Management Team
Chief Executive Officer
Steven Ranson is the President and CEO of HomEquity Bank, a federally-regulated, Schedule 1 Canadian bank and the only national provider of the CHIP Reverse Mortgage®solution. Appointed President in 1998 and CEO in 2001, Mr. Ranson has led HomEquity Bank through the public offering of Home Equity Income Trust in 2002 and the subsequent creation of HomEquity Bank in October 2009.
Under Mr. Ranson’s leadership, HomEquity Bank has substantially expanded and has been named one of PROFIT 500’s fastest growing companies in both 2016 and 2017. In his role, Mr. Ranson is responsible for setting the strategic direction for the Bank and has continued to grow the business by creating sustainable, long-term value and delivering performance consistent with the interests of its clients, the general public, employees and owners.
As the only Canadian bank that deals exclusively with seniors, Mr. Ranson is frequently asked to speak about topics related to aging in place, financial planning, proactive home equity release, the real estate market and mortgage trends.
Mr. Ranson holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Toronto and a Masters, Business Administration from York University. He is a Chartered Professional Accountant and has served on the Audit Committee for First Capital Realty Corp.
As a community leader and avid cyclist and skier, Mr. Ranson has served as Alpine Ontario’s Director and Treasurer and participates in the annual Wellspring Ride for Cancer Support. Mr. Ranson is also a member of the SSGF Campaign Cabinet for the YMCA of Greater Toronto.
Chief Financial Officer
As EVP & CFO, Mr. Chandra is responsible for the Finance, Treasury and Credit functions supporting the growth and development of the Bank. He provides oversight and leadership for a team that manages all accounting, financial and regulatory reporting, budgeting and planning, internal and external audit, underwriting, capital management and funding requirements of the Bank, and is a member of the Executive Committee.
Mr. Chandra joined HomEquity Bank in 2016, and has previously served as CFO in the financial services industry for 10+ years.
Mr. Chandra has served as a Director on the Boards of The Scarborough Hospital and Oakville Hydro Corporation, where he was also the Chair of the Audit Committee.
Mr. Chandra, a Chartered Professional Accountant, graduated from an Indian Institute of Technology with a degree in Chemical Engineering, and holds an MBA from Queen’s University.
Operations and Legal
As Executive Vice President, Operations and Legal, Ms. Cuthbertson is responsible for all mortgage operations and information technology. In addition, as the Bank’s general counsel and corporate secretary she is responsible for legal affairs and the Bank’s overall corporate governance. Ms. Cuthbertson is a member of the Executive Committee.
Ms. Cuthbertson joined Canadian Home Income Plan (CHIP, the predecessor to HomEquity Bank) in 2002.
Ms. Cuthbertson graduated from Queen’s University with a Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Law and she is also a member of the Ontario bar.
Marketing & Sales
As Executive Vice President, Marketing & Sales, Chief Marketing Officer Ms. Ziomecki heads up Marketing and Consumer Sales operations and is responsible for developing sales, marketing strategy and vision for HomEquity Bank.
Reporting directly to the CEO, Ms. Ziomecki is responsible for driving originations growth and increasing revenues through successful implementation of marketing initiatives, brand strategy, research, pricing, product marketing, marketing communications, advertising and public relations.
Ms. Ziomecki is a member of the Executive Committee. Ms. Ziomecki joined HomEquity Bank in 2013.
Ms. Ziomecki graduated from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Arts and she also holds a Masters of Business Administration from Schulich School of Business.
Chief Risk Officer & Chief Compliance Officer
As Vice President, Chief Risk Officer and Chief Compliance Officer, Dr. Haddad is responsible for corporate-wide risk oversight and internal control policies and practices, and for ensuring compliance with all regulatory obligations and requirements. Dr. Haddad provides leadership and direction with regards to the Bank’s enterprise and business risk management and compliance strategies.
Dr. Haddad joined HomEquity Bank in 2012.
Dr. Haddad graduated from St-Joseph University with an MD degree.
National Sales
Eric Bisaillon joined HomEquity Bank in 2007 and as Senior Vice-President of National Sales he is responsible for managing the entire B2B sales and sales support organization across the country. This involves overseeing all referred channels of distribution through the direct reporting relationships of the Sales Leadership Team. A member of the Executive team, the role requires active participation at the senior management level, as well as working to define and achieve corporate objectives including growth and profit initiatives.
Before joining HomEquity Bank, Eric was Regional Manager of Eastern Canada for ING Bank Financial Advisors Services, working in partnership with financial advisors and their clients, where he lead and implemented the strategy for the bank’s entry in Quebec. He has also worked many years, in both Quebec and Europe, for various institutions in the financial services sector. He holds an MBA in International Finance from the School of Management at UQAM.
Human Resources
As Senior Vice President, Human Resources, Ms. Sone-Cooper is accountable for providing Human Resources counsel and advice to the business. As a strategic business partner and coach, Ms. Sone-Cooper provides leadership, direction and support for all aspects of the Human Resources portfolio for HomEquity Bank.
Ms. Sone-Cooper consulted to Canadian Home Income Plan (CHIP, the predecessor to HomEquity Bank) and HomEquity Bank for nine years before joining the organization in 2010 in her current role.
Ms. Sone-Cooper graduated from York University with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) and holds her CHRP designation. She has also completed the Coaches Training Institute's Advanced Coaching Program.
As Senior Vice President and Chief Information Office, Ms. Calder is accountable for delivery of the Bank’s core Information Systems programs, including business systems, infrastructure and technology services. As a strategic business partner, Ms. Calder provides leadership, direction and support for all aspects of the strategic systems portfolio for HomEquity Bank.
Ms. Calder joined HomEquity Bank in 2017. Ms. Calder graduated from the University of Western Ontario with a Bachelor of Arts, and from the Ivey School of Business with a Masters in Business Administration. She is also a certified member of the Institute for Corporate Directors (ICD.D).
Treasurer
As Vice President and Treasurer, John Garofano is responsible for interest rate and liquidity risk management, coordination of bank financing activities, and oversight of banking and cash management, cash forecasting and short-term investing activities.
John joined HomEquity Bank in 2014.
He is a Chartered Accountant, holds an MBA from the Yale School of Management and has a Certified Treasury Professional designation.
Marketing
As Vice President, Marketing, Ms. Gauci is responsible for increasing brand awareness and affinity, driving originations growth through digital and direct to consumer channels, and supporting sales teams in their efforts to expand HomEquity Bank’s reach through banks and mortgage broker channels.
Ms. Gauci joined HomEquity Bank in 2015 and has over 18 years of experience in global financial services companies and in marketing consultancy.
Ms. Gauci graduated from York University with a Bachelor of Business Administration and she also holds a Masters of Business Administration from Schulich School of Business.
Finance
As Vice President, Finance, Mr. Cameron is responsible for financial reporting, cash management, and mortgage underwriting. He also has oversight of the deposit business.
Mr. Cameron joined Canadian Home Income Plan (CHIP, the predecessor to HomEquity Bank) in 2000 as Director of Finance and became Vice President, Finance in 2001.
Mr. Cameron, a Chartered Accountant, graduated from Ryerson Polytechnical Institute with a Bachelor of Business Management.
Consumer Sales
As Vice President, Mortgage Operations, Mr. Côté is responsible for mortgage operations, credit and operational project management. He joined HomEquity Bank in 2017 and has over 18 years experience across diverse roles within multi-national financial services companies.
Mr. Côté graduated from Ivey Business School with an Executive MBA.