Headquarters:

2401-1 Yonge Street, Toronto ON, M5E 1E5

Year founded:

1992

Number of employees:

173

Phone:

647 259 7873

Email:

communications@rfamortgages.ca

Website:

rfa.ca

LinkedIn:

linkedin.com/company/rfa-mortgages

“Everything we do as an organization is to serve our agents in a meaningful way, which is to provide industry-leading insurance solutions when they need them the most”

Mark Maher, Jencap

RFA

Marina Bournas

President and Chief Executive Officer RFA Mortgage Corporation

Robert Morton

President and Chief Executive Officer RFA Bank of Canada

Michael Dressler

Chief Operating Officer RFA Mortgage Corporation

Leadership

Marina Bournas, a mother of three, has over 20 years of experience in the industry with an extensive focus on underwriting credit operations and risk. As a founding member of RFA Mortgage Corporation, she has helped build the company’s operations and unique culture from the ground up. Her vision for RFA extends beyond scaling the business and growing market share – she wants to leave a legacy of change. RFA has raised over $450,000 for several deserving charities through its #Deals4Change initiatives. Bournas is also an avid supporter of the BeaYOUtiful Foundation.

President and Chief Executive Officer RFA Mortgage Corporation

Marina Bournas

Robert Morton is a senior executive with over 30 years of broad experience at three major financial services companies. He is an accomplished leader who is well versed in the financial sector (OSFI), risk management, strategic design and execution, and general management. He also has extensive experience serving on and interacting with boards. Morton previously served as the executive vice president and chief financial officer of RFA Bank of Canada. In his free time, he enjoys his cottage, biking, travelling, and spending time with his wife, children, and grandchildren.

President and Chief Executive Officer RFA Bank of Canada

Robert Morton

Michael Dressler has over 20 years of lending and mortgage industry experience and has a deep background in financial and product analytics, credit, pricing, strategic planning, and product management. He has extensive experience in financial and non-financial operations and also leads RFA Mortgage Corporation’s treasury and investor management team.

Chief Operating Officer RFA Mortgage Corporation

Michael Dressler

“Everything we do as an organization is to serve our agents in a meaningful way, which is to provide industry-leading insurance solutions when they need them the most”

Mark Maher, Jencap

“Our team has successfully executed on an aggressive acquisition and integration plan over the last few years, which has contributed greatly to our strong market position”

John Jennings, Jencap

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“Our team has successfully executed on an aggressive acquisition and integration plan over the last few years, which has contributed greatly to our strong market position”

John Jennings, Jencap

“Everything we do as an organization is to serve our agents in a meaningful way, which is to provide industry-leading insurance solutions when they need them the most”

Mark Maher, Jencap

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Derek Arbour

Senior Vice President of Credit Operations RFA Bank of Canada

Derek Arbour has over 20 years of industry experience, with an extensive background in prime and alternative residential lending developed in Canada at a Big 5 Bank and a leading alternative lender. He is a seasoned operations leader focused on employee growth and development, resulting in a winning broker and client experience. He is known for implementing projects and process improvements that drive employee effectiveness to maximize the broker experience.

Senior Vice President of Credit Operations RFA Bank of Canada

Derek Arbour

Matt Lirantzis

Head of Marketing and Business Development RFA Bank of Canada

Matt Lirantzis has over 20 years of experience in the industry and has held various roles, including business analyst, VP of originations, and VP of sales and marketing. As an early member of the RFA Mortgage Corporation team, he led the development of the company’s sales and marketing operations. His knowledge of the broker industry, combined with his creative marketing and sales strategies, has helped the organization find early success.

