own approach, all investments and strategies are vetted through the IRC.
WHY THE COMMITTEE?
The Investment Review Committee (IRC) at Croft is responsible for all investment decisions. While one Portfolio Manager is responsible for the research, each security that is used in a portfolio must be vetted by the IRC. There are several reasons this process is advantageous.
MEET THE CUSTODIAN OF YOUR Investment Accounts
We take client assets and client account safekeeping seriously.
All Croft client investment accounts are held in their own name at National Bank. Committed to independent firms for more than 25 years, National Bank Independent Network is one of Canada’s leading providers of custodial, trading, clearing, settlement and record-keeping services to independent registered portfolio managers, introducing brokers and investment fund managers.
National Bank Independent Network proudly serves over 450 firms from coast to coast and is backed by the strength of National Bank of Canada (NBC). National Bank Independent Network is a division of National Bank Financial Inc. (NBF Inc.), which is an indirect, wholly owned subsidiary of NBC, a public company listed on Canadian stock exchanges (TSX: NA). National Bank Independent Network is also a registered trademark of NBC used under license by NBF Inc. NBF Inc. is a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF) as well as the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC), which is the national self-regulatory organization that oversees all investment dealers and trading activity on debt and equity marketplaces in Canada.
Once complete the onboarding process and assign an account number, our clients have complete online access to their accounts, statements and tax documents through NBIN’s My Portfolio +.
OVER
450
INDEPENDENT FIRMS
OVER
$300B
ASSETS UNDER ADMINISTRATION
OVER
1M
CANADIAN INVESTORS
STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS
The Croft Group works closely with our strategic partners to find the best services and opportunities for our clients.
insights
Research Report: Canaries in the Coal Mine?
We all knew that aggressive interest rate hikes would eventually break something. The first shoe dropped on March 10th and March 11th, when the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) took control of two insolvent commercial banks: Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and Signature Bank (SBNY) were the second and third largest bank failures since Washington Mutual collapsed in 2008.
Portfolio Managers’ Brief: February 2023
A brief review of market conditions and how they are impacting the management decisions of our Investment Review Committee (IRC).
Research Report: A Conditional Pause
The Bank of Canada (BoC) is out front once again. The BoC was the first of the G-7 central banks to deliver outsized rate hikes early in the cycle and is now the first to signal a pause after raising the overnight lending rate by 25 basis points (0.25%) on Wednesday January 25th, 2023. The BoC’s overnight lending rate now stands at 4.5%, a 15-year high.
Research Report: A View From 40,000 Feet
Despite clear signs that inflation is cooling, central bankers remain hawkish. Notable among the hawks is U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari, who penned a recent essay that put a bold exclamation point on their concerns about inflation. He believes the Fed should keep raising rates until it can say, with confidence, that the policy initiatives have quelled inflation. In short, look for more rate hikes at least through the next two meetings and possibly through June 2023.
Portfolio Managers’ Brief: December 2022
A brief review of market conditions and how they are impacting the management decisions of our Investment Review Committee (IRC).
Research Report: The Fed’s Two-Step
It seems that economists are changing their views as often as Putin changes generals. Case in point: the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF’s) World Economic Outlook (WEO) published in mid-October, revised downward 2023 growth expectations. The IMF now believes the global economies will collectively grow at 2.3% in 2023, which is 0.2% below the previous WEO forecast released in July. Look for more of the same in the coming months as economists compete in a race to the bottom.
