Mr. Kurt MacAlpine reports

CI FINANCIAL ANNOUNCES SALE OF ITS MINORITY STAKE IN CONGRESS WEALTH MANAGEMENT

CI Financial Corp. has reached an agreement to sell its minority stake in Congress Wealth Management LLC to Audax Private Equity.

Congress, led by President Paul Lonergan, serves clients across the United States from its Boston headquarters and offices in six other cities. CI, which first invested in Congress in the third quarter of 2020, holds its stake in the firm through CI Private Wealth LLC (CIPW), its integrated U.S. wealth management subsidiary.

"Congress is a great firm and our partnership with Paul and his team has been fantastic," said Kurt MacAlpine, CI chief executive officer.

"However, CI's investment in Congress was made almost three years ago, prior to the establishment of the CI Private Wealth differentiated private partnership model. To fully benefit from its features, only active contributors to the business can be CIPW partners. Unfortunately, the ownership structure at Congress precludes it from fully integrating into CIPW. CI and Congress believe that minority ownership is not the best structure to maximize the client and employee experience and that Audax will be an excellent partner to support the next chapter of growth for Congress."

CI received a return of approximately three times its initial investment in Congress and will use the proceeds from the transaction to pay down debt.

"The investment from CI was extremely productive and we are exiting on the best of terms," said Mr. Lonergan. "In addition to finding a solution that works for our ownership, we are also eager to pursue additional M&A [merger and acquisition] opportunities thanks to the backing from Audax Group."

"I want to thank Paul and the entire team at Congress for their hard work and dedication over the last three years," said Mr. MacAlpine. "They are an incredibly talented team and I wish them all the best."

The transaction is expected to close in May, 2023.

About CI Financial Corp.

CI Financial is a diversified global asset and wealth management company operating primarily in Canada, the United States and Australia. Founded in 1965, CI has developed world-class portfolio management talent, extensive capabilities in all aspects of wealth planning and a comprehensive product suite.

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