Largest research team being built by Yorkton

The largest mining research team in Canada is being established by Yorkton Securities. Using a formula which has proven popular in Europe, but remains new to the Canadian scene, Yorkton is building a large team of 12 individuals who will focus on tapping the financial resources of European institutions. “We plan to bring together North American product and European money,” Michael Pickens, a mining analyst with Yorkton’s Toronto office, explained to The Northern Miner.

Heading up the team’s London office is Peter Miller, a former Shearson Lehman Securities mining analyst who is highly regarded in Europe. Another key member in London is Ian Lamont, a top economist and former head of research at Sheppard’s, a British brokerage firm.

“We’ve decided to build a team of the best in the business,” Miller told The Northern Miner. “It will be an unparalleled team of people,” he adds. The mining team concept, “which has never been tried in North America before, has been very successful in Europe,” Miller adds.

“We plan to have a broad spectrum of coverage from grass- roots projects to blue chip companies. But our main targets are institutions in Europe.” According to Miller, the number of European institutions with some exposure to resource equities approaches 1,000. The group also plans to publish a weekly mining report, similar to the mining reviews published by several of the mining groups working in London.

Although ranked as one of the smaller Canadian brokerage houses with a capitalization of approximately $15 million, Yorkton is taking a gamble during the current depressed market environment with its expansion plans. But Pickens counters, saying that “even in bad markets, projects get financed.” The Yorkton team will be tapping a vast network of business contacts brought together by each team member.