SPEAKERS
Your 2026 ACG Summit Speakers
Jake Karls
Co-Founder & Rainmaker
Mid-Day Squares
Jake Karls is a different kind of business leader: Unapologetically authentic, refreshingly relatable, and free of BS.
He’s the Co-Founder and Rainmaker of Mid-Day Squares, a company on a mission to build the next big afternoon snacking brand in the better-for-you space. What started with three family members hand-making bars in their small Montreal condo has grown into a fully automated chocolate factory producing 150,000 bars a day, selling in over 10,000 stores across North America, and having sold more than 65 million bars to date.
Mid-Day Squares is trying to shake up the $150 billion snacking industry through innovation, transparency, storytelling, and emotion.
Jake has been recognized as one of the rising voices in business today. He was named to Forbes 30 Under 30 (Food & Beverage), is a two-time EY Entrepreneur of the Year finalist, and has been featured in Forbes, The Globe and Mail, Entrepreneur Magazine, Business Insider, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and many more.
Through raw storytelling and contagious energy, Jake has ignited a community around one simple idea: Being yourself is the ultimate competitive advantage.
Session: Keynote Address
James Marple
Associate Vice President, Economics
TD Bank Group
James Marple is an Associate Vice President and Senior Economist with TD Bank Group, where he provides economic analysis and forecasting to TD clients and stakeholders across the Canadian, U.S., and global economies.
In his current role, James oversees economic scenario generation for internal and regulatory stress testing, supporting TD’s operations in both Canada and the United States. His work helps inform strategic decision-making in an evolving economic and financial landscape.
James holds a graduate degree in Economics from the University of Toronto and celebrated his 18-year anniversary with TD Bank Group in 2025.
Session: Economic Outlook
Bob Dunn
Managing Director
GF Data — ACG Company
Bob Dunn is Managing Director of GF Data, where he leads the business following its acquisition by the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG).
Bob brings deep expertise in private markets data, transaction trends, and deal intelligence, with prior leadership roles at With Intelligence (formerly Pageant Media), Euromoney Institutional Investor, and Dow Jones & Company. He has overseen product management and research across private equity, venture capital, hedge funds, and corporate finance.
Earlier in his career, Bob covered private equity as a journalist, giving him a unique perspective on how deals are structured, communicated, and executed across market cycles.
He holds a BA from Bowdoin College and an MS in Journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.
Session: Transactions Update
Mackenzie Regent
Managing Partner & Co-Founder
Kalos
Mackenzie is the Managing Partner of Kalos LLP and co-founded the firm to fulfill her vision of adding value to the mid-market. She has advised on 350+ deals for $65 billion+ in transaction value. She has executed deals throughout North America, Europe and Asia. In 2021, she was recognized as one of the Top 100 Finance Professionals in the world by The Top 100 magazine based out of New York City. Mackenzie sits on the board of the Chartered Business Valuator (CBV) Institute and has qualified as an expert valuation witness to the Court of King’s Bench of Alberta. Mackenzie is also a former competitive hockey player, having represented Canada in international competition as the starting goaltender.
Panel Moderator
Jordan Hokanson
President & Chief Executive Officer
Hokanson Capital
Jordan Hokanson is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Hokanson Capital. Jordan joined the firm in 2002 and was appointed CEO in June 2010.
Today, Mr. Hokanson oversees the strategic direction of the Edmonton-based, multifaceted real estate and investment company, with a keen eye for unrecognized opportunities locally and abroad. Jordan believes integrity is the foundation for good business. His relationship-focused strategy comes from recognizing that through the sharing of information and a commitment to win-win outcomes, Hokanson Capital, along with its stakeholders and partners, can succeed.
Mr. Hokanson holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Western Ontario (1998), a Petroleum Engineering Technology Diploma from NAIT (2000), and an MBA from the University of Alberta (2006).
Jordan and his wife Tracie live in Edmonton and are the proud parents of their three lovely daughters.
Session: Perspectives on Capital Allocation in the U.S. — Considerations for Alberta and Canadian Businesses
Karim Mashnuk
Managing Director,
ATB Capital ATB Cormark Capital Markets
Karim is the Managing Director of ATB Capital at ATB Cormark Capital Markets, where he leads the junior capital solutions platform, providing customized unitranche, subordinated, and mezzanine debt financing to help mid-market businesses grow, recapitalize, and pursue acquisitions.
