Your PRIVATE EQUITY Gateway
About Us
Our Story
Investing in private businesses is lucrative. Working in private equity has made us realize that only institutions and the super rich can access this asset class due to its high minimum investment (+$1M) and long hold periods (7-10 years). Many investors are excluded; we are on a mission to change that.
We created this marketplace so:
accredited investors who cannot access PE can now become a fractional business owner. We want them to have full transparency and performance tracking capabilities with the flexibility to easily sell shares when it suits their needs.
aspiring operators and / or acquisition partners can achieve their acquisition goals.
current business owners have flexible exit options, whether they are looking to partially- or fully-retire.
Filling such a gap in the market is important us; but so is transparency and investor protection. This is why we became an Exempt Market Dealer, registered under Ontario Securities Commission.
Mission
Empower business ownership so more people can improve their quality of life through financial freedom.
Democratize Private Equity
LIQUIDITY THROUGH SECONDARY MARKET
Support Acquisition Partners
Access & Autonomy
Fractional Business Ownership
OSC Registered
Flexible Exit Options minority | gradual | majority
Exempt Market Dealer
Meet the Team
We are private equity professionals with extensive operational experience. We enjoy investing in and growing small businesses. We are supported by associates who take active roles in businesses and an advisory board comprising of PE specialists and industry leaders.
Ara Sahakian, CPA, CA, ICD.D Managing Partner
Ara Sahakian has more than 20 years experience in the Private Equity space. Formerly a Director at HSBC Private Equity and a Transaction Services leader at PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ara’s extensive investment and operational experience provides him with robust deal experience. Ara is a CPA, CA with a Masters in Accounting from the University of Waterloo. Ara was a Board Member and the Executive Director of The Terry Fox Foundation, during the foundation’s 40th anniversary.
Sarmen Boyajian Partner
Sarmen brings over 10 years of international business and investing experience. Prior to PE Gate, Sarmen was with RBC Capital Markets for three years as a Vice President. He spent the first six years of his career in Capital Markets at J.P. Morgan across Europe and Asia, and two years at Triovest Capital, a real estate-focused private equity firm. He earned an MBA from the Ivey Business School at Western University. He is a snowboarding (former instructor and competitor) and squash enthusiast, and has traveled to 47 countries.
Kevin Laleyan Operating Partner
Kevin brings an impressive 20 year track record of building and scaling businesses across diverse industries, including tech, telecom, IT, and value-add distribution. Prior to joining PE Gate, he led the Data Monetization practice at TELUS while also working on acquiring his first business as a self-funded searcher. After partnering with PE Gate for a year, Kevin was drawn to the platform's unique value proposition to lower mid-market M&A stakeholders and joined the team to lead growth efforts.
Jack Maynard, P.Eng, CPA, CMA Industrial Operating Partner
Jack has over 20 years of hands-on experience in senior sales, operations, and executive leadership roles across non-residential construction and professional services. Jack is currently President of West Pine Solutions a management consulting provider that is dedicated to helping mid-market Canadian businesses scale and succeed. Previously, Jack served as President of Johnson Controls Canada and led a national practice at WSP Canada, where he successfully launched their new Global ERP. Jack is a CPA, CMA and Professional Engineer from the University of Waterloo. Jack serves on numerous boards, including the University of Waterloo Engineering research advisory council.
John Cleveland-Iliffe External - Audit
John has been a chartered accountant since 1999. Since then, he has added several other professional accreditations including an in-depth Brokers and Investment Dealers course (2004), Practitioners Tax Course (2015) and the Canadian Securities Course (2001). He is also a member of the CPA Canada, and CPA Ontario.
Jack McCay Analyst
Jack joined PE Gate in 2023 after graduating with a dual degree from Western University. He excelled in both Mechanical Engineering and the HBA program offered through the Ivey Business School, ranking amongst the top of his class in both disciplines. Jack brings valuable experience in corporate finance from his internships at CIBC and General Mills. He has also led various consulting projects for non-profit organizations during his time with the Global Research and Consulting Group.
Caroline Wang External - Legal
Caroline was called to the bar in Ontario in 2002. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the Schulich School of Business at York University, and obtained her law degree from the University of Western Ontario. Caroline is the principal and founder of Wang Legal, a boutique business law firm located in downtown Toronto, Canada, and often works closely with Meretsky Law Firm as an agent for the firm.
Advisory Board
Jean Desgagne, CPA, CA Marketplace
Board Director, Advisor, Leader. Leveraging deep C-suite and Board experience— in Change and Transformational Leadership, Risk Management, Innovation, Platforms, Technology, Operations, Finance and Data & Analytics with an emphasis on managing for tomorrow — within large multinational financial institutions, exchanges & market infrastructures. Leads change by building, fixing and growing future-focused businesses and organizations. Current and past Board Member for regulated financial companies, government agencies, industry associations, universities and not-for-profit organizations. Advisor to several startups.
Wojciech Gryc Artificial Intelligence
CEO, advisor, investor. Working with startups, scaleups, and large corporations to take data- and AI-driven products to market
Address
390 Bay St., Suite 1706
Toronto, Ontario
M5H 2Y2
Canada