Skip to content

Excellence in the Canadian fund industry

The Refinitiv Lipper Fund Award Winners have been announced for the Canadian fund industry. The legacy, reputation and quantitative underpinning of what these awards encapsulate reflect a truly independent and uncompromized assessment of fund performance. 


  1. The merit of the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Award Winners for the Canadian fund industry is based entirely on quantitative criteria.
  2. For more than 30 years and in over 17 countries worldwide, these awards have honored funds and fund management firms that have excelled in providing consistently strong risk-adjusted performance, and focuses the investment world on top funds.
  3. Read what winners say about their outperformance and the value these awards create for their firms and clients, and the fund industry.

For more data-driven insights in your Inbox, subscribe to the Refinitiv Perspectives weekly newsletter.

We congratulate this year’s four fund families receiving Asset Class Group awards and individual fund winners for their superior firm-wide performance.

2020 Canada Lipper Fund Awards Winners

2020 Canada Lipper Fund Awards Winners

Individual classifications of three-, five-, and ten-year periods, as well as fund families with high average scores for the three-year period are also recognized. The awards are based on Lipper’s proven proprietary methodology.

View all the winners

Watch: Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards

Lipper is the go-to resource for fund performance research, providing premium data, fund ratings, analytical tools, and global commentary through specialized product offerings

With a 40-year track record of independent content, Lipper data covers more than 330,000 share classes in 86 countries. The Lipper Leader ratings are available for mutual funds registered for sale in 47 markets with over 500 fund classifications.

A message from Refinitiv Lipper

Robert Jenkins, Head of Lipper Research at Refinitiv, said: “In a year of dramatic change across the global economy, climate and the environment, and political cultures, it has never been more important to have your investments entrusted with talented and experienced professionals.

The Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards recognize those exceptional managers and fund management groups who navigate these changes and steer your assets into outperforming returns.”

Tiffany Welch, Head of Canada at Refinitiv, said: “The current global crisis demands effective fund managers and firms who can manage risks, generate returns and take advantage of the ‘flight to quality’ in times of humanitarian and economic stress.

At Refinitiv, we are extremely proud to acknowledge those who are the best in the Canadian fund industry as recognized by the 2020 Canada Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards during these unprecedented times. Congratulations to this year’s winners for committing to excellence.”

The Globe and Mail special editorial report on the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards. Excellence in the Canada fund industry

Exclusive media partner coverage, The Globe and Mail

View the editorial coverage of winners from The Globe & Mail, exclusive media partner of the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards Canada 2020.

Messages from the winners

See what top-ranked institutions are saying about the 2020 Canada Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards:

Manulife Investment Management

“Having a fund recognized for the eighth consecutive year is truly humbling. On behalf of the Manulife Investment Management leadership team, I’d like to congratulate our lead portfolio manager, Prakash Chaudhari, and the whole investment team on this impressive win.

Helping make decisions easier and lives better for our customers is what we strive to do. These teams go above and beyond in their approach to managing their funds, all for the benefit of investors. That’s what matters most and we’re proud of our record and delivering results.”

Bernard Letendre, Head of Wealth and Asset Management, Manulife Investment Management

Duane Green, President and Chief Executive Officer, Franklin Templeton

“I congratulate the outstanding portfolio management teams with our Franklin Bissett Corporate Bond Fund and Templeton Emerging Markets Fund for being honored with the prestigious 2020 Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards.

Their work is an example of how Franklin Templeton is always focused on delivering better outcomes for our clients through our Canadian and global investment solutions.”

Duane Green, President and Chief Executive Officer, Franklin Templeton

Kevin Gopaul, Global Head of ETFs, BMO Global Asset Management

“At BMO Global Asset Management, we constantly look to create strong, innovative products to adapt to the evolving needs of investors and advisors. We are honored to have our team’s hard work and success recognized at this year’s Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards.”

Kevin Gopaul, Global Head of ETFs, BMO Global Asset Management

Jean-François Girard, Manager, DI.

“We’re very proud of this award and very pleased with the success of our Desjardins Overseas Equity Growth Fund, which is a reflection of Baillie Gifford’s commitment to developing compelling investment strategies for the benefit of our members and clients.”

Jean-François Girard, Manager, DI.

“We’re also very proud of the Lipper ETF award for the Desjardins 1-5 Year Laddered Canadian Corporate Bond Index ETF, as it was constructed for both an individual investment as well as a building block for client portfolios for today’s varied market conditions, as had come to be expected from Desjardins Global Asset Management.”

Guy Lamontagne, Director and Chief Investment Strategy, Desjardins Global Asset Management

Jennifer Radman, Head of Investments & Senior Portfolio Manager, Caldwell Investment Management Ltd.

