Vice President Corporate Debt Strategist (Business Administration, BBA)

James Fracas, BMO Capital Markets

By: Natalie Daniels, Outreach and Support Peer 

James Fracas, a Laurier Honours BBA graduate, developed a strong interest in financial markets throughout his time as a student. To hone that interest, James concentrated his studies in finance, deepening his understanding of how financial markets work and, more broadly, the ways in which economic decisions influence businesses and society. While at the onset of his professional career, James did not have a specific “dream” job in-mind, but he knew he wanted to be in a client-facing, numbers-oriented role, which kick started his foray into the financial markets field.

Soon after graduating, James landed his first position at Descartes Systems Group, joining the accounting team. In this role, James developed a strong understanding of accounting systems and processes and gained first-hand mergers and acquisitions experience. It was at this point James realized he wanted to pursue a financial career and decided the first step would be to sign up for the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) program. After successfully passing the first level, James transitioned to an investment analyst (and subsequently consultant) role at a boutique investment consulting firm where he advised corporate pensions, foundations, endowments, and institutional pools of capital. Then, with guidance from his network and mentors, and successfully achieving the CFA designation, James decided that capital markets (defined as part of the financial industry where money is invested, raised and traded between investors and organizations) offered the career he ultimately sought since graduating university. This led to a second career pivot, with James moving into a sell-side equity research role covering the energy infrastructure sector. In this role, James analyzed publicly traded energy infrastructure companies, publishing research reports and investment recommendations.

Currently, James serves as Vice President, Corporate Debt Strategist with the Bank of Montreal. In this role, he analyzes corporate issuers from a credit perspective, assessing the financial health of companies and their ability to generate sustainable cash flow. His work involves conducting in-depth research on issuers, building financial models, and evaluating credit risk to determine creditworthiness. A typical day for James starts early, he checks the news and market developments, then joins a department-wide morning call. Each day is unique, however, working in the sell-side, busy seasons are predictable and coincide with issuer’s earnings releases, which James publishes notes on and provides his view on the credit/issuer.

James points out that there isn’t one singular path to entering the finance industry and people enter the field from a variety of launch points. He notes that having a strong sense of curiosity and commitment to continuous learning are essential for a career in finance. Markets are ever changing and professionals in the field must be willing to ask questions and learn from others. James also notes that the field is very competitive, particularly for sell-side roles which compete for attention from a similar investor base. New professionals to the field need to work hard to build credibility and hone their skills in communication and public speaking as finance professionals present ideas and research to clients and colleagues. James recommends students leverage the robust resources their educational institutions provide to keep up to date on the latest market developments and stresses the importance of having a well-founded view/take. James also highlights the importance of networking and building relationships, not only for early career progression, but throughout your professional journey. There is no better way to learn than from professionals in the industry.