The Insight is Capital™ Podcast

Canada's ETF Surge is Structural, not Cyclical | Ronald Landry

Canada's ETF market isn't just growing — it's being structurally rewired, and Ron Landry has a front-row seat to where every dollar is flowing and why. Pierre Daillie sits down with Ronald Landry, Vice President and Head of Segment Solutions and Canadian ETF Services at CIBC Mellon, for a wide-ranging look at the forces driving Canada's historic ETF surge. With nearly $95 billion in net flows through May 2026 — 57% ahead of last year's run rate — Ron unpacks why this isn't a cyclical wave but a structural shift in how Canadians save, invest, and expect to be served. From the rise of income-generating ETFs and single-stock strategies to tokenization, TCR disclosure, and the regulatory cost burden quietly falling on investors, this conversation delivers the institutional vantage point advisors rarely access. Ron and Pierre also tackle what it really takes for a new ETF to survive, why advisor-guided portfolios outperform DIY by 3.6x, and what the next phase of Canadian ETF product formation looks like as active management quietly takes over the flow story. ⏱ CHAPTERS [00:00:00] — Introduction: Pierre sets the stage on Canada's surging ETF flows and welcomes Ron Landry of CIBC Mellon [00:02:00] — $95B and counting: Ron breaks down the staggering 2026 YTD flow numbers and what's driving the pace [00:03:30] — Mutual fund managers come knocking: Why traditional fund firms are now asking about ETF series [00:05:00] — Geography of flows: Rotation from US equities into Canadian, emerging markets, and international mandates [00:07:30] — Product formation trends: Single-stock ETFs, covered calls, high-frequency distributions, and the income yield wave [00:09:00] — The 86% rule: Why the top 10 issuers still capture the lion's share of new assets [00:10:00] — All-in-one ETFs: iShares, Vanguard, and BMO dominate the asset allocation category [00:13:00] — Macro disconnect: Why flows keep surging despite inflation, tariffs, and geopolitical risk [00:14:00] — ETF pipeline signals: Crypto and digital assets, tokenization workshops, and what the CSA is watching [00:18:00] — TCR (Total Cost Reporting): What advisors need to know before January 2027 statements land [00:23:00] — The covered call psychology: Instant income, generational behaviour, and the bear market stress test [00:28:00] — The advisor value case: Portfolio growth 3.6x higher with professional guidance — know your product [00:30:00] — ETF survival signals: First-mover advantage, the three-year rule, and when to pull the plug [00:36:00] — Regulatory cost creep: Filing fee increases, the Emerge warning, and how costs ultimately reach investors [00:43:00] — The road ahead: Active ETFs, advisor positioning, and what the next phase of Canadian ETF evolution demands #CanadianETF #ETFInvesting #InsightIsCapital #WealthManagement #FinancialAdvisor #ETFCanada #CoveredCallETF #ActiveETF #InvestmentFunds #CIBCMellon #CanadianInvesting #ETFFlows #TotalCostReporting #PortfolioManagement #FinancialPlanning #DIYInvesting #Incomeinvesting #ETFIndustry #CanadianFinance #AdvisorAlyst

