BC Business
Who’s the richest of them all In Knight Frank’s latest Wealth Report listing the world’s wealthiest cities, Vancouver is a good distance behind Toronto and Montreal (click here to see a larger version of the graphic above). Toronto has 1,216 UHNWIs (ultra-high-net-worth individuals with a net worth of $30 million or more), followed by Montreal (534) and Vancouver (262). We’re roughly on par with Buenos Aires (265) and Perth (267). Globally, London is on top with 4,364 UHNWIs, followed by Tokyo (3,575), Singapore (3,227) and New York (3,008). In the past decade, the number of UHNWIs has increased by 65,000 people or 61%. There are now 172,850 people with wealth totalling $20.8 trillion, an increase of $700 billion during 2014.
High spirits B.C.’s oldest distillery came out on top at the 2015 World Spirits Awards in Denmark. Vernon’s Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery won distillery of the year—for the second year in a row—and spirit of the year. Competing against distilleries from Europe, Australia and the U.S., Okanagan Spirits had entered eight spirits, which all received medals. In April, the distillery expects to open its new $3-million, 16,000-sq.-ft. distillery in Vernon. (via the Vernon Morning Star)
Trading ban Hitting rock bottom, five B.C. residents have been fined for market manipulation and permanently banned from B.C.’s capital markets by the British Columbia Securities Commission. While Thalbinder Poonian was the “mastermind of the scheme,” Shailu Sharon Poonian, Robert Joseph Leyk, Manjit Singh Sihota and Perminder Sihota were also involved in manipulating the share price of OSE Corp., which traded on the TSX-V but had its head office located on a Delta property owned by Perminder Sihota. Fines ranged from $1 million to $10 million.