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In 1952, Arthur J. Nesbitt was succeeded as president by his son, Arthur Deane Nesbitt (1910–1978). The Nesbitt family sold most of its interest in Power Corporation to the Paul Desmarais group in 1968[5] and by 1970, no longer had any involvement.[when?]
In 1975, Power Corporation attempted a takeover of the Argus Corporation holding company which had substantial interests in brewing, food retailing, farm implements manufacturing, paper products and other businesses. The Argus owners rejected the takeover attempt and decided to retain their voting shares, while 50% of the non-voting shares were purchased by Power Corp.[6] In 1976, ten percent of the voting shares were sold by E. P. Taylor to Desmarais.[6] Argus was eventually sold in 1978 to a Conrad Black-controlled firm. In 1989, corporation began supporting the Imagine Canada program.[7]
While Power Corporation was originally established as an electric utility holding company, the company became a conglomerate with interests in the finance industry, as well as interests in other business sectors such as sustainable and renewable energy.[5] 1984 saw the creation of a management and holding company, Power Financial Corporation. Expansion for the group began in the 1970s, in Europe and followed in the 1990s, in Asia. The group's involvement in the finance sector continued in 2000, with the acquisition of Canada Life, Mackenzie Financial and Putnam Investments. Following the 2020 reorganization, Power Corporation owns 100% of Power Financial’s common shares.
In 2002, Power Corporation created the Sagard SAS fund, then Sagard Capital Partners, later named Sagard Holdings, in 2004, in the United States.[8] R. Jeffrey Orr was named Power Financial Corporation CEO in 2005.[8] By 2007, IGM Financial was the holding company for Power Corporation's investment fund companies.[5] Power Corporation also by 2009 had interests in the parent company of La Presse, Mackenzie Financial, London Life Insurance, Canada Life Assurance, Great-West Life, and Putnam Investments.[9]
The company reduced its number of board directors in 2008 from 21 to 12.[8] Power Corporation acquired a stake in China Asset Management in 2011, purchasing 10% from CITIC Securities Co.[10] Also that year, Power Corporation's new fund Sagard China was founded. Through a number of recent initiatives, in partnership with its subsidiaries Great-West Lifeco and IGM Financial, the Power Corporation group has been actively participating in the emerging fintech industry. This fintech strategy is achieved through Portag3 (which created Canada’s largest fintech investment fund),[11] Wealthsimple, Personal Capital and Diagram.
In connection with the reorganization, Paul Desmarais Jr. and André Desmarais retired as co-chief executive officers of Power Corporation after 24 years in the roles and continue to serve as chairman and deputy chairman, respectively, of Power Corporation's board of directors. R. Jeffrey Orr, president and chief executive officer of Power Financial, become president and chief executive officer of Power Corporation, effective February 13, 2020.[12][13][14][15]
Politics
The corporation has been criticized for its influence on Canadian politics through its relationships with prominent politicians, including several prime ministers and provincial premiers.[5] Critics "occasionally charge that the family’s political connections give it unfair advantages," says the New York Times in 2007.[5] The company has been known to defend federalism in Quebec.
Several former Canadian prime ministers have occupied a position on the management team or on the board of Power Corporation, of one of its group companies or of its international advisory council:
Former prime minister of Canada Jean Chrétien sat on the board of Power Corp. subsidiary Consolidated Bathurst in the late 1980s, before he became the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. Chrétien's daughter France is married to the son of Paul Desmarais, André.
Chrétien's long-time aide[16] and chief policy advisor Eddie Goldenberg also worked in the past for Power Corp. John Rae, strategist for Chretien, served as Power Corp.'s executive vice president.[17] His is the brother of former interim Liberal Party of Canada Leader Bob Rae.[16]
Former prime minister of Canada Pierre Trudeau served in the mid-1990s, on Power Corp.'s international advisory board. Trudeau's assistant Ted Johnson also worked for Power Corp. During the Trudeau administration, Michael Pitfield held a variety of positions in government, but during his time in the private sector, he was at one time a vice-chairman of Power Corp.
Former prime minister of Canada Brian Mulroney also has a relationship with Power Corporation. Mulroney's friend Ian MacDonald described Desmarais as "Mulroney's mentor in the business world", and it is believed that Mulroney has done legal work for Power Corp. since the end of his term as prime minister. Additionally, former Mulroney Minister of Transport Don Mazankowski served as Power Corp.'s company director.
Former premier of Quebec Daniel Johnson Jr. worked for Power Corp. from 1973 to 1981, and in the last three years of this term was a vice president of the company.
Former member of the Liberal Party of Canada Maurice Strong became president of Power Corp. by his mid-thirties. He had a role in the creation of the Canadian International Development Agency, and in 1976, he was appointed to run Petro-Canada. He later worked for the United Nations.
