Desmarais Empire Seeks Fintech Transformation From Outside In
- Power Corp. earmarks $186 million for fintech startups
- ‘We want you to attack our group’ Power chairman says
Power Corp. Pushes Into Fintech to Spur Turnaround
This article is for subscribers only.
Canada’s billionaire Desmarais family has come up with a novel approach to fend off the technology startups that threaten its financial services empire: Bring the enemies in and invite them to attack.
Power Corp. of Canada, the Montreal-based holding company that runs one of the country’s biggest insurers and mutual-fund companies, has set aside C$250 million ($186 million) to spend on fintech startups in various stages of development. The plan is to have them compete with Power’s older businesses, permeate the corporate culture and accelerate the transformation of the firm from within.