Growing Pains, Finding Capital for Expansion

Angela was recruited out of university to a small but quickly growing regional Winnipeg equipment lease company. Starting on the business development team, Angela was promoted to branch manager and moved to Edmonton to head the company’s Northern Alberta team.

10 exciting growth years later, the company re-centralized in Manitoba.  Choosing to remain in the Alberta market, in 2000 Angela founded Prime Capital Group from her basement using a $40,000 line of credit.  18 years later, the growing team serves clients across Canada, has secured capital market funding and levered technology to facilitate scaling and portfolio management.

Elected in 2009 to the Canadian Finance & Leasing Association Board, Angela shares the table with a diverse group of leaders from all the major finance and banking organizations in Canada and was awarded the industry’s Member of the Year award in 2010, and 2012 and chairs the Women in Asset Finance committee.

Angela is the Board Chair for Alberta-based Social Purpose organization Women Building Futures which trains women in apprenticeship and trade roles, moving the economic needle for their trainees, and delivering superb productivity for industry.

Angela also serves as the Chair for the Edmonton based Synergy Network, an executive and owner business network group. 

In 2012 she was also the grateful recipient of both the YWCA Trailblazer Woman of Distinction award, and the E-women International Femtor Award. Over the years, she has been an RBC Entrepreneurs Award, Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year and the AWE Celebration of Achievement Award nominee.    She has served on many community boards and contributed to not for profit organization fund raising efforts from community school playgrounds to the United Way.

Angela’s success includes a life with her amazing hubby and two smart vivacious young adult daughters. She has coached and played soccer most of her life, reads voraciously, contributes to the community as a volunteer and pays her good life fortune forward in whatever ways are available to her.

Dan maintains a broad corporate/commercial practice and has significant experience in the areas of banking and financial services, commercial real estate, mergers and acquisitions, and franchise law. Dan is committed to delivering excellent client service. His experience with various facets of corporate/commercial law ensures a quick understanding and analysis of his clients’ challenges, objectives, and business needs.

Dan provides pragmatic advice and counsel in a number of areas, including:

Commercial real estate transactions / commercial leasing: Dan routinely advises Canadian and international clients on a diverse range of real estate matters, including real property acquisitions and dispositions, commercial leasing, and new project developments. His clients include financial institutions, non-profit corporations, international developers and investors, agricultural and industrial businesses, and commercial retailers

Banking and financial services: Dan has significant experience representing financial institutions, private lenders, and borrowers in a variety of secured and unsecured debt financing transactions, including single lender and syndicated financings, asset-based and mortgage financings, acquisition financings, and multijurisdictional or cross-border lending.

Dan is a frequent presenter to industry groups and associations on legal developments in the areas of banking and commercial real estate.

Dan is an active member of his community, and currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Sherwood Park District Soccer Association.

Kristi has been providing mid-market businesses with relationship-focused, strategic financing for over twenty years. As Co-Founder and National Managing Director, Kristi leads First West Capital across Canada and delivers tailored subordinated-debt, mezzanine and equity financing solutions for growth, acquisitions and transitions.

Prior to First West Capital, Kristi spent ten years with Vancity Capital, another B.C.-based subordinated debt fund. She has also worked with the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and the Small Enterprise Equity Fund of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

Kristi holds a Master of Business Administration in International Business from the University of British Columbia and a Bachelor of Arts (Joint Honours) in History and Russian Studies from McGill University.

Kristi currently chairs the board of Junior Achievement of B.C. and acts as an advisor to the Fulmer Foundation. Previously, she has served as vice-chair of the Vancouver International Marathon Society, is past president of the AWF Association of Women in Finance and former chair of the B.C. Provincial Child Care Council.  In 2015, Kristi was nominated for a YWCA Woman of Distinction Award in the category of Business and the Professionals, and is the recipient of the 2017 CVCA Ted Anderson Community Leadership Award.

George Coon is the Vice President – Northern Alberta and Territories for the National Client Group.  He has more than 30 years lending and finance experience. George joined RBC in 2018. He has an FCPA, FCMA, CFP, and a bachelor’s degree in Economics.

 Most recently George was leading the Prairies as Regional Director with a leading national mezzanine lender. His previous positions include Chief Financial Officer at a private oil & gas services company, and numerous roles with a number of financial institutions. George is currently a Board Member and Chair of the Governance Committee for the Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation and past committee member of the Finance, Audit and Risk Management Committee. He is also a member of NAIT JR Shaw School of Business Accounting Program Advisory Committee. As well, he is Board Member and past Treasurer for the Association of Corporate Growth Edmonton. Previously, George served as a board member and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee for CMA Alberta.