Head of Marketing and Business Development RFA Bank of Canada

Matt Lirantzis

Founded in 1996, RFA is a Canadian-owned real estate investment firm grounded in the commercial and asset management segments. RFA and its investment partners are active participants in a wide array of real estate-focused portfolios, including debt financing transactions, REITs, retirement homes, and direct investments in office, retail, industrial, and multifamily residential properties. Combined, the RFA group of companies has over $65 billion in assets under management and an additional $25 billion in assets under administration. In 2018, RFA expanded into the residential lending market and accelerated its growth plans through the acquisition of Street Capital. It now has a presence in both the prime and alternative mortgage markets. RFA’s residential lending business is operated by RFA Mortgage Corporation and RFA Bank of Canada, a federally regulated Schedule I bank. RFA Mortgage Corporation specializes in prime lending (insured, insurable, and uninsurable), while RFA Bank of Canada is an alternative mortgage lender (Alt-A and B lending). RFA’s strategic vision is to be a long-term leader in the residential lending segment by offering a value proposition beyond just rate and compensation. Through building a competitive broker experience and a solutions-oriented product suite, the company’s goal is to be recognized and recommended by its mortgage broker partners, mortgagors, and other strategic partners for its financing solutions and broker/client experience.

“Our team has successfully executed on an aggressive acquisition and integration plan over the last few years, which has contributed greatly to our strong market position”

John Jennings, Jencap

Cheryl Buhs

Vice President of National Sales RFA Mortgage Corporation

Catherine Sieniewicz

AVP of Travel and Retail

Rhonda English

Chief Marketing Officer

Evelyn Peng

Chief Risk Officer

Cheryl Buhs is responsible for the entire sales operations of RFA Mortgage Corporation (prime) and RFA Bank of Canada (alternative). She has over 13 years of experience and was previously the vice president of sales for Western Canada at Street Capital. She manages a team of 10 regional vice presidents across Canada to establish national brand presence and meet regional origination volumes. She is also a key member of the leadership team and helps drive the mission, vision, and values of the company.

Vice President of National Sales RFA Mortgage Corporation

Cheryl Buhs

With decades of experience, Catherine Sieniewicz has always been devoted to growing within the travel and retail industry. Catherine became director of retail and travel at CCG in May 2019. In February 2020, she was promoted to AVP of travel and retail where she continues to guide all her decisions by what she has learned in member, associate, and business experience.

AVP of Travel and Retail

Catherine Sieniewicz

Rhonda English is a CPA, CMA and obtained her Honors Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration and her MBA from the Ivey Business School at the University of Western Ontario. Rhonda joined CM Club Group as vice president of insurance, then took the role of vice president corporate marketing, overseeing business insights & analytics and the acquisition and retention of the CM lines of business. In 2016, she was named chief marketing officer, taking on additional responsibility for travel and membership product, digital, and the government & community relations advocacy team.

Chief Marketing Officer

Rhonda English

Evelyn Peng started at CCG in 2017 as director of risk management and now serves as the chief risk officer for the organization. She has a Bachelor of Science in Biotechnology and a Master’s in Accounting from the University of Waterloo. She has extensive experience with enterprise risk management, specializing in operational risk management, and financial risk management. Evelyn is a Chartered Accountant and a Financial Risk Manager.

Chief Risk Officer

Evelyn Peng

Chief Risk Officer

Evelyn Peng

Chief Risk Officer

Evelyn Peng

Sarah M Stewart

Associate Vice President, Leasing and Call Centre Operations

Karen Bannister, CM

Vice President, Marketing

Dave Longbottom

Chief Technology Officer

Alex Ventura

Head of Marketing

Damian Palovick

Senior Vice President of Underwriting AXA XL – Delegated Authority Programs, North America

Dr. Mary Lavoie

Head of Risk Management and Senior Vice President AXA XL – Delegated Authority Programs, North America

Mark Bernacki

Chief Underwriting Officer

Ryan Armijo

Chief Operating Officer, Underwriting Division

Bob Petrilli

President, Underwriting Division

“Despite the challenging claims environment, QBE’s coverage and risk appetite have remained consistent. Brokers and customers know and understand our risk appetite and the cover we offer, providing them with certainty for the future,” says Erica Kofie, head of cyber proposition. “We put our customers at the centre of our business, responding to brokers in a proactive and timely manner and working with the customer to understand their unique risk profile and tailor appropriate solutions.” Kofie adds, “Through 2022, QBE successfully delivered significant growth in the cyber sector, reflecting the depth and strength of our team. We continue to see cyber as a key opportunity and will be further developing customer-centric solutions across various geographies and segments in line with our growth aspirations.”

