Our RBC partners

A team approach to professional wealth management

The RBC Wealth Management Services team works closely with us to provide strategies to help reduce your taxes, plan for your retirement and protect your legacy.

With over 200 highly accredited tax, legal and financial professionals, the industry-leading RBC Wealth Management Services team helps us provide the integrated wealth management solutions you would normally only expect to find at a family office acting for Canada's wealthiest families.

From comprehensive financial plans to guidance on complex tax and legal issues, this team of highly skilled specialists helps us create an integrated family wealth management strategy, which can be implemented in coordination with your existing tax and legal advisors.

The team’s areas of expertise include:

Retirement planning: Helping you meet your retirement income goals and maximize your after-tax retirement income

Financial planning: Creating a comprehensive strategy to help you stay on track to meeting your financial and life goals

Taxation: Implementing strategies to help reduce your family’s tax burden

Business ownership planning: Helping you effectively transition from your business while reducing taxes and maximizing retirement assets

Estate and trusts: Efficiently transferring your wealth to the next generation

Insurance: Providing financial security, tax reduction, enhanced retirement income and legacy protection

Charitable giving: Helping you maximize your charitable legacy

Stéphane Côté

Financial Security Advisor, RBC Wealth Management Financial Services Inc.

Stéphane began his career in the financial services industry in 1997 as a Financial Security Advisor. Intent on helping his peers succeed, he was promoted to a management role in 1999. Over the years, he has taken on ever-increasing responsibilities. Specializing in estate planning solutions, Stéphane is proficient at proposing and implementing innovative and effective tax solutions in response to a variety of wealth management needs. He designs personalized, insurance-based solutions, both for individuals and corporations, to help increase their net value, reduce the tax burden and protect wealth by relying on insurance solutions including life, living benefits and life annuity products. Stéphane is also able to assist you in setting up your policies to ensure that your wealth is transferred to your heirs according to your wishes.

Nelly Hermitte, M.Law, F.Pl.

Financial Planning Specialist, Family Office Services, RBC Wealth Management

Nelly holds a Master’s of Business Law from Université Paris 1 (Panthéon- Sorbonne), and a D.E.S.S. in International Business Law from Université Paris Descartes.She received her financial planner designation from the Institut québécois de planification financière (IQPF) in 2004.

Nelly has over 15 years of experience as a financial planner. Before joining RBC, Nelly worked with financial advisors’ clients to optimize their financial position and wealth by creating strategic action plans customized to their needs.

Joseph Di Niro, LL.B, D.D.N.

Will & Estate Consultant, Family Office Services, RBC Wealth Management

Prior to joining RBC Wealth Management, Joseph Di Niro began his career as a Notary in private practice at a notarial firm in Montreal. During this period, Joseph developed an expertise in Will and estate planning and also acquired specialized knowledge in estate settlements and non-contentious matters. To further his knowledge in the field of taxation, Joseph later joined a multinational accounting organization, where he specialized in tax planning for individual and corporate clients. Member of the Board of Notaries of the Province of Quebec (Chambre des Notaires du Québec) since 2010, Joseph obtained his Notarial Law Degree (D.D.N.) from Université de Montréal in 2009, after having obtained his Bachelor of Law (LL.B.) from the Université de Québec à Montréal (UQAM) in 2007. Joseph is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Taxation from the University of Sherbrooke.

Catherine Simard

Private Banker, RBC Private Banking

As a Private Banker with RBC Wealth Management, Private Banking, Catherine Simard provides comprehensive wealth management and financing strategies to high-net-worth business owners, executives, professionals and their families in Quebec.

Ms. Simard works closely with her clients to provide seamless, unparalleled banking and financial solutions for their often-complex banking and credit needs. As needed, she may partner with specialists in tax, estate and investment planning from across RBC to provide a complete range investment management, estate planning and philanthropic strategies, domestic and international trust services.

Ms. Simard brings 19 years of financial services experience to her role, including 17 years with RBC. She began her RBC career as an account manager specializing in investments before pursuing her career as a financial planner, in which she worked closely with clients on the West Island of Montreal to comprehensively address their financial affairs. After moving to Toronto, she spent seven years in RBC roles including managing a financial planning team and as regional manager for RBC Global Asset Management.

Ms. Simard holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree, specializing in accounting, from HEC Montréal, and a certificate in financial planning from the Université de Laval. She has also earned her diploma in financial planning from Institut québécois de planification financière (IQPF). All told, her credentials give her current perspective and insight to recommend the more appropriate planning and wealth management solutions for her high-net-worth clients.

Originally from Charlevoix in Quebec, Ms. Simard now calls Quebec City home. She is fluent in English and French.