MARC HENEIN, CFP® Senior Wealth Advisor, Portfolio Manager The Henein Group Scotia Wealth Management
MARC HENEIN
"Helping clients take ownership of their savings"
If everybody was as certain of their path in life as Marc Henein, Marc might not be in the finance industry. In his role as Senior Wealth Advisor and Portfolio Manager with the Henein Group (a part of Scotia Wealth Management), Marc guides his clients through the biggest moments in their lives. He focuses on supporting them through crossroads, helping them discover their long-term goals and making informed decisions to achieve those goals.
The fact is, most people can use some help navigating the twists and turns of life. But for Marc, his own path forward has always been crystal clear. "I was 16 and I knew what I wanted to do with my life," says Marc. Marc fell in love with the stock market in grade 10, after being introduced to it through a stockbroker competition spearheaded by his teacher.
"Our economics teacher was very in tune with the market and made me realize the stock market was an amazing ether of knowledge that I knew nothing about," says Marc. One of his biggest learnings at that time: working with the stock market and talking to people was an actual career – one he immediately took steps to pursue, and one that he's been doing ever since.
ScotiaMcLeod hired Marc as a rookie Advisor when he was just 22 – he's been told he was the youngest hire in the history of the company. Being a rookie – and a very young one at that – things didn't get off to the smoothest start, but he kept at it. "Every year, I talked the firm into giving me another year. I kept driving forward. I'm not from money, so my hustle, grit and work ethic helped me get where I am today."
Marc is still with ScotiaMcLeod today, 18 years later, and enjoying every minute of it. "I'll be in the same place when I retire. I'm a lifer," he says. His expertise includes managing significant liquidity events for clients or, as he puts it, managing money in motion. "It could be an inheritance, a lottery win, a business sale, a divorce. It could be a whole variety of different scenarios that have changed your life." Marc and his team create Total Wealth Plans for their clients that will get them from point A to point B – in away that preserves their wealth, generates tax-efficient income, and creates peace of mind.
"We're helping clients take ownership of their savings," says Marc "Most Canadians will acknowledge that they need to save to retire. They need to generate income for the rest of their lives." For the most part, Marc's clients are entrepreneurs, professionals and other people who have accumulated assets over time. "We try to help all branches of the family. You can connect probably 90 per cent of our clients, whether it's through a referral source or a client referring clients," says Marc. "Many of our clients are very interconnected, and our practice has grown very strongly based off referrals. We will help grandparents in their 90s, parents in their 60s, kids in their 30s and open RESPs for kids as well as great grandkids. We will go through all generations. It's really a family affair."
Guiding people through the important stages of their lives is one of the most rewarding aspects of Marc's practice. "One of my very first clients – now an almost 18-year client – signed up with us when I was a 22-year-old rookie. He was working for a large corporation. We worked with him as he resigned and started up a new business. He has built a very significant business and now he is on the verge of selling that business. I had the privilege of being part of what I would call his personal board of advisors."
Through this long-term relationship, Marc has been able to watch him transition and move forward. "You get to watch that original goal go from being a pie in the sky to, let's donate $10 million to our community hospital.'"
Educating clients is a pillar of his practice. That includes equipping clients with knowledge about their money, what their money can do, what the markets do, and, just as important, what Marc and his team do.
"I was fortunate enough to engage with a new family," says Marc. "They’re retired, in their mid 60s. They didn't really understand how fees work in an investment portfolio. I spent an hour dissecting this for them. I showed them every line item, literally where every penny for every fee comes from. This was truly enlightening. They felt more in control of their life and more confident.”
Marc believes most Canadian investors trust the finance industry and their Advisors. But he also believes that many Advisors could – and should – do a better job of educating their clients, especially around the fees they’re paying. This knowledge could save clients a considerable amount of money in the long run. This was the case with a new client who’d just signed on with Marc and his team. The client thought he had been paying $20,000 in fees on his $4 million investment. In actuality, he was being charged $100,000 by his previous investment firm.
“I could show them a list of where all the fees are. He added it all up and I was able to empower them by showing them how the fees work.” Marc immediately made some changes. “It’s a very satisfying thing – that particular family will save in excess of $80,000 in fees for the next 25 years of their life. We're talking about a couple of million we just added to that family's life. That's not an insignificant impact.”
Part of Marc’s practice includes educating younger investors – those between the ages of 25 to 40. “It's a way to educate the next generation. We have put together seminars to help teach basic concepts: ‘should I put my extra dollars into my mortgage or my RRSP?’ ‘What's the difference between a TFSA and an RRSP?’ We address a whole variety of questions that pretty much everybody has had to deal with in their lifetime. It also allows us, in a kind of a fun way, to give back.”
Giving back is a strong thread that runs throughout Marc’s life, both professionally and personally. In his practice, he helps clients who wish to be more philanthropic and are seeking ways to gift money to charities, creating efficient strategies and helping to create legacies for the generations in their families. He is also engraining this spirit of giving in his own “next” generation; his two children, aged 11 and 13.
“Giving back is a big deal,” says Marc. “I teach my kids. We do the lemonade stand. My daughter also makes bracelets. She sells them and we donate the money to Sick Kids. And when they shovel the driveway for five bucks, they give at least two dollars away, save two dollars and spend a dollar.”
Marc sits on the board of Easter Seals, Ontario, which helps kids born with disabilities. “You can’t sit with one of those kids without crying or being inspired – or sometimes both,” he says. “They’re amazing kids.” He’s also closely involved with the Georgetown Hospital Foundation, serving as chair. He has spent three years as President of the Wilfred Laurier University’s Alumni Association. Marc’s lifelong positivity – along with his commitment to doing the best for his clients – has brought him continued growth in his practice. He plans to keep growing, learning, and educating to bring even more value to his clients in the years ahead.
His perspective has also brought him recognition: in October, he was recognized as one of Canada's Top Wealth Advisors by The Globe and Mail and SHOOK Research - producer of the America’s Top Wealth Advisors ranking with Forbes. He takes this accolade with what seems to be a typically humble yet grateful attitude. “I'm a big fan of the law of attraction, that you give back what you give out in the world, send out good vibes and positivity and all this good stuff,” says Marc.
“You get back what you put out there.”
Janice Tuff is a professional writer and communicator who got her start in radio copywriting.
Three decades later, she continues to draw upon the valuable lessons learned in her radio days: grab your audience’s attention quickly and always tell an engaging tale.
Marc Henein, CFP Senior Wealth Advisor, Portfolio Manager
ScotiaMcLeod®, a division of Scotia Capital Inc.
marc.henein@scotiawealth.com
905-896-6452
The Henein Group
2 Robert Speck Parkway, Suite 1600
Mississauga, ON L4Z 1H8