Education
Kassam started school at Bayview Glen School in 1994. His interest in financial markets began after his class placed in the top three schools in the Territorial Decoration Stock Portfolio Challenge (within Ontario). He subsequently attended the University of Western Ontario, graduating in 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts.
In 2010, Kassam received an Master of Business Administration in Finance from the London Business School, a constituent college of the University of London.
While obtaining his Master of Business Administration he travelled once a month from Toronto to Dubai.
Career
He founded Anson Group in 2007. AIMF was ranked 9th on the top 25 mid-sized hedge funds list, for 2014, illustrated in the Bloomberg Markets February 2015 magazine. Anson once again ranked in Bloomberg"s top 25 list for 2015.
Anson Group now operates two investment funds: Anson Investments Master Fund (AIMF) and Anson Catalyst Fund.
Anson Group In 2007, Kassam founded Anson Group, a hedge fund with three core strategies: classic shorts, value longs and opportunistic investments. He is the primary Portfolio Manager of AIMF, a multi-strategy investment fund.
AIMF was ranked 9th on the BarclayHedge Top 30 Hedge Fund List for performance between February 2010 and June 2012, generating a 54.25% return. Bloomberg Markets Magazine ranked AIMF in the top 10 mid-sized hedge funds for generating an annual return of 24% in 2014.
In 2015, AIMF generated a return of 16.2%.
This was driven through many small stock picks, and running the portfolio close to market neutral. AIMF was also recognized by Bloomberg for its 2015 performance making the Top-Performing Funds (between $250M-$1Bn in assets). Timothy Sykes, an investor, mentions that Kassam has “a few –thousand-to-millions-like” stories similar to himself.
Board Memberships Kassam also has a history of board membership, serving on the board of Midas Safety Incorporated. and Bayview Glen School.
Kassam also serves on the board of Kids Cook to Care, a charitable organization, which, through the use of food, shows youth they can make a difference in their world. In 2014, he was named the Chief Food Officer of Diner En Blanc, an organization that hosts large dinner parties around the world.
Moringa Media Limited. Since 2011, Kassam has been an Executive Producer at Moringa Media Limited.: a multi-media production company.
lieutenant uses technological innovation to create various artistic commodities and create content for clients. Kassam merges the world of business and art through his involvement in Moringa Media projects, which are oriented towards the film and television production departments.
Kassam is a Toronto foodie. He often travels long distances for a single meal or hosts catered events in his penthouse apartment.
He is a judge of Canada"s 100 Best Restaurants and Vacay Food.
One of Kassam’s favourite dishes in Toronto is the Spaghetteni Ai Gamberi from Carisma (right) - he described the dish as “the dream of Toronto.” Kassam serves as a strategic advisor for Foodee, an office food delivery service allowing delivery from multiple restaurants in six different local areas (and growing). Kassam has been noted for donating to the University of Toronto, Victoria University, The Toronto Rehab Foundation, and to Better Together. He was a top five fundraiser of Chef"s Challenge: The Ultimate Battle for a Cure, raising more than $18,000.
Membership
He is a board member of the Young Presidents Organization (Young Presidents' Organization). Kassam is a part of the Institut für Angewandte Festkörperphysik (Immigrant Access Fund) Advisory Council and a committee member of the Toronto Taste Steering Committee.