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Earlene Huntley

Group Chief Financial Officer

Melissa Abramowitz

General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Privacy Officer

Melissa Abramowitz has been practicing corporate and commercial law for over 20 years, with an emphasis on the financial services industry. She joined CAA Club Group in 2014, and currently serves as the General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Privacy Officer of CCG and its affiliated companies. At CCG, Melissa provides strategic legal advice on a broad range of matters including corporate governance, licensing, distribution, marketing and advertising, commercial contracts and regulatory compliance. She holds a Bachelor of Civil Law (B.CL) and Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from McGill University and a Certificate in Regulatory Compliance for Financial Institutions from Osgoode.

General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Privacy Officer

Melissa Abramowitz

Earlene Huntley joined CAA in 2014 as director, tax and was promoted to AVP, tax in 2016, and to her current role as group chief financial officer of CAA Club Group in February 2017. In her role, she is responsible for all aspects of finance. She is a graduate of the University of the West Indies where she earned her BSc. Accounting (Hons) and is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants in the United Kingdom.

Group Chief Financial Officer

Earlene Huntley

Simon Williams

Chief Strategy & Distribution Officer, Arch Insurance International and Active Underwriter, Syndicate 1955

Simon Williams

Chief Strategy & Distribution Officer, Arch Insurance International and Active Underwriter, Syndicate 1955

Group Chief Financial Officer

Earlene Huntley

General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Privacy Officer

Melissa Abramowitz

General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Privacy Officer

Earlene Huntley

Group Chief Financial Officer

Earlene Huntley

General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Privacy Officer

Melissa Abramowitz

Management liability Arch Insurance’s management liability team is dedicated to addressing the needs of our partners. Our underwriting approach is to recognize and address exposures particular to each insured and offer creative solutions for our customers including complex risk and hard-to-place industries. Know more here: insurance.archgroup.com/north-america/canada/offering/management-liability Cyber Arch Insurance’s experienced underwriting team takes a forward-looking approach to writing network security, privacy and media liability for mid-to-large accounts. Professional liability Arch Insurance’s professional liability team is positioned to offer professional liability programs for financial service firms.

“Our thriving agency partnerships, long-tenured carrier relationships and strong leadership team are proof of Jencap’s values-centric work environment,” says Mark Maher, president of Jencap. “Everything we do as an organization is to serve our agents in a meaningful way, which is to provide industry-leading insurance solutions when they need them the most. Our brokers internally work very collaboratively. We check our egos at the door and work together to set our agency partners and their clients up for success by leveraging each other’s geographic expertise, carrier relationships and contracts, and technical expertise,” he adds. Jencap’s areas of specialization include environmental; workers’ compensation; property; construction; habitational/real estate; transportation/garage; cannabis; cyber, management, and professional liability; manufacturing; healthcare; and many more.

Jencap is committed to employing innovative enterprise-wide technology solutions that support their underwriters in making more timely and effective risk decisions. As such, they launched Two Sigma Insurance Quantified’s SubmissionIQ in 2022. SubmissionIQ equips their underwriters with the data they need to make smart and strategic risk assessments, further supporting them in implementing best-in-class business processes. The common thread woven through Jencap’s success is its people, as they have the best brokers and support staff in the industry. Fun fact: 20% of Jencap’s staff are employee equity holders. They don’t just say that their team members “own it” – they really do! This adds a unique layer of commitment and dedication to their job and the company’s success. “Our team has successfully executed on an aggressive acquisition and integration plan over the last few years, which has contributed greatly to our strong market position. Each acquisition has provided geographic expansion, new market access, exclusive programs and niche specialization,” says Jencap Chief Executive Officer John Jennings. To date, they have acquired 19 companies and rebranded 10 of those companies to Jencap. Click here for more information on Jencap.

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