Luc Paiement is stepping down as head of wealth management at the National Bank to become an executive advisor. He will be replaced by Martin Gagnon, who will be the new executive vice-president in charge of wealth management as well as co-president and co-CEO of National Bank Financial.

National Bank announced on April 4 that it had appointed Gagnon to head up its wealth management division. Gagnon first joined the bank in 1987 and worked in financial engineering and asset/liability management. In 1993 he left to pursue other employment, including a period at Goldman Sachs in Canada and the United States, but he returned to the bank in 2003 as co-CEO of Innocap Investment Management, the subsidiary responsible for the bank's hedge fund operations. In 2011, he was appointed senior vice-president for intermediary business solutions within National Bank's wealth management division.

The bank says that Paiement, who has been with the bank for nearly 35 years, will remain on and act as an executive advisor. “On behalf of the Office of the President, I would like to sincerely thank Mr. Paiement for his contribution to the Bank's success,” said Louis Vachon, National Bank's president and CEO. “Thanks to his strong interpersonal skills and engaging leadership, he has fostered a culture of customer service excellence within his teams. We are pleased to be able to continue counting on his strategic input, and to welcome Mr. Gagnon to his new role."