MOEZ KASSAM, Chief Investment Officer, Co-Founder, Anson Funds, Toronto, ON.
MOEZ KASSAM
Moez Kassam is recognized within Canada’s financial sector as a successful investor, and entrepreneur. He is the co-founder and Chief Investment Officer of Toronto-based Anson Funds, a multi-strategy hedge fund which manages $1.8 billion in assets.
In the broader community, Kassam is recognized for his philanthropy. He believes business and community go hand in hand and sees his success from business as an opportunity to give back and make a difference in the world. His charity, the Moez and Marissa Kassam Foundation, is dedicated to advancing healthcare and marginalized communities.
Driven to Succeed
Kassam’s success as an investor can be traced to his fiercely competitive spirit. As a student at Toronto’s Bayview Glen School, he participated in the TD Stock Portfolio Challenge, his team placing amongst the top three schools for Ontario. Soon after, he attended the University of Western Ontario where he began investing. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Political Science, Kassam enrolled in the London Business School, where he earned his MBA with a concentration in Finance.
After accumulating relevant academic knowledge and investing on his own, Kassam sought to apply his learnings to real markets. In 2007, he co-founded Anson Funds whose strong returns have been recognized by Barron’s and Bloomberg, among others. Anson Funds has also been included in the Top 10 Equity Long/Short Hedge Funds list by BarclayHedge as well. Anson Funds is now considered one of the world’s leading hedge funds.
The Benefits of an Over-the-Horizon Perspective
Anson Funds attributes its strong performance to its unique approach which marries deep fundamental research with opportunistic investing. The firm has a focus on three strategies: value longs, classic shorts, and special situation investments.
“We continually fine-tune the balance between risk and opportunity for our sophisticated clients,” he says. “We are exceptionally thorough in researching companies, securities, other investments, and in discovering opportunities that may have been neglected by other investors.”
“Knowledge alone won’t always make you money”, he adds. “A refined form of knowledge is needed, which is really wisdom. Basically, that is knowledge which has been tempered with spot-on judgment. And frankly, that is more of a trait or a learned skill than something that can be imparted in a classroom. You need to have a feel for trends, what is going on in the wider economy and society, and an over-the-horizon view of things.
“That’s why you’ll see us networking with companies and businesspeople, engaged with thought leaders and top financial professionals. We don’t sit passively in front of a computer screen all day — we are active and highly involved within the community.”
The Roots of the Kassam Foundation: Community and Biography
Moez Kassam’s philanthropic endeavors reflect his active involvement in the community, as well as his own life story. Since its establishment, his family foundation has supported organizations deeply involved in healthcare and research, food and shelter, immigration, youth development, culture, the arts, and Olympic-level sports.
One example of a transformative healthcare initiative is the $2.5 million donation the Moez and Marissa Kassam Foundation made to the Sinai Health Foundation in 2022. The gift allowed Sinai to bring its world-leading women and infants program to communities across India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka through the launch of a new fellowship program.
The program features what are called ‘Moez & Marissa Kassam Fellows’, who are selected for an opportunity to learn from experts in the Frances Bloomberg Centre for Women's and Infants’ Health at Sinai Health. These trainees ultimately return to their home countries with expertise to strengthen neonatal services in their communities.
The Moez & Marissa Kassam Foundation also donated $1 million to the Michael Garron Hospital, and actively supports the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, SickKids VS Limits Campaign, the Canadian Foundation for AIDS research, and Ronald McDonald House Charities. The foundation also provides food and shelter to those most in need in the community by contributing to Community Food Centres Canada, The Fred Victor Centre, The North York Harvest Food Bank and Homes First.
Moez Kassam and his family are also passionate about the foundation’s involvement with Canada’s immigrant communities. “Our efforts in this realm enable first and second-generation Canadians to succeed in business and society,” he explains. “Our support of organizations like the Institute for Canadian Citizenship and Windmill Microlending help new arrivals and their families prosper and thrive.”
Kassam adds: “We understand the needs of these communities, because we have lived their experiences and shared these dreams ourselves. We know what is possible, and we understand the importance of maximizing success by applying business principles to every charitable project and initiative.”
Ellen Posner has spent over a decade in the field of news and media,
covering everything from business to pop culture and more.
Her passion for writing comes from asking the big questions that get to
the heart of every story.