Former National Bank of Canada NA-T chief executive Louis Vachon has a new part-time job as an operating partner at New York-based private equity firm J.C. Flowers & Co., which specializes in investments in financial services.
Mr. Vachon retired from National Bank last October after nearly 15 years as CEO. His new role at J.C. Flowers starts immediately, and he will devote about half his time to the job, aiming to drum up and screen deals as a member of the firm’s investment committee.
He has known Chris Flowers, the CEO of J.C. Flowers, for almost as long. It was around 2007 that Mr. Vachon first “cold called” Mr. Flowers to strike up a relationship, Mr. Vachon said in an interview. Since then, National Bank has worked with J.C. Flowers on a number of deals.
Most notably, National Bank advised J.C. Flowers when the private equity firm bought what was then called CitiFinancial Canada, the Canadian consumer finance arm of U.S. bank Citigroup Inc. Along with co-investor Värde Partners Inc., J.C. Flowers retooled the former Citi unit as Fairstone Financial Holdings Inc., then sold it last year to Duo Bank of Canada.
“We got to know each other personally and professionally,” Mr. Vachon said, adding that Mr. Flowers first broached the idea that Mr. Vachon might join his firm “before my retirement, a while ago.”
Founded in 1998, J.C. Flowers has US$5-billion of assets under management and has invested more than US$17-billion in about 60 companies. Its target niche includes the banking, insurance and reinsurance, securities and specialty finance sectors.
“It’s a time of disruption and opportunity in the financial services industry, and we believe Louis’ experience will be an asset to many of our portfolio companies, current and future, as they navigate today’s environment,” Mr. Flowers said in a statement.
As an operating partner, Mr. Vachon will mostly be responsible for vetting deals and will sometimes join the boards of companies in which J.C. Flowers invests. He also aims to help originate deals, although “the vast majority” will likely be outside Canada, he said, to avoid clashing with his former employer, National Bank.
He plans to stay put in Montreal, travelling as needed. He is invested in J.C. Flowers and will co-invest in some deals. “I am putting more of my money where my mouth is,” he said.
Mr. Vachon said he chose the J.C. Flowers job after considering other opportunities partly because of the “time flexibility” it gives him to pursue other things. He serves on three boards of directors, at Molson Coors Beverage Co., Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. and CH Group LP, the parent company of the Montreal Canadiens hockey team.
And Mr. Vachon said he still has room to add “one more venture,” which could be an entrepreneurial role outside financial services.
Your time is valuable. Have the Top Business Headlines newsletter conveniently delivered to your inbox in the morning or evening. Sign up today.