Power Corp.'s international advisory board has featured individuals such as former German chancellorHelmut Schmidt, former oil minister of Saudi Arabia Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani, former head of the US Federal Reserve Board Paul Volcker, and the previously mentioned former prime minister of Canada Pierre Trudeau.
John Napier Wyndham Turner was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 17th prime minister of Canada from June to September 1984. He served as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and leader of the Official Opposition from 1984 to 1990.
Martin Brian Mulroney was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th prime minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993.
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003.
The Liberal Party of Canada is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism, and generally sits at the centre to centre-left of the Canadian political spectrum, with their main rival, the Conservative Party, positioned to their right and the New Democratic Party positioned to their left. The party is described as "big tent", practising "brokerage politics", attracting support from a broad spectrum of voters. The Liberal Party is the longest-serving and oldest active federal political party in the country, and has dominated federal politics of Canada for much of its history, holding power for almost 70 years of the 20th century. As a result, it has sometimes been referred to as Canada's "natural governing party".
Paul Desmarais Sr. was a Canadian financier and philanthropist, based in Montreal. With an estimated family net worth of US$4.5 billion, Desmarais was ranked by Forbes as the fourth wealthiest person in Canada and 235th in the world in 2013. He was chairman and chief executive officer of Power Corporation of Canada until 1996 when he passed the reins of management of Power Corporation to his sons, Paul Jr. and André. He then continued to serve as a director and as chairman of the executive committee of the board, and remained the controlling shareholder. Power Corporation of Canada is a diversified international management and holding company with interests in companies in the financial services, asset management, sustainable and renewable energy, and other business sectors.
The sponsorship scandal, AdScam or Sponsorgate, was a scandal in Canada that came as a result of a federal government "sponsorship program" in the province of Quebec involving the Liberal Party of Canada, which was in power from 1993 to 2006.
Paul Desmarais Jr. is a Canadian businessman and philanthropist. He has been the chairman and co-CEO of Power Corporation of Canada since 1996.
André Desmarais is a Canadian businessman and philanthropist.
The Argus Corporation was an investment holding company based in Toronto, Ontario. During the 1960s and 1970s, it was the most powerful and best known conglomerate in Canada, at one time controlling the companies making up 10 percent of all shares traded daily on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Power Financial Corporation is a Canadian multinational company that was founded in 1984. Power Financial, a wholly owned subsidiary of Power Corporation of Canada, is an international management and holding company with interests in financial services and asset management businesses in Canada, the United States and Europe. It also has significant holdings in a portfolio of global companies based in Europe.
The history of Canada (1982–present) refers to the period immediately following the Canada Act until the present.
The nations of Canada and Mexico established formal diplomatic relations in 1944. Initially, ties between the two nations were dormant, but since the 1990s relations between Canada and Mexico have positively developed as both countries brokered NAFTA.
Canada–China relations, or Sino-Canadian relations, officially date back to 1942, when Canada sent an ambassador to China. Before then, Canada had been represented by the British ambassador. The Communist victory (1949) in the Chinese Civil War resulted a break in relations that lasted until 1970, when Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau became one of the first Western leaders to recognize the People's Republic of China.
Isabelle Hudon is a Canadian businesswoman and diplomat. She is currently the President and CEO of the Business Development Bank of Canada. From 2017-2021, she served as Canadian Ambassador to France and Monaco. She was the first female Canadian Ambassador to France. Previously, she served as Executive Chair, Quebec and Senior Vice-President, Client Solutions for Sun Life Financial.
Caroline Anne Mulroney Lapham, is a Canadian businesswoman, lawyer and politician who currently serves as the President of the Treasury Board of Ontario and Minister of Francophone Affairs.
Canada–Senegal relations are the diplomatic relations between Canada and Senegal. Both nations are members of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie.
Paul Desmarais III is a Canadian businessperson and philanthropist.
Olivier Desmarais is a Canadian businessman and philanthropist. Desmarais is chairman and CEO of Power Sustainable Capital, a global alternative asset manager. He is also Senior Vice-President of Power Corporation of Canada and Power Financial since 2017.
KOHO Financial Inc. is a Canadian fintech company based in Toronto. While it is not a bank, the company provides banking services via KOHO Financial Inc. pursuant to a license by Mastercard International Incorporated.
Melissa LantsmanMP is a Canadian politician and public relations executive who serves as the Member of Parliament for Thornhill in the House of Commons of Canada. A member of the Conservative Party of Canada, she was elected in the 2021 Canadian federal election. Lanstman is the first openly gay and first Jewish woman ever elected as a Conservative MP. Upon Pierre Poilievre's election as Conservative Leader, he named Lantsman one of two deputy leaders along with Edmonton MP Tim Uppal.
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CA$64.61 billion (2020) [2] 
