Biography
Mr. Pierre Arbour
1935 – 2018
Throughout his life, Pierre recognized the key role higher education played in stimulating Québec’s economic development and competitiveness. His Foundation will continue on his legacy by encouraging success in higher education in Québec.
A philanthropic success story
at the service of others
Pierre Arbour was a remarkable man, full of life, ideas and generosity. He was born in Shawinigan-Sud (now Shawinigan) in 1935.
During his teenage years, he was sent to Collège de Montréal by his parents as a boarder. In 1956, he graduated from Université de Montréal (in Philosophy), and subsequently became one of the first French Canadians to attend McGill University, where he learned to speak English and went on to graduate with a Bachelor’s in Commerce in 1959.
In 1960, he began his career as an insurance broker for London Life, which would later become Industrial Life. In 1962, he then joined Morgan, Ostiguy and Hudon Ltd as a financial analyst. Pierre’s professional career was taking off during a period of great change within the province of Québec. It was following a meeting with Jacques Parizeau that Pierre would join the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec in 1966, a newly created financial institution, which was the brainchild of the Liberal government of Jean Lesage. Pierre would go on to found and head the Caisse’s common shares portfolio, taking stakes in listed companies. During his time at the Caisse, Pierre was elected to the boards of the following companies: M Loeb, Provigo, Horne & Pitfield, National Drug and Chemical Ltd, la Place Desjardins, Société d'investissement industriel du Québec (SDi).
Following the death of his mentor Claude Prieur, ex CEO of the Caisse, Pierre left the Caisse in 1980, and with $30,000 founded Alkebec Inc, a firm specialising in oil & gas exploration and tax shelters. In 1984, Alkebec Inc. became a venture & private capital investment firm, which would go on to make investments (in the form of private placements) in several growing companies, both public and private, across Canada.
Between 1979 and 1993, Pierre was also President and CEO of Monterey Capital Inc, a publicly owned company specialising in the distribution of industrial equipment.
Between 1980 and 1989, Pierre was also a board member of Consolidated Bathurst Inc., a Canadian pulp and paper company which was sold to Stone Container for $2.6Bn in 1989.
In 1993, Pierre published “Quebec Inc, and the Temptation of State Nationalism” where he wrote about his experiences at La Caisse, exposing instances of alleged political and nationalistic
drivers in the investment decision-making process.
In 2005, Pierre used the majority of his accumulated capital and started "La Fondation Universitaire Pierre Arbour", now the "Arbour Foundation", which offers scholarships for excellence to master's and doctoral students at Bishop’s University, Concordia University, ÉTS, HEC Montréal, McGill University, Polytechnique Montréal, Université de Montréal, Université de Sherbrooke and UQAM, in fields that Pierre believed were conducive to the economic growth and development of the province of Québec, namely Computer Science, Engineering and Business Administration. Fifteen years after its creation, the Arbour Foundation has increased its assets from $9.0 million to $16.0 million and awarded 230 scholarships for a total value of $5 million.
Pierre’s gift not only reflected his fundamental belief in the value of education and in assisting students to achieve their goals, but also his vision for Québec society as a whole. Pierre’s vision always put him one step ahead: he understood the skills that would be necessary for a successful Quebec in the context of an increasingly globalised economy.
Whether by way of his pioneering activities at La Caisse or via the creation of the Arbour Foundation, Pierre’s legacy will be one of strengthening Québec society and its economic growth by encouraging education and entrepreneurship. He knew how to use his own success for the benefit of others. Pierre Arbour was thus one of these extraordinary men who have the capacity to change the lives and destinies of those who had the good fortune of crossing his path.