“Our aim at Caldwell is to provide innovative, well-managed investment solutions to our clients. Achieving a Refinitiv Lipper Fund Award for a second consecutive year is, for us, an acknowledgement that we are accomplishing what we set out to do — delivering a high-quality product that helps investors realize their financial and, ultimately, life goals.”

Jennifer Radman, Head of Investments & Senior Portfolio Manager, Caldwell Investment Management Ltd.

Richard Usher-Jones, President, Lysander Funds Limited

“Lysander Funds is honored to be recognized with Refinitiv Lipper Awards. Behind the strong and consistent results is an experienced, dedicated investment team at Canso Investment Counsel that is focused on providing the best experience for our investors who have entrusted us with their savings.

Recognition of our efforts by industry experts is an honor. We are very proud of our results, but as we all know in our business — past results are history. We are focused on the future, protecting and growing our investors’ savings.

2020 continues to be an extremely challenging environment for Canadians at work and at home. Both Canso and Lysander are long-standing supporters of charitable work in our communities.

In these difficult times, we are doing everything we can to support those less fortunate by investing in our communities; through the United Way and the Local Love Campaign, Canada Food Banks, our Canadian military through the True Patriot Love Foundation and the Veterans House Multi Faith Housing Project.”

Richard Usher-Jones, President, Lysander Funds Limited

Barry McInerney, President and CEO, Mackenzie Investments

“I’d like to congratulate our entire fund management team for their outstanding efforts during what’s been a very challenging year for all Canadians. Their hard work and commitment reflects our ongoing focus on providing investors with access to an extensive line-up of innovative solutions that deliver strong performance.”

Barry McInerney, President and CEO, Mackenzie Investments

Robert Vanderhooft, Chief Investment Officer, TD Asset Management Inc.

“Being recognized by Lipper is always a great honor for TD Asset Management Inc. (TDAM) and its sub-advisors. These awards reflect the strong partnership we have enjoyed with T. Rowe Price over the years, and TDAM’s continuing commitment to deliver a broad range of innovative, compelling solutions that drive value for clients and advisors alike.

On behalf of our entire investment management team at TDAM, we are extremely appreciative for this acknowledgment.”

Robert Vanderhooft, Chief Investment Officer, TD Asset Management Inc.

Kevin McCreadie, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer, AGF Management

“Thank you to the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards for recognizing AGF in both the High Yield Fixed Income and U.S. Small/Mid Cap Equity categories for our strong performance over three- and five-year periods. This prestigious honor is a testament to our disciplined approach to deliver consistent investment performance for our clients.”

Kevin McCreadie, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer, AGF Management

Dean Orrico, President and Chief Investment Officer, Middlefield Capital Corporation

“Limited MIDDLEFIELD is very pleased to be recognized for its performance, especially given the unique challenges faced by the real estate sector in 2020.

We are focused on selecting the highest quality companies who are best positioned to benefit from long-term, durable trends in the real estate industry.

Dean Orrico, President and Chief Investment Officer, Middlefield Capital Corporation

Irwin A. Michael, CFA, President & Portfolio Manager, I.A. Michael Investment Counsel, Canada

“We are honored to receive this prestigious investment recognition and thank our whole team for their combined efforts.”

Irwin A. Michael, CFA, President & Portfolio Manager, I.A. Michael Investment Counsel, Canada

Steve Hawkins, President and CEO, Horizons ETFs

“We’re honored once again to have several of our ETFs recognized by the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards, many of which have now won in their respective categories for consecutive years. The Lipper Fund Awards distinguish themselves and our ETFs by offering an objective, quantitative and clear measure of a fund’s performance that is respected across the entire financial services industry.

These latest achievements are a well-timed complement to what has been a record-breaking year at Horizons ETFs and we’re already excited to see what other Lipper Fund Award wins we can achieve in 2021!”

Steve Hawkins, President and CEO, Horizons ETFs

Register: [Webinar] Winning Fund Strategies in Unprecedented Times

Register: [Webinar] Winning Fund Strategies in Unprecedented Times


Disclaimer:

The Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards, granted annually, highlight funds and fund companies that have excelled in delivering consistently strong risk-adjusted performance relative to their peers.

The Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards are based on the Lipper Leader for Consistent Return rating, which is a risk-adjusted performance measure calculated over 36, 60 and 120 months. The fund with the highest Lipper Leader for Consistent Return (Effective Return) value in each eligible classification wins the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Award. For more information, see lipperfundawards.com. Although Refinitiv Lipper makes reasonable efforts to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the data contained herein, the accuracy is not guaranteed by Refinitiv Lipper.