Canada’s first regulated real estate investing platform launches to the public today

TORONTO – January 31, 2022. Today, Willow, Canada’s first regulated real estate investing platform officially launches to the public. Willow’s mission is simple – to make it possible for all Canadians to finally be able to invest in the real estate world. Willow is the first and only real estate investing platform to receive Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) approval to operate as an exempt market dealer.

Through a new model called ‘PropSharing,’ Co-founders Logan Yergens, Mike Hibberd, and Ray Johannsson are giving Canadians the opportunity to buy and sell fractions of property as easily as shares on the stock market.

“With real estate prices continuing to skyrocket across the country, investing in property is becoming further out of reach for most Canadians,” said Logan Yergens, CEO and Co-founder of Willow. “We believe property investment should be inclusive to all. ‘PropSharing’ will offer all Canadians a unique opportunity to invest in the real estate market.”

Willow’s platform will include handpicked, stable, rent-generating properties (commercial, industrial, and purpose-built multiplexes) from across the country. The properties are split into 100,000 Units of ownership which are available for purchase through the platform. Willow invests in the properties as well as manages them – two key differentiators from other platforms in the market. Willow will continue to expand their property portfolio over time, enabling Canadians to build an investment portfolio that suits their interests and goals.

“This ground-breaking platform will change the face of real estate investing for the better, opening the door to real estate for a new generation,” said Mike Hibberd, COO, and Co-founder of Willow. “PropSharing provides all the benefits of property ownership with none of the hassle of managing a property or dealing with tenants and will allow investors the flexibility to build their own custom portfolio of professionally sourced properties of their choosing.”

“This is an entirely new alternative asset class in the Canadian market, which makes this a very exciting company and investment space to watch,” said Neville Joanes, CIO of Willow, former president of CI Direct Investing, and past executive at WealthBar. “With a pre-launch waitlist of 10,000 Canadians, this shows there is huge interest in this investment opportunity. Now the asset that makes so much sense on paper, makes sense in real life.”

For more information on Willow, to see what properties are currently available and to start investing today, head to the platform here: www.willow.ca.

About Willow

Willow is Canada's first real estate investing platform that will soon make it possible for everyone to buy fractions of properties across Canada, build a custom portfolio, and sell their units easily. Willow created PropSharing by building a platform that solves the complexities of real estate. Willow takes care of the property management and the administrative work, so all investors need to do is pick the properties that are right for them. For more information, visit our Willow, follow us on Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn, and like us on Facebook.

About the Willow leadership team:

Logan Yergens, Co-Founder and CEO. Logan is on a mission to bring real estate investing, an asset class that’s been closed off to so many for too long, to any Canadian who wants to participate. Prior to founding Willow, Logan was the Director of Investor Relations and Corporate Development for Canada’s largest digital asset network, prior to which he worked in equity research and portfolio management for traditional debt and equity security dealers. Logan is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), received an MBA from the University of Toronto and has a B.Com in Accounting and Finance from Concordia University.

Mike Hibberd, Co-Founder, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Operations Officer. Mike is a professional risk manager with experience in the high-growth startup space. He worked at Chubb for over six years and is the former Chief Operating Officer of Toronto fashion brand, Wuxly Movement. Mike is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and holds a B.Com from McGill University.

Ray Johannsson, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer. Ray has over 30 years of experience in software development, system design, product delivery, and team management. He has worked for early-stage startups, as well as large established organizations such as Dell and IBM. Ray has a B.SC in Computer Science from York University.

Neville Joanes, Chief Investment Officer. Neville joins the executive team at Willow from CI Direct Investing, where he served as president for eight years. Neville is well known for his time at WealthBar, one of Canada’s first robo-advisors, where he played a crucial role in their success and ultimate acquisition by CI Investments in 2019. Neville has already changed the way Canadians invest, and now he wants to change the way they buy real estate.