Over the past 12+ years, he has built his career around debt origination, structuring, and portfolio management across sponsor-backed and high-growth companies in Canada and the U.S. Before joining ATB, he held senior roles with a private equity firm, a technology-focused bank, and a major Canadian financial institution, where he built and led capital markets and junior debt platforms across a wide range of industries.
Karim holds an MBA and an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration from the Ivey Business School at Western University.
Session: Deal Makers Panel
Kuba Soltysiak
Investment Team,
Canadian Business Growth Fund (CBGF)
As a member of the investment team, Kuba is primarily responsible for managing key components of CBGF's investment process, including the identification of new opportunities, mentoring Analysts and Associates, and monitoring portfolio investments.
Prior to joining CBGF in 2026, Kuba was with CPS Capital, a lower mid-market private equity investor. He has also served as CFO of a private equity-backed portfolio company, ran a search fund, and served on the investment team of Imperial Capital. He began his career in strategy and operations consulting and has been active in several family businesses. Outside of work, Kuba enjoys cycling, skiing, and spending time outdoors with his family.
Kuba holds an International Bachelor of Business Administration from the Schulich School of Business at York University and an MBA from INSEAD.
Session: Deal Makers Panel
Michael Ciaramella
Director,
Longbow Capital
Michael is a Director of Longbow Capital, a Calgary based private equity investment manager with approximately $3 billion of assets under management. Longbow’s investment strategy is focused on all aspects of the energy and power sectors including energy transition, resource extraction, power generation, technology development and service & products based companies.
Longbow is currently investing out of Longbow Energy Transition Fund II, a $365 million capital pool. Prior to joining Longbow in 2019, Michael worked for an Ontario Teachers Portfolio Company for 3 years in the energy and infrastructure space, and spent the better part of the decade before that with Deloitte in their M&A Advisory practice supporting on over $7 Billion of mid-market transactions. Michael is a CA and CFA Charterholder.
Session: Deal Makers Panel
Jason Moser
Chief Compliance Officer & Partner,
PMF Capital
Jason Moser is the Chief Compliance Officer and partner of PFM Capital. Mr. Moser joined PFM in 2008 and is responsible for managing the firm’s diversified energy portfolio. Prior to joining PFM, Mr. Moser worked in equity research, providing over 18 years of institutional investment experience within the energy sector.
Mr. Moser provides PFM with key access to diversified energy deal flow and analysis. In addition to his role overseeing the firm’s due diligence, underwriting and monitoring of investments in the energy sector, Mr. Moser provides investment insight, deal origination and analytical skills across the sectors in which PFM invests.
Mr. Moser currently serves on the board of several portfolio companies including Aureus Energy, and Woodland Development. He also serves on the board of the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce and involved in several non-profits including the Queen City Kinsmen.
Session: Deal Makers Panel
Terry Freeman
Head of Investments,
ATB Capital
Terry Freeman is Head of Investments for ATB Private Equity, the private equity arm of ATB Financial, making minority equity investments in Alberta based companies. In the past he served as Managing Director of Northern Plains Capital, a niche private equity firm specializing in growth oriented oil field services and energy industrial investments. Mr. Freeman also spent fifteen years as Chief Financial Officer of Flint Energy Services Ltd. and its predecessors, where he managed the financial and administrative operations of the company including investor and banking relations, risk management, mergers and acquisitions and various other executive responsibilities and its growth from $20M to over $2B in revenues.
He spent five years on the Board of Flint following his tenure as Chief Financial Officer until its eventual sale. He currently sits on the boards of a number of public and private construction, energy services, private equity and real estate ventures. Mr. Freeman has held multiple volunteer positions with the Chartered Professional Accountants of Alberta, Chief Financial Officer Leadership Program, the University of Alberta, and various other community and charitable organizations. Mr. Freeman graduated from the University of Alberta in 1982 with a Bachelor of Commerce degree, is a Fellow of the Chartered Professional Accountants of Alberta and holds the ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors.
Session: Deal Makers Panel
