Veritas Founder. Stoic Truth Warrior. Forensic Accountant. Investor Champion. Success Creator. Dad. Grandfather.
Toronto, Canada
Joined August 2014
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Really enjoyed this conversation. Congratulations @roccorossiTO on an excellent book. Well worth reading everyone!
Can walking 14,000 steps on a pilgrimage make you a better business leader? Can it help find ways to strengthen Canada economically? Rocco Rossi knows it can and we have to act fast.
Rocco has walked the Camino de Santiago 24 times (and counting) and written a moving memoir novel that our President and CEO, Anthony Scilipoti, says will speak to everyone, especially Bay Street and business leaders. In "Finding Grace: A Camino de Santiago Story," Rocco narrates a story that weaves his vast personal and professional experience into a blueprint for leadership through understanding grace and selfless giving.
In this moving Fact Finder 145, Anthony speaks with Rocco, the business leader, board member, champion fundraiser, former mayoral candidate, public servant, best-selling author and pilgrim as he explains how we can live a better life and build a better Canada.
The conversation delves into Rocco's humble origins, formative influences, and professional career. He explains why he started walking the Camino, and shares the lessons he's learned about life, leadership, and business along the trail. He also has strong convictions about how to strengthen Canada. His assessment: decisive action and speed are key, noting that COVID proved governments can move quickly. "There's no waiting for Godot here. We've got to act, take responsibility and agency, and be prepared to adjust."
Rocco's four lessons for any business leader: 1) break down big goals into small steps, 2) celebrate the small wins along the way, 3) minimize emotional baggage, and 4) empower your people to excel.
youtu.be/fS_wzEXQ_6Q?si=HzJY…
@roccorossiTO @ASclipoti
Check out my latest article: Are We There Yet?
Reflections On Our 14th Annual Veritas Real Estate Conference linkedin.com/pulse/we-yet-re… via @LinkedIn
We held our 14th Annual Veritas Real Estate Conference last week, and one presenter I'd particularly like to thank is Aled ab Iorwerth, Deputy Chief Economist at Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
I looked back and Aled has joined us for about half of our conferences over the years. I think you'd be hard-pressed to find someone with a deeper understanding of the Canadian housing market.
What I've always appreciated about Aled is his ability to take a mountain of housing data, make sense of it and explain what it actually means for Canadians and investors. He brings a rare combination of deep knowledge, historical perspective and a wonderfully dry sense of humour.
The Canadian housing market has gone from boom to bust over the past several years, and Aled has helped us make sense of it every step of the way. Thank you, Aled, for once again sharing your insights with our clients.
@CMHC_ca
We held our 14th Annual Veritas Real Estate Conference this week, and I have to say, I think it was our best one yet.
There are a lot of people to thank. Our Veritas team, who put so much work into making the day a success. Our guest speakers, who generously shared their time, expertise and opinions. And, of course, our clients and everyone who attended. They asked thoughtful questions and provoked some great discussions.
I don't usually like to single people out, but I wanted to share this picture from the end of the conference on Wednesday.
From left to right, we have John Pasalis, Steve Saretsky and Ron Butler. These three have become fixtures at our conference over the years. They know their markets, they're never afraid to speak their minds, and they always give us plenty to think about.
On the far right is David LePoidevin of LePoidevin Group at CG Wealth Management, a long-time Veritas client who makes a point of attending every year. David also happens to ask some of the best questions in the room, which is something I've always appreciated.
After 14 years, it's gratifying to see so many familiar faces coming back, along with plenty of new ones.
Thanks again to everyone who made this year's conference such a success. Looking forward to doing it all again next year.
@JohnPasalis @SteveSaretsky @ronmortgageguy
Great food for thought here.
Mark Carney believes Canada needs a new pipeline. The Prime Minister recently designated the forthcoming Pacific Link pipeline as the first project of national interest under the Building Canada Act.
The argument is that a new pipeline from Alberta to the B.C. coast will expand pipeline capacity for oil producers, diversify exports beyond the U.S. market, and strengthen Canada's economic resilience.
Not everyone agrees. Anthony Scilipoti, our President and CEO, spoke to Tom Gunton, a professor at Simon Fraser University, in the latest episode of our Fact Finders Series. Tom has studied large-scale infrastructure projects for decades, and he says Canada doesn't need another pipeline.
Pipelines are expensive, complex, multi-year projects. Tom argues that Canada would be better off upgrading existing infrastructure, some of which has private sector backing, than building from scratch.
"If you've got enough low-cost brownfield pipeline expansion that the private sector is investing [in], that's capable of getting that oil to market, why would you build a project at taxpayers' expense that you don't need?"
