In this episode, Pierre Daillie sit down with Eli Yufest, Executive Director of The Canadian ETF Association (CETFA), for a sharp and revealing conversation about the future of Canada’s ETF industry. Yufest gets right down to it: beyond the Canadian ETF industry's assets under management, more than $230 billion of Canadian investor capital has left the country—straight into U.S.-listed ETFs—and he’s sounding the alarm on what’s at stake if that trend continues.

With ETFs now pushing close to $600 billion in assets under management at home, CETFA is stepping up with a full-court press—launching bold educational campaigns, ramping up advocacy efforts, and pushing for smart policy changes. From regulatory risks and investor misconceptions to a tidal wave of U.S. share-class products set to flood the market, this episode digs into the real pressures threatening Canada's investment ecosystem—and the plan to keep it thriving.

What if the biggest threat to Canada’s financial future isn’t inflation or interest rates—but our own indifference to homegrown ETFs?

📌 Episode Snapshot: Newly appointed CETFA Executive Director Eli Yufest joins us to share his blueprint for growing and protecting Canada’s ETF industry. With a warning about the growing shift of Canadian dollars to U.S.-listed ETFs, Yufest outlines a two-pronged strategy: direct advocacy with regulators and an aggressive education push to reach everyday investors and financial advisors. The conversation covers looming CRM3 disclosure changes, why young Canadians are embracing ETFs, how innovation can unlock broader access, and what’s at risk if we fail to make the domestic market more competitive.

[00:01:00] – Meet Eli Yufest – from political campaigns to ETF advocacy [00:06:30] – What surprised Eli about the ETF industry [00:08:00] – Canada’s overlooked role as ETF innovator [00:09:30] – Why regulators and politicians are finally listening [00:11:00] – CETFA’s core mission: Grow the ETF industry [00:13:00] – The education gap: Jane & Joe Front Porch still don’t know what ETFs are [00:14:30] – Advisors: Still a huge ETF adoption lag [00:15:30] – ETF misconceptions: liquidity, costs, and innovation [00:17:30] – Gen Z, online brokerages, and the future of DIY investing [00:20:00] – The biggest threat: $230B in assets has left for the U.S. [00:22:00] – ETF share class tsunami: 1,200+ new U.S. products are coming [00:25:30] – Why Canada must act now—or lose its ETF market entirely [00:28:00] – Private equity ETFs and the democratization of access [00:33:00] – From hedge fund strategies to long-short: ETFs unlock it all [00:35:30] – CETFA’s behind-the-scenes policy influence and wins [00:39:00] – Expanding membership, strengthening industry alignment [00:41:30] – Drawing on a career in strategy and education to lead change

#CanadianETFs #ETFInnovation #InvestorEducation #CapitalFlight #FinancialAdvocacy

Forget what you thought about merger arbitrage — it’s no longer out of reach for individual investors and advisors.

In this episode, Corey Hoffstein, CIO at Newfound Research and co-creator of Return Stacked ETFs, joins us for a deep dive into merger arbitrage — a long-used institutional strategy that’s now accessible to retail and advisor portfolios via the RSBA ETF (Return Stacked Bonds & Arbitrage ETF) Corey explains that merger arbitrage isn’t just about betting on deals; it’s about systematically capturing a risk premium tied to time and deal closure uncertainty. With low correlation to stocks, bonds, and credit spreads, merger arb serves as a powerful diversifier — especially in today’s tight credit environment. The discussion covers how RSBA overlays this risk premium on top of core U.S. Treasuries, allowing investors to enhance returns without sacrificing their bond sleeve. Corey unpacks the return stacking framework, behavioral benefits, and why this method reduces "line item risk" while expanding portfolio breadth. This isn’t just theory — it’s a practical way for advisors and investors to get exposure to uncorrelated return streams, preserve core holdings, and finally access what institutions have done for decades. Chapters

00:00 – Introduction: Why Merger Arb is Timely 01:00 – What is Merger Arbitrage? Mechanics of the Strategy 03:00 – Risk Premium vs Arbitrage: What You’re Really Capturing 04:00 – How Merger Arb Correlates (or Doesn’t) with Stocks, Bonds, and Credit 05:30 – Why Tight Credit Spreads Make Merger Arb a Strong Alternative 07:00 – What RSBA Is and How It’s Constructed 08:30 – Bonds + Merger Arb = Corporate Bond Alternative? 10:00 – Return Stacking Explained: Keep Your Core Beta, Add a Layer 12:00 – Why Merger Arb Is Historically Undervalued by Advisors 13:30 – Behavioral Obstacles and Reducing Line Item Risk 15:00 – Breadth vs Depth in Diversification: Expanding Risk Premiums 16:30 – From T-Bills + Arb to Treasuries + Arb: A Better Structural Design 17:00 – Building a “Hyper Diversified” Portfolio with Return Stacking 18:30 – How Stacking Reduces Tracking Error and Behavioral Risk 19:30 – Democratizing Portable Alpha for Every Investor 20:00 – Closing Remarks: The Future of Diversification Is Here

💡 Key Takeaways

• Merger arbitrage is a true, durable risk premium, not a speculative bet — it compensates investors for time and deal break risk post-announcement.
• RSBA combines Treasuries and merger arb into a single ETF, offering a compelling alternative to corporate credit without the same economic exposure.
• Return stacking allows investors to “add without subtracting”, enhancing portfolios with diversifiers while retaining core holdings.
• Behavioral issues like tracking error and client discomfort are reduced by maintaining traditional exposures while quietly layering on return streams.
• You no longer need to give up your bonds to get alpha. With ETFs like RSBA, you can have both — and do it with institutional-grade tools.

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Return Stacked ETFs RSBA #ReturnStacking #MergerArbitrage #CoreyHoffstein #InvestmentStrategies #alternativeinvesting Copyright © AdvisorAnalyst

In this episode, Mike Philbrick, CEO, ReSolve Asset Management (which jointly innovated Return Stacked Portfolio Solutions with Newfound Research) breaks down how systematic macro strategies can offer powerful diversification benefits—and how Return Stacked™ portfolios make it possible for investors to keep their traditional equity and bond allocations intact while layering on a return stream designed to thrive in challenging market environments. Mike and Pierre unpack the behavioral pitfalls of traditional diversification, the institutional roots of portable alpha, and how the RGBM ETF (Return Stacked™ Global Balanced & Macro ETF) helps solve the portfolio funding dilemma for Canadian investors.