Som Seif, former president and CEO of Claymore Investments Inc., will be leaving BlackRock Investments Canada Inc. to pursue other opportunities, the company announced on Monday.
Seif has agreed to remain with the BlackRock organization to support the transition. In this capacity, he will be working closely with Mary Anne Wiley, managing director, in her role as head of the combined ETF business.
In January, BlackRock entered into a definitive agreement with subsidiaries of Guggenheim Partners, LLC to acquire all of Guggenheim’s interest in Claymore Canada. The deal closed on March 7.
“We’d like to thank Som for his innovation and contribution to the Canadian ETF marketplace and for his guidance through the transition,” said Wiley, head of iShares, BlackRock Canada. “Without question, bringing together the impressive combined product roster and people on BlackRock’s platform will deliver an unparalleled opportunity to serve Canadian investors.”
Seif founded Claymore in Canada in 2005 and grew the business to nearly $8 billion in assets, making it one of the fastest growing investment firms in Canadian history.
“I am extremely proud of what we built and would like to thank everyone who helped make Claymore a success,” said Seif. “That success would not have been possible without the commitment and passion of our small team who always believed in making intelligent and affordable investment solutions more accessible, and I would like to recognize them for their hard work.”
Seif will stay on board with BlackRock until mid-April to work with the team through the transition.