Adriano Starinieri - No Filters, No Pitch, No Advisor

He replaced his paycheck with a covered call ETF portfolio, moved to Panama, and put the whole system on display — because transparency, it turns out, is the most powerful financial planning tool nobody in the industry is using. What does it actually look like to live off your portfolio — not someday, but now? Pierre Daillie sits down with Adriano Starinieri, creator of the Passive Income Investing YouTube channel and the voice behind one of Canada's fastest-growing DIY finance communities, to answer that question in full. Adriano walks through his complete origin story: working-class Montreal roots, a father who speculated on penny stocks, a 20-year mortgage paid off in 7 years, and a decision in 2019 to sell the condo, invest the proceeds, and go all-in on covered call ETFs — just months before the COVID crash. Today he and his wife live in Panama, financially independent, drawing monthly income from a seven-figure portfolio he reviews publicly on YouTube every single month. For investors, this episode is a masterclass in income-first portfolio construction. Adriano breaks down exactly how covered call ETFs work, why the 2021 arrival of lightly leveraged versions effectively solved the total return problem, how to evaluate any covered call ETF by asset quality, coverage ratio, and leverage, and why the buy-and-hold-forever mindset eliminates the behavioural mistakes that derail most portfolios. He makes a compelling case that for income-seeking investors, covered call ETFs don't just compete with bonds — they may make the traditional fixed income sleeve obsolete. For advisors, this episode is a window into how the next generation of clients is already thinking — and who they're already listening to. Adriano's 250,000-subscriber community was built on a single, confronting idea: radical transparency. He shows his real portfolio, his real numbers, his real monthly distributions — and his audience trusts him completely because of it. Pierre and Adriano explore what that trust gap reveals about how advisors communicate, why proprietary product recommendations erode client confidence, and what it would look like for an advisory practice to meet younger investors where they actually are: online, sceptical, and hungry for education over salesmanship. CHAPTERS 00:00 — Introduction: Who Is Adriano Starinieri? 01:45 — Life in Panama: Why They Left Montreal and Never Looked Back 07:10 — The Decision to Relocate: From a Three-Month Airbnb to Permanent Residency 13:36 — Origin Story: Working-Class Roots, a Father Who Speculated, and Learning What Not to Do 20:41 — Swing Trading Phase: BlackBerry, Bombardier, and the Lessons of Getting It Wrong 22:27 — The Turning Point: Kevin O'Leary, Dividend Stocks, and Discovering Covered Call ETFs 24:51 — The System: Replace Your Paycheck With Passive Income 26:06 — Going All-In Before the COVID Crash — and What the System Proved 29:41 — Covered Call ETFs Explained in Plain Language 34:05 — The 2021 Breakthrough: Lightly Leveraged Covered Call ETFs and the Total Return Problem Solved 39:52 — Never Sell: The Automated Drawdown Solution and the Psychology of Buy-and-Hold Forever 47:17 — Why Crashes Are Good News for Income Investors 52:13 — The 20-Year-Old Who's Already at $3,000/Month: How Young Investors Are Using the System 54:41 — Transparency as Trust: Why Showing Your Real Portfolio Changes Everything 01:01:14 — The Biggest Misunderstandings About Covered Call ETFs 01:05:13 — How to Evaluate a Covered Call ETF: Asset, Coverage Ratio, Leverage 01:10:23 — Why Covered Call ETFs May Render Fixed Income Obsolete 01:15:31 — The Evolution of the Covered Call Space and Where It's Going 01:19:37 — What Advisors Should Learn From the Passive Income Investing Playbook 01:22:47 — Closing Thoughts: Meeting the Next Generation Where They Are #PassiveIncomeInvesting #CoveredCallETF #CanadianETFs #PassiveIncome #IncomeInvesting #DividendInvesting #FinancialIndependence #FIRECanada #DIYInvesting #ETFIncome #HamiltonETFs #GlobalXCanada #HarvestETFs #EvolveETFs #QQCL #USCL #InsightIsCapital #AdvisorAnalyst #RetirementIncome #InvestingForBeginners #CoveredCalls #OptionsIncome #BuyAndHold #PortfolioIncome #MonthlyIncome #WealthBuilding #InvestingCanada #TFSA #PersonalFinanceCanada #FinancialFreedom

