Our story

The Dominion Securities Corporation Limited is established in Toronto

In the early days, the business focused largely on government and municipal bonds, but it also saw its war bonds business take off during the First World War. The stock trading department was later added in 1937 to complete the firm’s all-round investment capabilities.

Ernie Schell starts work at Dominion Securities

Before there was Frank (and way before there was Chris), there was Ernie Schell. After beginning his career with Great-West Life in 1953 as a salesperson, Ernie was recruited to Dominion Securities five years later by a local Winnipeg manager and thus began the lineage of our team over 65 years ago. While the business may have been dramatically different in a lot of ways in 1958, our core values that Ernie started to develop back then haven’t changed – putting the client relationship first; understanding why we’re investing for people and not just what we’re investing in; and focusing on not just investing but on building generational wealth for the whole family.

Royal Bank purchases a majority stake in Dominion Securities and the future of Wade Wealth Management starts to take shape

The era of RBC Dominion Securities began this year with the Royal Bank acquiring 67% of Dominion Securities. It would go on to acquire the remaining 33% to become sole owner in 1996. 1988 would prove to be not just a big year for Dominion Securities, but also for the future leaders of the team as well. In April of 1988, Frank Wade was hired into the RBC Management Training Program after completing his bachelor’s degree at the University of Winnipeg, and five months later in a hospital in Oshawa, Ontario, Chris Cherepuschak was born!

Frank Wade joins Ernie Schell at RBC Dominion Securities

After serving stints as a Branch Manager, a member of RBC Manitoba Branch Operations, and the Manager of Personal Deposits & Investments for all of Manitoba, Frank was recruited to RBC Dominion Securities to partner with Ernie Schell. Frank quickly found success in the first few years of his career both with Ernie as he learned the business under him, as well as working independently as part of his training. By the turn of the millennium his succession plan with Ernie was solidified.

Ernie Schell retires

After an esteemed 45-year career with RBC Dominion Securities, Ernie Schell officially retired and Frank Wade became the lead Investment Advisor on the team. Ernie had managed money through many notable periods in the history of financial markets including the Cuban Missile Crisis; the assassinations of both John F. Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy; the Vietnam War; the runaway inflationary period of the late 70s/early 80s; Black Monday in October of 1987; and the dot-com bubble bursting – just to name a few! As a result of these experiences, he was able to impart a lot of valuable wisdom on to Frank, including two very important lessons: The declines are always temporary while the gains are permanent (“this too shall pass!”), and at the end of the day, it’s not just about what the market is doing, it’s about what that means to your clients and their families.

Chris Cherepuschak joins Wade Wealth Management

After completing his undergraduate degree at Brandon University in 2010 and working for a couple years in commercial banking with the Bank of Montreal, Chris would go on to do his Master of Business Administration degree at the University of Manitoba and then joined RBC Dominion Securities to work alongside Frank Wade in August 2013 upon completion of the program. Initially, Chris was hired in a hybrid administrative/trading capacity, and from there he would go on to expand that role over the years to become the lead on portfolio management alongside Frank, the point person on the team’s financial planning operations, and a part of overall team leadership.

Ernie Schell passes away

In the 15 years Ernie spent in retirement, he and his family always stayed connected with Frank and the team right up until his passing in February of 2018. He was joined a year and a half later by his wife, Norma, who passed away in August 2019. They are survived by their two children, Paul and Gerda, who continue to stay connected with the team and serve as a testament to one of our core values that Ernie always believed in, going back to 1958: to manage intergenerational wealth for our clients by being there for their entire family.

Chris Cherepuschak formally receives the Portfolio Manager title alongside Frank Wade

On November 1, 2023 – just over 10 years after being hired by Frank – Chris would be elevated to the role of Portfolio Manager as part of acquiring a minority interest in the team. This represents the first step of a long transition process that has been outlined into the 2030s (don’t worry, Frank’s not going anywhere anytime soon) in order to best position the team for another generation of success – just like we strive to do with the wealth of our clients!