TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- LDIC Inc. (the "Manager") is pleased to announce that Michael Decter will continue the role of portfolio manager of Healthcare Special Opportunities Fund (TSX: MDS.UN) (the "Fund"). Genevieve Roch-Decter will transition from Portfolio Manager at the Manager to become an external consultant to the Manager focused on small-cap and private investment strategies to the Manager effective January 19, 2016.
Michael Decter is the President, CEO, and a director of the Manager. He has significant experience in the Canadian healthcare industry. Mr. Decter is a Harvard-trained economist and has been appointed to the Order of Canada. He has served as Deputy Ministry of Health, Ontario's top health bureaucrat. He has written three books on the subject of healthcare: Healing Medicare: Managing Health System Change the Canadian Way (McGilligan Books, 1996), Four Strong Winds: Understanding the Growing Challenges to Health Care (Stoddart, 2000) and Navigating Canada's Health Care: A User's Guide to Getting the Care You Need (Penguin, 2006, co-authored with Francesca Grosso). Michael Decter was the founding and former Chair of the Health Council of Canada and continues to serve as a board member for numerous non-profit healthcare organizations including the Auto Sector Retiree Health Care Trust Board, independent trustee & investment committee (Medavie Blue Cross, Institute for Research on Public Policy, Blue Cross Life Insurance, Patients Canada, the Advisory Committee of the Ontario SPOR Support Unit (OSSU), and the Advisory Committee of the not-for-profit Nova Scotia Department of Health & Wellness. Mr. Decter also sits on the boards of directors of three non-healthcare related organizations: The Walrus Magazine, Border Crossings, and Brandon University. Mr. Decter has also authored three books in the financial industry field: The Million Dollar Strategy (Stoddart, 1998), The DRIP Strategy (Stoddart, 2001) and Ten Good Reasons to Invest in Canada (McGilligan Books, 2008).
Amendment to Industry Advisor Agreement
The Manager also announces that it has entered into an amendment (the "Amendment") to the Industry Advisor Agreement made as of July 15, 2015 (the "Industry Advisor Agreement") between the Manager and Canons Park Advisors, Inc. ("Canons Park"), pursuant to which Canons Park provides advice to the Manager on the healthcare sector. Effective February 1, 2016, pursuant to the Amendment, it has been agreed that Canons Park and its principals intend to continue to provide the Fund with investment opportunities for investment participation in all future private healthcare opportunities that become available to Canons Park and its principals while no longer retaining the exclusive right of first refusal to the initial investment alone. In return, Canons Park agreed to a reduction in compensation it receives from the Manager.
About the Fund
The Fund is a closed-end investment fund established under the laws of the Province of Ontario to provide unitholders with long-term total return through distributions and capital appreciation of the Fund's investment portfolio by investing in equity and debt securities of issuers that derive a significant portion of their revenue or earnings from medical and healthcare products and/or services.
Certain statements included in this news release constitute forward-looking statements, including the investment opportunities for investment participation by the Fund. The forward-looking statements are not historical facts but reflect current expectations regarding future results or events. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations and, accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein. The Manager undertakes no obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking statement whether as a result of new information, future events or other such factors which affect this information, except as required by law. Investment funds are not covered by the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation or by any other government deposit insurer. There is no assurance that the Fund will be able to achieve its distribution and capital preservation objectives or that the full amount of a unitholders investment in the Fund will be returned.
Contacts:
LDIC Inc.
Michael B. Decter
President & Chief Executive Officer
(416) 362-4141
decter@ldic.ca
www.ldic.ca
