Benjamin Klein

About me

I was born/grew up in:  Toronto, ON

I now live in:  Toronto, ON

I completed my training/education at:  Bachelor of Arts, Honours in Applied Economics, Queen's University; Chartered Financial Analyst, CFA Institute; Certified Financial Planner, FP Canada

What I do at work

To sum it up, I help people invest their money so they can save enough to retire and meet any other financial goals they have. But there is a lot more involved. I spend a lot of time speaking with clients, answering questions about their investments and money, and helping them think about their money in a productive way.

My  understanding statistics and math helps me to understand politics and world events that may have effects on the financial markets. I use a special computer software with data on all kinds of different investments as well as Microsoft Excel.

At Baskin Wealth Management, we have an investment committee of 10 people. This committee meets formally every month to review our investments, current world events, as well as what the financial markets are doing. We also speak in person, by email and by phone daily. We use our understanding of what is doing on in the world and financial markets, to make decisions on what investments to buy and sell. We suggest ideas and discuss the pros and cons of each before making a final decision. We use this information to help our clients decide which investments are best for them.

My career path is

Once I had taken economics courses in school, I knew I wanted to study it in university. I didn't know what kind of work I would end up doing until after completing my undergraduate degree. I completed two graduate-level certifications in financial analysis (investing) and financial planning.

While at university, I volunteered as a Financial Analyst with a student-run club. In this role, I analyzed companies to determine the potential growth of their stocks. I summarized this information and prepared due diligence reports on prospective companies for presentation.

After graduation, I moved to into a Financial Services Representative with an investment company. Here I started doing work similar to what I do today. When I moved to Baskin Wealth Management, I began as a Research Analyst. I was doing similar work as I had before but was learning new things. I worked my way to the Portfolio Manager position over several years of hard work and continuous learning.  

I am motivated by

Investing is interesting because ideas can come from anywhere. You can invest in new technologies, trends, demographics, smart management teams, and everything in between. I also enjoy teaching people and helping them understand complicated topics so helping people plan for the future is very rewarding.

How I affect peoples’ lives

Money is a source of stress for many people. I try to make people feel confident about their ability to take care of themselves well into the future and to allow them to continue to live the lives they choose without worrying about money.

Outside of work I

I play video games, basketball, volleyball, run, bike and weightlift, read, and hang out with friends, my wife, and my young son. I also support the Heart and Stroke Foundation through the Ride for Heart, and the Terry Fox Foundation through the Terry Fox Run.

My advice to others

Be interested in everything, no matter how "useful" it is. You never know when skills you've learned will help you learn other skills in the future.