RioCan's New Trustee
RioCan Real Estate Trust Appoints Susan McArthur, Adding Decades of Finance and Governance Expertise
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RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust has added Susan McArthur to its Board of Trustees, effective immediately, bringing the board back to ten members National Post. McArthur brings over 25 years of investment banking and venture capital experience to the Canadian retail REIT, which manages 186 properties and roughly 33 million square feet of leasable space across the country.
The appointment fills a seat left vacant since Richard Dansereau departed in 2025 to take an executive role at Desjardins Global Asset Management Calgary Sun. McArthur will sit on both the Audit Committee and the Nominating, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Committee.
McArthur's Background Spans Banking, Tech and Governance
McArthur is a current director at Great-West Lifeco and previously co-founded LockDocs Inc., where she served as Executive Chair Toronto Sun. She also worked as a Managing Partner at GreenSoil PropTech Ventures, a firm focused on real estate technology. That tech-sector experience is seen as directly relevant to RioCan's ongoing property modernization push.
She has advised corporate clients on a wide range of strategic and capital markets transactions over her career. Board Chairman Edward Sonshine said McArthur "brings an exceptional combination of board leadership, governance expertise and strategic insight gained through decades of service" and that "her breadth of experience across industries will be invaluable as RioCan continues to execute on its long-term strategy" Montreal Gazette.
RioCan's Strong Numbers Set the Stage for This Move
The appointment comes as RioCan is riding a wave of strong results. The trust reported record occupancy of 98.0% for 2025 and raised its monthly distribution by 4.3% to $0.0965 per unit Brantford Expositor. Funds from operations (FFO) — a key measure of REIT profitability — grew 9.3% year-over-year to $0.47 per unit.
In Q1 2026, RioCan posted blended leasing spreads of 25.8%, a sign that new leases are being signed well above expiring ones Sault Star. The trust trades on the TSX under the ticker REI.UN and was priced at $22.87 as of June 25, 2026.
Audit and ESG Roles Put McArthur at the Center of Key Risks
Her seat on the Audit Committee is closely watched. RioCan's adjusted debt-to-EBITDA ratio stood at 8.98x in early 2026 — a figure that institutional investors and TSX analysts track carefully Sudbury Star. McArthur's background in capital allocation is expected to bring sharper oversight to how RioCan manages that debt load.
Her ESG role is equally strategic. Canadian REITs face growing regulatory pressure to meet net-zero targets, especially for transit-oriented and mixed-use developments Fort McMurray Today. CEO Jonathan Gitlin has publicly emphasized "simplifying" the business and "de-leveraging," and McArthur's appointment supports that direction.
Analysts See a Defensive Play Amid Sector Headwinds
Not everyone reads this as a simple board refresh. Market analysts note that RioCan has faced selling pressure due to broader real estate sector headwinds, including rising interest expenses Recorder. From that view, adding a trustee with deep capital markets experience is a signal to investors that the board can handle turbulence.
There is also a governance footnote worth watching. McArthur now sits on both the RioCan and Great-West Lifeco boards simultaneously. She previously served as a director at First Capital REIT, one of RioCan's direct competitors Goderich Signal Star. That overlap raises questions about board interlocks in Canada's tightly knit financial sector, though no conflict has been identified.
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