Biography
Dr. Wesley Hall,
Executive Chairman and Founder, Kingsdale Advisors
Dr. Wesley Hall came from very humble beginnings in Jamaica to become one of the most influential business people in Canada. He has established himself as the preeminent leader in shareholder advisory services and contested investor situations. Canada’s leading newspaper The Globe & Mail has called him one of the nation’s “most influential powerbrokers” and Canadian Business magazine named him one of the “most powerful business people” in 2016.
As the Founder of Kingsdale Advisors, Wesley has delivered an unparalleled track record of success for North America’s biggest names including: Air Canada, Barrick, BHP Billiton, Citigroup, CN, CP, Encana, Goldcorp, Talisman, and Suncor. He has been sought out to lead some of the highest profile deals and activist campaigns in North America. They include Enbridge’s $37 billion merger with Spectra Energy, Agrium, and Potash Corp.’s $36 billion merger, Tim Hortons’ $12.5 billion merger with Burger King, Pershing Square Capital Management’s campaign to replace the board of Canadian Pacific Railway, and Petro Canada’s $19 billion merger with Suncor Energy.
Wesley is also the owner of QM Environmental, a leading national environmental and industrial services provider with over 700 employees; Titan Supply, a top manufacturer and distributor of rigging and wear products serving industries in the oil & gas, construction and transportation sectors; and Harbor Club hotel, Curio Collection by Hilton, one of St. Lucia’s premier resorts.
In 2020, Wesley was one of five individuals appointed to the Ontario government’s Capital Markets Modernization Taskforce, an advisory group of experts tasked to review and modernize the province’s capital markets regulations. In 2011, Wes received the designation ICD.D from the Institute of Corporate Directors’ (ICD) in partnership with the Rotman School of Management of the University of Toronto.
Philanthropy
Wesley is known for his generosity, leveraging his business success to benefit others with a number of impactful charitable initiatives, and serves as a Board Member of the SickKids Foundation, Pathways to Education, and Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
Wesley is Founder and Chairman of The Canadian Council of Business Leaders Against Anti-Black Systemic Racism and the BlackNorth Initiative, committed to the removal of anti-Black systemic barriers negatively affecting the lives of Black Canadians.
He has also changed the lives of thousands of children in the Caribbean, donating both his money and time. In 2015, Wesley was the recipient of the Vice Chancellor’s Award and in 2017 received an Honorary Doctorate, both from the University of the West Indies.
