Louis Vachon

Louis Vachon CM is a Canadian banker, financier, and business executive. He is currently the Chief Executive Officer of National Bank of Canada, a position he has held since June 2007. Prior to this appointment, he was Chief Operating Officer of the bank.

He was named CEO of the Year by Canadian Business in 2014.^[1][2] Vachon was appointed as a Member of the Order of Canada in 2016.^[3]

Early life and education

Vachon was born in 1962, in Quebec, Canada.^[4] His family started an eponymous pastry company and his father served as the Dean of School of Business at Sherbrooke University. He spoke about his upbringing in Canadian Business, stating, “Being a successful business person was highly valued in our family."^[5]

He entered Bates College, in Lewiston, Maine in 1979 and became interested in finance early on. Paul Erdman's The Billion Dollar Sure Thing played a role in his interest and shaped his early thoughts on financial markets.

Vachon graduated from Bates College in 1983, with a B.A. in Economics, and went on to graduate from The Fletcher School of Tufts University, with an M.A. International Finance.^[6]

Early career

Vachon began his career in 1985 at Citibank and joined Lévesque Beaubien Geoffrion in 1986. From 1990 to 1996, he worked for Bankers Trust, where he was ultimately appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian subsidiary, BT Bank of Canada. Vachon rejoined the Bank in 1996 as President and Chief Executive Officer of Innocap Investment Management. A year later, he was appointed Senior Vice-President – Treasury and Financial Markets.

From January 2005 to July 2006, Vachon was Chairman of the Board of National Bank Financial, the Bank's leading subsidiary, and of Natcan Investment Management. He had previously served as Chief Executive Officer of National Bank Financial.^[7]

National Bank of Canada

Vachon was appointed President and Chief Executive of National Bank of Canada on February 2, 2007.^[8][9][10] His compensation totaled $7,618,503 in 2015, with a base pay of $1,083,333, with other compensation adding up to $6,344,803.^[11]

Awards and honours

• Louis Vachon was appointed as a Member of the Order of Canada.^[12]
• In 2016, Louis Vachon has been inducted as Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel of Les Fusiliers Mont-Royal, Montreal.^[13]
• Vachon was awarded an honorary doctorate by Bishop's University in 2015.^[14]
• In 2014, he was named CEO of the Year by Canadian Business magazine, as well as Financial Personality of the Year by Quebec business publication Finance et Investissement, a title he also received in 2012. He was also named one of Canada's Top 40 Under 40 in 2001.^[15][16]

References