See the full episode on YouTube: youtu.be/wdJDtE9qx6k?si=sdyi…
@ASclipoti
Anthony Scilipoti retweeted
Just three days to go to our 14th Annual Veritas Real Estate Conference. One of the most interesting panels will be about the condo industry.
Build, Hold or Fold? - The Fight to Finance Condos and Purpose-Built Rental Housing
Panelists:
- Albert Collu, President & CEO, Marathon Mortgage Corp. (moderator)
- Adrian Rocca, CEO & Founder, Fitzrovia Real Estate
- Nick Stillo, Principal and COO, One Urban Developments
- Sasha Cucuz, CEO, Greybrook Securities Inc., Partner, Greybrook Capital
Canada needs more housing. Yet the economics of building it have rarely looked worse.
Condo presales have collapsed. Construction and financing costs remain high. Purpose-built rental benefits from government incentives and patient capital, but rents do not always support the cost of construction.
Meanwhile, investors must decide whether to commit more money, wait for better conditions or rescue projects already under pressure.
Four industry leaders operating with very different models debate which projects can still be financed, who will absorb today’s losses and what will actually get built next.
The full conference agenda is on our website: veritascorp.com/events/real-…
@GreybrookRealty
Anthony Scilipoti retweeted
Employees are returning. Leasing activity is improving. New construction has nearly stopped. Yet vacancy remains elevated, financing is difficult and the recovery is heavily concentrated in the best buildings.
Is the office market finally turning, or is this merely a recovery for a small group of trophy assets?
Alan MacKenzie, CEO, JLL Canada and Jonathan Pearce, Senior Managing Director, Americas Leasing, Hines, will be holding a fireside chat on the future of office real estate at our 14th Annual Veritas Real Estate Conference next week.
Alan and Jonathan will examine how office demand has changed over time, why Canada’s experience has differed from the United States, and what employers now expect from their workplaces. They will explore the widening divide between premium and commodity buildings, whether older offices can be repositioned, and what ultimately happens to the properties that tenants no longer want.
Details on our website: veritascorp.com/events/real-…?
@JLL @Hines
Anthony Scilipoti retweeted
Please join us for a fireside chat with Vic Gupta, CEO of CreateTO, at our 14th Annual Veritas Real Estate conference on October 14. With private development stalled by high costs, weak economics and scarce capital, Toronto is taking on a new role: public builder.
CreateTO is moving beyond preparing and marketing city-owned land. It intends to lead development itself, using public land and government capital to deliver housing and other public assets. But can the city build faster, more affordably and with less risk than the private sector? Or will political oversight, competing objectives and municipal finances create a different set of obstacles?
In a fireside chat titled 'The City to the Rescue? - Toronto's Experiment as a Public Real Estate Developer', host Anthony Scilipoti will ask Vic how the CreateTO model is intended to work, where the money and expertise will come from, and how Toronto will determine whether its public-builder experiment is actually succeeding.
Please join us for this and more at the National Club and streaming.
See the full agenda and ticket information on our website.
veritascorp.com/events/real-…
@ASclipoti @_CreateTO
We've been conducting our residential real estate investor survey since 2019, and every year we're fascinated by the trends. Last year, few were looking to buy, and few were looking to sell, which meant buyers and sellers were at a standoff. Perhaps not surprisingly, the proportion of properties that were breakeven or cash-flow negative also remained high, presumably because investors had been counting on capital gains rather than income when they made their purchases. With rents falling, we wonder if the trend is worsening.
If you own residential real estate properties as an investment, please take our annual real estate investor survey to gauge market sentiment and conditions.
It will only take a minute or two to complete. We'll share the results here and at our 14th Annual Veritas Real Estate conference on October 14.
surveymonkey.com/r/9MWWCNH
We are almost sold out for the day at the National Club. If you were planning to come, don't wait.
The Price of Denial: What is Canadian Commercial Real Estate Really Worth?
- Jeffrey Berger, Managing Director, TDB Advisory
- David Black, Head of Value and Risk Advisory, Canada, JLL Canada
- Mario Lefebvre, Chief Economist for Canada, CoStar Group
- Anthony Scilipoti, President and CEO, Veritas Group of Companies (moderator)
Commercial real estate values have fallen, transactions have slowed, and refinancing has become far more difficult. Yet reported valuations and loan losses have often adjusted only gradually.
Are owners and lenders prudently waiting for markets to recover, or merely delaying an inevitable reckoning?
