TSX Symbol: CIX

TORONTO, Aug. 10, 2017 /CNW/ - CI Financial Corp. ("CI") and Sentry Investments Corp. ("Sentry") today announced that they have reached an agreement under which CI will acquire Sentry, combining two of Canada's largest independent active asset managers.

Under the agreement, CI will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Sentry and its subsidiary Sentry Investments Inc., for a total of $780 million payable in $230 million in cash and the balance in CI shares. The transaction is expected to close on or about September 29, 2017, subject to regulatory approvals.

"We're very pleased to be adding a firm of this quality to the CI Financial group of companies as it will significantly enhance our position as a Canadian independent global asset manager," said Peter W. Anderson, CI's Chief Executive Officer. "The combined company will enjoy greater scale, which is key to being competitive in the investment industry today."

Sentry manages a diverse lineup of over 45 mutual fund mandates and other investment solutions with approximately $19.1 billion in assets (as of July 31, 2017). Following the completion of the acquisition, Sentry will remain a standalone brand and will continue to provide its leading investment products and award-winning portfolio managers to Canadian investors.

"Sentry is excited to join the CI group of companies," said Philip Yuzpe, President and Chief Executive Officer of Sentry. "Sentry will remain a leading Canadian investment management firm, now benefiting from the support of CI's best-in-class investment platform."

The transaction will increase CI's assets under management by 16% to approximately $140 billion, from $120.4 billion at July 31, 2017. Total assets (assets under management plus assets under advisement) will increase to approximately $180 billion.

Sentry's owners are demonstrating their confidence in the combined company and the Canadian asset management industry by taking a large portion of the purchase price in CI shares and becoming significant long-term shareholders in CI.

Moving forward, both Sentry and CI will continue to share and be driven by their commitment to excellence in active investing and working in partnership with financial advisors to help Canadians meet their financial goals.

CIBC Capital Markets and Davies Ward Phillips Vineberg LLP acted as advisors to Sentry, and Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP acted as exclusive advisors to CI.

Analysts' conference call
CI will hold a conference call with analysts today at 11 a.m. Eastern Time, led by Mr. Anderson and Chief Financial Officer Douglas Jamieson, to discuss the transaction and CI's second quarter 2017 results. The call and a slide presentation will be accessible through a webcast at www.ci.com/q2. Alternatively, investors may listen to the discussion by dialing (416) 641-6104 or 1-800-952-5114 (passcode: 5415686#). A replay of the call will be available until August 24, 2017 at (905) 694-9451 or 1-800-408-3053 (passcode: 7326905#). The webcast will be archived at www.ci.com/q2.

About Sentry Investments
Sentry Investments is one of Canada's leading independent investment managers, with about $19.1 billion in assets under management as of July 31, 2017. Founded in 1997, Sentry offers a diverse range of investment products and solutions through financial advisors and investment dealers, as well as portfolio management services to a variety of institutional clients. Further information is available at www.sentry.ca.

About CI Financial Corp.
CI Financial Corp. (TSX: CIX) is an independent, Canadian-owned wealth management company with approximately $160.5 billion in assets as of July 31, 2017. Its primary operating businesses are CI Investments Inc., one of Canada's largest investment managers, advisory businesses Assante Wealth Management and Stonegate Private Counsel, Grant Samuel Funds Management of Australia, and First Asset Investment Management, a leader in providing actively managed exchange-traded funds to the Canadian marketplace. Further information is available at www.cifinancial.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements with respect to CI Financial and its products and services, including its business operations and strategy and financial performance and condition. Although management believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, such statements involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations include, among other things, general economic and market factors, including interest rates, business competition, changes in government regulations or in tax laws, and other factors discussed in materials filed with applicable securities regulatory authorities from time to time.

SOURCE CI Financial Corp.

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