Website: cansofunds.com
Head office address (Canada): 100 York Boulevard, Suite 550, Richmond Hill, ON L4B 1J8
Year established: 1997
Ownership structure: private, Canadian; 100% owned by its investment professionals
Target market/client profile: institutional investors including DB and DC pension plans, foundations, endowments, insurance companies, unions, and universities
Number of professional staff: around 67
Canadian office locations: Richmond Hill (head office), Montreal
Canso Investment Counsel Ltd. (Canso) specializes in corporate bond management through bottom-up, fundamental credit research. The firm runs fixed income mandates ranging from investment grade to distressed debt. Its AUM totalled over $65 billion.
Canso launched in 1997 as a specialty manager of corporate bond portfolios. The firm took its name from the PBY-5A Canso, a Canadian-built amphibious aircraft known for reliability in both war and peacetime service.
That naming choice carried a personal connection for founder John Carswell, whose father flew the Canso with the Royal Canadian Air Force. Squadron Leader A.G. Carswell earned the Air Force Cross from Queen Elizabeth II for bravery during a series of rescues in British Columbia.
That heritage of endurance shaped how Canso approached investing from day one. The firm built its process around internal credit research rather than external ratings agencies or market indexes.
The team assesses each issuer on financial strength, management capability, and business conditions before taking any position. Over time, that approach drew a broad base of institutional clients across Canada.
The firm's investment team grew steadily over the following years and added experience across credit, banking, and trading. Future CEO Heather Mason-Wood joined in 2003 to work in credit research and portfolio management.
In 2019, Canso became a signatory to the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) to bring ESG factors into its credit research process. ESG assessment became a required part of every credit review, guided by the International Sustainability Standards Board.
The firm runs its pooled funds through Canso Fund Management Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary. Private investors can access Canso's mandates through two affiliated managers, Lysander Funds Limited and PBY Capital.
Canso offers segregated and pooled fixed income mandates for institutional investors across the following areas:
Canso Investment Counsel Ltd. manages portfolios directly for institutional clients and does not distribute retail products under its own brand. Investors with less than $250 million can access the firm's mandates through third-party dealers.
Heather Mason-Wood serves as CEO of Canso Investment Counsel Ltd. and took on the role in September 2025. She holds a bachelor of science in mathematics from the University of Toronto and an MBA with a finance specialization from McMaster University. Mason-Wood also earned the CFA charter in 2005 after 15 years at the Bank of Nova Scotia.
John Carswell, CFA leads the firm's investment direction as executive chair and chief investment officer. Mason-Wood and Carswell are supported by the following team:
Canso's Responsible Investment Committee oversees the firm's ESG process and reports to both the CEO and the board. The committee is chaired by a portfolio manager and includes the chief strategy and operating officer, the VP of investment research, and senior portfolio managers.
Canso Investment Counsel Ltd. manages Canadian and global investment portfolios for institutional clients. Its client base includes major corporations alongside:
Canso's investment style suits clients with a long term horizon. The firm buys bonds when they are out of favour and sells when prices move well beyond reasonable value. That approach targets long-term, risk-adjusted returns rather than short-term market trends.
The firm collaborates with other bondholders through the Canadian Bond Investors' Association (CBIA) and its ESG committee on issuer engagement.
Canso Investment Counsel Ltd. is listed in our Fixed Income Directory and Money Managers Directory with full contact and service details.
Canso has earned recognition for its workplace culture and community involvement. The firm also manages the Lysander-Canso funds, distributed through affiliate Lysander Funds Limited. Several of those funds have picked up industry awards, listed below:
Our Top Employers 2023 list recognized the best employers in the benefits, pensions, and institutional investment space. Companies earned the designation based on anonymous employee satisfaction surveys across benefits, compensation, culture, and development.
Canso Investment Counsel Ltd. runs year-round United Way campaigns and supports veterans' charities, including:
The firm also participates in Movember each year and raised $386,000 in the 2023 Movember Business Club in Canada. Canso says employee participation in its fundraising campaigns has been 100 percent since inception.