Bringing together expertise in economics, property valuation and corporate restructuring, this panel will examine what Canadian commercial real estate is really worth. Where are valuations still vulnerable? Which sectors face the greatest refinancing risk? When does financial stress become insolvency? And who ultimately absorbs the losses?
The central question: Has Canadian commercial real estate found its bottom, or have we simply avoided recognizing it?
Please join us for this panel and more at our 14th Annual Veritas Real Estate Conference on October 14 at the National Club and streaming.
See the full agenda and ticket information on our website.
veritascorp.com/events/real-…?
@ASclipoti @CoStarCanada @JLL
We're going to get to the bottom of this.
Consumer insolvencies are up, but the TSX is near all-time highs. Power-of-sale transactions are rising, but mortgage write-offs for Big Banks remain steady at ~1 bps. Unemployment levels are elevated, but markets are pricing in rate hikes. Fixed mortgage rates are rising, real estate values are declining in the GTA and GVA, but active inventories are contracting. Geopolitical and trade tensions remain major risks to the economy, but the government's push in AI, mining, defence, and infrastructure can result in robust economic growth. These are some of the contradictions that exist today.
Shalabh Garg, our Financial Services Senior Analyst, will kick off our 14th Annual Veritas Real Estate Conference by presenting Veritas's views on why these contradictions are predominant today, providing an overview of the health of Canadian households, the state of the GTA and the GVA markets, and the implications for the Big Banks.
This will be followed by a conversation with Rebekah Young, Vice-President, Economic Policy, Scotiabank, to explore further on how the economy is holding up despite the lack of population growth, how many rate hikes the economy can absorb, whether there is room for the federal and provincial government to run at higher fiscal deficits, and how AI buildout, trade and geopolitical issues will impact employment levels in Canada?
The key conundrum: What's driving this divergence in the performance of Main St. and the Bay St.? How long will it last, and will Main St. catch up to Bay St., or are we in for a substantial deflation in financial asset valuations?
We are almost sold out for the National Club on October 14th, so please don't delay in signing up if you plan to come. Tickets are also available for streaming.
Please see the website for tickets and the full agenda:
veritascorp.com/events/real-…?
We are almost sold out for the National Club, though we have space for streaming access.
We are pleased to announce the agenda for our Veritas 14th Annual Real Estate Conference on October 14.
Are We There Yet? Searching for a Bottom in an Unpredictable Market
9:00 - 9:15
Welcome: A Year in Review
Anthony Scilipoti, President and CEO, Veritas Group of Companies
9:15 - 9:30
The Main St vs. the Bay St Conundrum
Shalabh Garg, Senior Investment Analyst, Financial Services and REITs, Veritas Investment Research
Rebekah Young, Vice-President, Economic Policy, Scotiabank
9:55 - 10:35
The Price of Denial: What Is Canadian Commercial Real Estate Really Worth?
Jeffrey Berger, Managing Director, TDB Advisory
David Black, Head of Value and Risk Advisory, Canada, JLL Canada
Mario Lefebvre, Chief Economist for Canada, CoStar Group
10:50 - 11:20
From Crisis to Constraint: Canadian Housing Credit in a More Volatile World
Aled ab Iorwerth, Deputy Chief Economist, Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation
11:20 - 12:00
Build, Hold or Fold? - The Fight to Finance Condos and Purpose-built Rental Housing
Adrian Rocca. CEO & Founder, Fitzrovia Real Estate
Nick Stillo, Principal and COO, One Urban Developments
Sasha Cucuz, CEO, Greybrook Securities Inc. Partner, Greybrook Capital
Lunch
Inc1:00 - 2:00
Are We There Yet? Four Views from the Front Lines
Natalka Falcomer, Chief Real Estate Officer, Houseful, an RBC Company (moderator)
Daniel Foch, Chief Real Estate Officer, Valery.ca
Ron Butler, Mortgage Broker, Butler Mortgage Inc.
John Pasalis, President and Broker, Move Smartly Realty inc.
Steve Saretsky, Saretsky Group
2:00 - 2:30
The City To the Rescue? - Toronto's Experiment as a Public Real Estate Developer
Vic Gupta, CEO of CreateTO
2:45 - 3:25
Back to the Office. But Which Office? - A Fireside Chat on the Future of Canadian Office Real Estate
Alan MacKenzie, CEO JLL Canada
Jonathan Pearce, Senior Managing Director, Americas Leasing, Hines
3:25 - 4:10
Finding Bottom in Canada: A Look Back Over the Last 50 Years
Ira Gluskin, Chief Investment Officer of Irager + Associates Inc.
Jon Love, Executive Chairman and Founder of KingSett Capital
4:10 - 4:30
Wrap
Anthony Scilipoti, President and CEO, Veritas Group of Companies
Cocktails at The National Club afterwards.