Joe Canavan on Wealth, Risk, and Canada's Next Chapter

Joe Canavan built three companies that redefined how Canadians invest — then walked away, backed Wealthsimple before anyone knew the name, and now he's asking one question: why does Canada keep burning down what it builds? In this episode of Insight Is Capital, host Pierre Daillie sits down with Joe Canavan, Principal at Canavan Capital and one of Bay Street's most consequential institution builders, for a wide-ranging conversation on wealth creation, entrepreneurship, and Canada's innovation deficit. Canavan traces his career from retail advisor to founding Fidelity Canada's growth era, GT Global, and Synergy Asset Management — and through to early-stage investing in Wealthsimple, Layer 6, Koho Financial, CapIntel, and Radical AI. He unpacks why Canada's startup ecosystem was on the verge of becoming Silicon North before self-inflicted policy decisions reversed the momentum, and makes the case for a generational vision — "Innovation Nation 2047" — to build millions more millionaires, retain top talent, and attract global capital. The conversation also covers artificial general intelligence, quantum computing, robotics, financial infrastructure security, the leadership crisis in Canadian cities, and why incentives — as Charlie Munger said — determine every outcome. CHAPTERS 00:00 – Introduction: What does it actually take to build wealth? 01:55 – Joe's origin story: From new-Canadian roots to Bay Street 03:23 – Building Fidelity Canada, GT Global, and Synergy Asset Management 06:38 – Stepping back, family first, and becoming the "accidental capitalist" 10:11 – How founders found Joe: Wealthsimple, Coho, Layer Six, Cap Intel 13:18 – Next Canada and building the entrepreneurship ecosystem 15:08 – Silicon North: How Canada almost became a global tech hub 18:01 – Policy failure: How capital gains tax changes broke the momentum 20:10 – Incentives drive outcomes: The Charlie Munger principle applied to Canada 22:30 – The case for millions more Canadian millionaires 24:47 – Innovation Nation 2034/2047: Own the podium for startups 39:24 – Leadership as the root cause: Cities, provinces, and the national vision 42:00 – Why financial infrastructure (the plumbing) matters more than the app 44:22 – AGI, artificial general intelligence, and the coming technological singularity 46:52 – Robotics, Elon Musk, and where the puck is going 48:14 – How Joe structures his 10-year investment thesis 52:52 – Early bet on Wealthsimple: Backing people before proof 56:39 – Altruism meets capitalism: The real cost of startup investing 58:55 – Final question: If you had the mandate to make Canada dramatically wealthier, where do you start? #CanadianEntrepreneurship #InsightIsCapital #JoeCanavan #Wealthsimple #FinancialInfrastructure #AIInvesting #QuantumComputing #SiliconNorth #VentureCapital #BayStreet #StartupEcosystem #CanadianFintech #WealthCreation #InnovationNation #LeadershipMatters #CanadianInvestors #AGI #CapitalMarkets #Fintech #AdvisorAnalyst

Humble Process, Extraordinary Results—The Brian Belski Way

Brian Belski told a room full of Canadian advisors to lighten up on gold in February. They weren't happy about it. Not the popular view at the time. That's Brian Belski in a nutshell — 36 years in the markets, built his reputation going the other way when everyone else is piling in, and he's not about to stop now. In this episode, host Pierre Daillie sits down with Brian Belski, CEO & CIO of Humilis Investment Strategies, and Steve Hawkins, CEO of Longpoint ETFs. Belski's case is simple: the 25-year secular bull market has a decade left, earnings are rising, and the stock picker is back. Gold is overextended. Canadian banks need scrutiny. U.S. financials are the most overlooked opportunity in the market. And if the consensus is calling for recession — he's going the other way. Steve Hawkins built one of Canada's largest ETF platforms, walked away, and built it again on his own terms. Together, they just launched three new ETFs on the TSX — HBTA, HBDV, and HBOP — powered by Belski's fundamental, high-conviction approach. No gimmicks. No spaghetti on the wall. Just process. If you manage money for clients, or you are the client, this one's worth your full hour. 🕒 CHAPTERS 00:00 — The Contrarian Gold Call 01:23 — Setting the Scene 02:09 — Meet Brian Belski & Steve Hawkins 03:12 — Why Longpoint and Why Now: Three New TSX ETFs 04:10 — Market Context 2026: Venezuela, Iran, Stagflation & the S&P Melt-Up 05:53 — Brian's Origin Story: Bill O'Neill, Warren Buffett & Iraq in 1990 10:02 — The 25-Year Secular Bull Market Thesis Explained 13:00 — Where We Are in the Cycle: Cyclical Bears Within a Secular Bull 15:30 — Why Fundamentals Win: Stocks Lead Earnings, Earnings Lead the Economy 16:23 — Private Wealth vs. Institutional Money: Who's the Smart Money Now? 19:12 — Steve Hawkins on Why Canadian Investors Were Missing Belski 20:34 — How the Humilis + Longpoint Partnership Came Together 22:23 — On Founding Humilis: "Equal Parts Excruciating and Exciting" 27:36 — The Biggest Investor Mistake Right Now: Behavioural, Not Analytical 28:11 — Gold at Four Standard Deviations: Why Belski Said Lighten Up 30:23 — Canadian Banks: The Math Behind Underperformance Risk 31:18 — AI Arms Race, Anthropic, OpenAI, and the Coke vs. Pepsi Analogy 34:44 — The Stock Picker's Market Is Back 35:35 — Most Compelling Opportunity Right Now: U.S. Financials 38:27 — Inside the Three Humilis ETFs: HBTA, HBDV, and HBOP 40:11 — Active vs. Index: The Return of the Stock Picker 42:37 — Belski's Canadian Convictions: Aritzia, Waste Connections, Shopify 45:20 — Great Company vs. Great Stock: The Distinction That Matters 46:17 — Google, Costco, and Contrarian Conviction in Practice 47:18 — What the Market Made Belski Revisit in 2026 48:44 — Longpoint's Vision: A Turnkey Platform for Global Asset Managers 51:14 — Wayne Gretzky, the Puck, and Canada's ETF Decade Gap 57:10 — $30M AUM in 25 Days Since Launch 57:38 — Brian's Biggest Surprise for Investors a Year from Now 59:15 — Closing: Keep It Simple, Stupid — and Stay Bullish #BrianBelski #HumilisInvestments #LongpointETFs #SteveHawkins #CanadianETFs #InsightIsCapital #AdvisorAnalyst #SecularBullMarket #StockPicker #ActiveInvesting #ETFCanada #InvestmentStrategy #CanadianInvestors #EquityStrategy #MarketOutlook2026 #FundamentalInvesting #ContraryInvesting #HBTA #HBDV #HBOP #WealthManagement #FinancialAdvisors #TSX #NorthAmericanEquities #MarketVolatility

