Team

Aaron is the Founder and Principal of Stoic Advisory Inc., which was formed in 2016. Stoic acted as Financial Advisor on more than $2.3 billion of transactions, and has been the leading non-bank cannabis M&A Advisor since inception. Aaron was also Acting CFO of Tokyo Smoke from early 2016 through 2018, before its ultimate exit to Canopy Growth. He was also the co-founder of Trichome Financial, a first of its kind cannabis specialty lender, which was sold to IM Cannabis in March 2021.

Prior to founding Stoic, Aaron was an Investment Analyst at Interward Asset Management, a specialist investment firm based in Toronto. While there he played an active role in capital allocation, including investments in the cannabis sector.

Prior to Interward, Aaron spent over four years at Dundee Capital Markets (now Eight Capital), starting as a Research Associate before moving on as an Analyst covering medical and recreational cannabis companies. Aaron pioneered research coverage of the cannabis sector, becoming the first Analyst to cover all public Licensed Producers as well a US-based operator. He has been frequently quoted in the press, including the Financial Post, Bloomberg, Reuters, and Financial Times, and is a regular speaker at industry events.

Aaron holds a CFA designation and obtained his Honors Business Administration (HBA) degree from the Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario, graduating with distinction.

Brian is the Founder and Managing Partner of Solidum Capital Advisors LLC (Solidum), which was formed in early 2017. Solidum was an early investor in cannabis as well as serving as an advisor to various cannabis companies.

From mid-2018 through September 2020, Brian served as Executive Vice President - Finance of Grassroots Cannabis (Grassroots), prior to its ultimate sale to Curaleaf Holdings for $850 million (closing in July 2020).

Prior to forming Solidum, Brian spent over 20 years in investment management, primarily investing in fixed income and equity assets via hedge funds, private equity and discretely managed funds. Brian served as a portfolio manager at Balyasny Asset Management for roughly nine years, and previously served as the co-founder and Managing Partner of Wolf Point Capital Management. He also managed a series of distressed investing funds at PPM America and started his career at Continental Illinois National Bank.

Early in his career, he held various roles in risk management, merchant banking, real estate, and capital markets. Brian serves on the advisory board of Altitude Investments, a cannabis investment fund based in NY, and AIM PLC, an investment company based in London focused on EU cannabis investments.

He also serves on various boards, including IM Cannabis, and GL Partners (DBA Greenlight Cannabis). Brian graduated from the University of Illinois, Summa Cum Laude, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and also earned a Master of Science degree in Finance.

Mason is a Managing Director at Stoic Advisory Inc. Prior to joining Stoic, Mason was an Equity Research Analyst covering medical & recreational cannabis companies at a boutique investment bank in Toronto. While there, he became established for his leading industry commentary and company research.

Before his Research Analyst role, Mason was an Investment Banking Analyst at the same boutique investment bank, having worked primarily on transactions in the cannabis, life sciences, and metals and mining sectors. His transaction experience includes advisory and capital raising for a number of public and private cannabis companies.

Mason holds a CFA designation and obtained his Bachelor of Commerce with a concentration in finance from the Sprott School of Business at Carleton University.

Michael is a Director at Stoic Advisory Inc. Prior to joining Stoic, Michael was an Aviation Finance Associate at ECN Capital Corp. (formerly Element Financial Corporation), a Toronto based equipment financier. During his 3 year tenure with ECN Capital Corp., Michael originated, structured, underwrote and syndicated various secured financings for business jets, helicopters and turbofan jet engines. In addition, he played an essential role in several aviation asset backed securitizations, including the Element Commercial Aviation Fund.

Prior to ECN Capital Corp., Michael was the Director of Finance at Paymobile Inc., a financial technology company providing mobile payment platform solutions. Michael obtained his Bachelor of Arts, Economics, from the University of Michigan, with a concentration in game theory and strategies. Michael also serves as a Director for Leave A Trace, a non-profit travel company, and is the co-founder of Ontario Psilocybin Laboratories (OPL). OPL sets out to safely and reliably supply psilocybin mushrooms for research and medical purposes.

Matthew is an Investment Banking Analyst at SSC Advisors. Prior to joining SSC, Matthew was an Equity Research Associate at Cantor Fitzgerald, a US Investment Bank. During his two-year tenure with Cantor Fitzgerald, Matthew worked with a team covering the cannabis, consumer, and life sciences sectors.

Prior to Cantor Fitzgerald, Matthew was a Mergers & Acquisitions Analyst at Valsoft Corp. where he worked on buy-side transactions in the technology & software sector.

Matthew obtained his Bachelor of Commerce with a major in finance from the Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University.