We are almost at capacity for the National Club. If you plan to attend, please don't wait to RSVP.
veritascorp.com/events/real-…
@ASclipoti @JohnPasalis @ronmortgageguy @danielfoch @SteveSaretsky
There's a new version of this post
Ben has done some excellent digging here.
On September 16, our President and CEO, Anthony Scilipoti, and Special Situations Analyst, Ben Butler, hosted a 1-hour webinar for our clients that delved into the complex world of AI financing. We went through how AI companies have been finding the money they need to build out AI infrastructure with equity investments and other arrangements, creating a circular financing loop that may not be sustainable.
In this short excerpt from the webinar, Ben follows the money one step further by examining the relationships between private-equity firms, the insurance companies they own and AI companies. In one case, he dug into the filings of a $3.5 billion AI financing agreement and found that two-thirds of the loans appeared on a related insurance company's balance sheet, meaning that policyholders, who are predominantly retirees, unknowingly were financing the purchase of GPU chips.
youtu.be/jLqYPmtnVTU?si=nT7Q…
This will be a can't-miss event.
We have an update to the fireside chat we announced last week.
Ira Gluskin, Chief Investment Officer of Irager + Associates Inc., has agreed to host the fireside chat with Jon Love, Executive Chairman and Founder of KingSett Capital.
Jon and Ira go way back, as Ira was once a real estate analyst before he co-founded Gluskin Sheff and Associates. Subsequently, Ira has become a director of a variety of public real estate companies, including First Capital, which Jon is trying to buy as we speak. Ira has agreed to be very gentle on Jon, with perhaps one or two exceptions.
The Premise for the Fireside Chat
Real estate cycles rarely repeat, but they often rhyme.
Why did commercial and residential real estate collapse together in the early 1990s, while this current downturn has unfolded so differently? What can previous bubbles teach us about governance, the pricing of capital and the excesses that ultimately create a crisis?
Today, capital is constrained, projects are stalled, and buyers and sellers remain locked in a standoff. Yet Jon believes we may be starting to establish a bottom, with recovery taking hold in 2027 into 2028 (wonder what Ira thinks?).
In a special fireside chat at our 14th Annual Veritas Real Estate Conference, Ira and Jon will look back through their careers to understand where we are today, what could still go wrong, and what needs to change in real estate, public policy and Canada itself to create the next period of growth and opportunity.
Find out more about the conference and purchase tickets on our website:
veritascorp.com/events/real-…
This is a very important and dynamic role at our company.
We're hiring! We're looking for someone with several years of experience in executive support, operations, project coordination, professional services or another demanding business environment.
Here is what success in the job looks like:
- The CEO does not have to remember everything because you do
- Meetings happen with the right people, information and preparation
- Commitments are followed up without repeated reminders
- Important details rarely fall through the cracks
- Recurring problems become processes
- Projects move forward because someone is actively driving them
- You anticipate what is required before being asked
- The executive team trusts you with increasingly important responsibilities
- You make the organization more organized simply by being part of it
If that sounds like you, check out our job post for more details.
linkedin.com/jobs/view/44671…
Our research team keeps growing!
We're hiring! If you're early in your career, deeply curious about companies and markets, and want to develop your skills in fundamental analysis and forensic accounting, we'd like to hear from you.
linkedin.com/jobs/view/44635…
Well done, Martin!
We're extremely proud to announce that Martin Pradier, MBA, CFA, has been promoted to Senior Investment Analyst.
Martin is responsible for covering the Materials sector, having two decades of equity research experience on both the buy-side and sell-side. Not only does he know a lot about rocks, but he also has a great mind for how macro events will impact commodity prices.
Fun fact: He is from Argentina, so he speaks Spanish fluently, which is why he can pick up the phone and learn about local political conditions affecting miners in Latin America. His wife, Louise, is Quebecois, so he speaks French too. He also loves boats, and yes, he's taken us for rides under the beautiful Scarborough Bluffs.
Congratulations Martin!
In two weeks, the Buddies Open's relentless attack on cancer will tee off.
For those who don't know about our Buddies charity, it started in 1994 when the North West Devils were awarded $500 for winning the Bill Bolton Consolation Men’s Hockey Championship. We decided to put the funds towards a golf tournament and BBQ, and it was so fun, we've kept doing it, raising almost $160,000 over the past 32 years for cancer charities.
For the September 2025 tournament, 106 donors raised a net $20,000 for Northern Ontario Families of Children With Cancer, Childhood Cancer Canada, Camp Erin, Pediatric Oncology Group of Ontario, Leucan, and Nankind.