The Portfolio Nobody Told You to Build | Tony Dong

What if the investing rules that protected you for 40 years just stopped working — and the world already moved on without telling you? Host Pierre Daillie sits down with Tony Dong — founder of ETFPortfolioBlueprint.com, lead ETF analyst at ETF Central, and Columbia-trained risk manager — for a no-holds-barred breakdown of defense ETFs, tail risk hedging, the structural collapse of the 60/40 portfolio, and what a genuinely resilient Canadian portfolio looks like in a world defined by geopolitical fracture, regime change, and compounding uncertainty. Recorded April 2026 amid new all-time equity highs and an active Middle East conflict, this episode is essential listening for any advisor or investor still building for a world that no longer exists. CHAPTERS 00:00 — Introduction: Who Is Tony Dong? 02:11 — Q1 2026: Markets, Macro & the K-Shaped Economy 06:24 — Defense ETFs: True Exposure vs. Industrial Sector Imposters 09:30 — Canadian Defense ETF Options: XAD vs. SHLD 11:38 — Are We at the Start of a Defense Super Cycle — or the Middle? 13:48 — NATO Rearmament, Europe's €800B Commitment & Valuation Risk 17:13 — The Hidden Risk of Being Long Defense 19:04 — Strait of Hormuz, Ras Laffan & Underappreciated Choke Points 22:01 — Why Tony Isn't Buying the Emerging Markets Rally 23:22 — Tail Risk: CAOS vs. TAIL — Two Products, Two Payoff Profiles 28:58 — How Much to Allocate to Tail Risk? 31:57 — What Risk Actually Is: Permanent Capital Loss vs. Volatility 34:12 — The 60/40 Portfolio: 90% Equity Risk by Any Honest Measure 36:28 — TLT Myths Debunked: Why Long Bonds Are a Structural Trap 39:10 — Fixed Income Alternatives: First-Lien Loans & LCRNs 41:53 — How Conflict Transmits Risk Into a Canadian ETF Portfolio 46:05 — Liquidity Cascades: When the ETF Wrapper Breaks 53:16 — Volatility Laundering & the Private Credit Illusion 56:36 — Building a Resilient Canadian Portfolio for the Next 10 Years 01:00:41 — Biggest Surprises of the Next 12 Months: China, Taiwan & Eastern Europe #DefenseETF #TailRisk #ETFInvesting #CanadianInvestor #GeopoliticalRisk #CAOSETf #TAILETf #6040Portfolio #NATORearmament #InsightIsCapital #TonyDong #PierreDaillie #ETFAnalysis #PortfolioConstruction #WealthManagement #MacroInvesting #FixedIncome #BondAlternatives #ETFLiquidity #PrivateCredit #CanadianDollar #DefenseTech #MarketRegimeChange #AdvisorAnalyst #ETFCentral #PortfolioResilience #InvestingIn2026 #TailRiskHedging #GeopoliticalInvesting #SmartMoney