Probably one of my favourite things about this event is thinking back over the past 30+ years.
We have photos going back to 2002 on the Buddies Open website: buddiesopen.com/gallery/.
We've all changed so much and it's wonderful to see all the kids and grandkids now involved.
Here are the details for this year:
Date: Sunday, September 13, 2026.Time: 8:00 AM shotgun start.
Format: Scramble best-ball. Enter as an individual or as a foursome.
Location: Bethesda Grange, 12808 Warden Avenue, Stouffville, ON L4A 7X5.
Register Now: $180 per golfer (includes 18-hole green fees, power cart, on-course lunch, official 2025 Buddies Open hat, golf awards, door prizes, and after-party). Or Hole Sponsorship for $200 (includes signage creation and recognition on signage and the Buddies website).
After-Party Details: Enjoy world-famous sausages, burgers, and BEvERages.
Raffle: Win sports memorabilia and other surprises.
Live, Online & Silent Auction.
Live Band: Pontune5 will keep the good vibes rolling.
Please RSVP by September 4 to ensure your spot.
You can register here or if you can't make it, please consider a donation: veritascharityservices.com/e…
Calling a bottom is extremely difficult, but we're going to look at it from all angles and give it our best shot.
Has Canadian housing reached a genuine clearing point, or are low transaction volumes, seller resistance and government support merely delaying price discovery?
Amid one of the sharpest housing corrections in a generation, Canadian home prices remain roughly 20% below their 2022 peak. Pre-construction condo sales have collapsed, inventories have risen and developers are struggling to make the economics work. Yet mortgage arrears remain relatively low, and prices seem to have stabilized.
The result is a housing market sending conflicting signals. Have prices fallen far enough to bring buyers back? How much financial stress is still working its way through the system? And what happens to future housing supply when developers still cannot make new projects pencil?
We have four trusted experts ready to share their on-the-ground views in our main panel event of our 14th Annual Veritas Real Estate Conference on October 14.
Four Views from the Front Lines
- Steve Saretsky: Real Estate Specialist and Founder of the Saretsky Group in Vancouver - Is Vancouver leading Toronto through the correction, or experiencing a different cycle?
- John Pasalis: President and Broker of Move Smartly Realty Inc. - Are the data showing a bottom, or merely a stabilization at exceptionally weak levels? What are listings, sales volumes and buyer behaviour telling us about the direction of the market?
- Ron Butler: Mortgage Broker, Butler Mortgage Inc. - How much financial pressure is hidden behind low arrears and extended amortizations? With another wave of mortgage renewals ahead, how much longer can financially stretched homeowners hold on?
- Daniel Foch: Chief Real Estate Officer, Valery.ca - Can housing be built or financed profitably at prices buyers and tenants can afford?
Together, they bring perspectives from the resale market, the mortgage industry, housing data, and development economics, with direct exposure to buyers, sellers, borrowers, lenders, and developers.
Don't miss our headline event of the day, as we expect plenty of disagreement and debate. That's one of the reasons we put this panel together.
Tickets and details: veritascorp.com/events/real-…?
@SteveSaretsky @danielfoch @ronmortgageguy @JohnPasalis @movesmartly @ButlerMortgages
Last night, trade negotiations broke down between Canada and the US. If you listen to my recent podcast with Prof. David Detomasi, we should get used to this.
"I think people should be thinking about geopolitics as a permanent fixture of the investment community, not a momentary blip. It will not end with Trump."
I've been lucky to have spent most of my career spanning the last 30-plus years during a period when geopolitics was generally something that happened in the background. There were wars and crises, obviously, but eventually we expected things to settle down and business to get back to business.
Globalization ruled the day. Companies roamed the world and built supply chains based on whatever locations were cheapest. Energy and resources were relatively abundant and could move around a world that seemed not to have borders. Free trade was normal.
Hello! Times have changed, and not just because of Trump. Americans want manufacturing back. China has spent years trying to reduce its dependence on foreign energy. Everybody wants secure access to critical minerals. Defense spending is going up. Pipelines and nuclear power are being talked about as national assets. Governments are putting national security into economic decisions where, not long ago, price and efficiency would have carried all or a lot more weight.
David calls this "strategic capitalism." We spent a fair bit of time talking about what this could mean for Canada because, frankly, we have a lot of what the world suddenly wants.
I think this is Canada's time and we should not be giving away our national treasures; we need to come together and enter into mutually beneficial agreements with reasonable partners.
Have a listen and let me know what you think.
youtu.be/hioH5hqisT8?si=mC1G…
