The Caisse de dépôt spent $110,027 on private clubs over five years

Oberoi (New Delhi), Taj Mahal (Bombay), Club Saint-James (Montreal), Cercle de la Garrison (Quebec)… Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) spent $110,027 in private clubs recently. Five years, learned News magazine.

Last year alone, more than $36,547 went to private clubs that were not members of the Caisse (the Royal Automobile Club, the Club Saint-James and the Mandala Club) and thousands of dollars to clubs like New Delhi's Oberoi. , Bombay's Taj Mahal and Quebec's Cercle de la Garrison.

“A company where the Caisse is already a major shareholder, and a company that wants to consult it before making purchases, for example can go to places that are a little more confidential and anonymous,” analyzed François Dauphin, CEO of the Institute on Corporate Governance. Private and Public Organizations (IGOPP).

Who pays the bill in these cases? What does the fund policy say? Quebecers' nest egg retorts… it depends.

“Depending on the partners and the nature of the event, costs can be shared in different ways,” explained Caisse spokeswoman Kate Monfet.

Taj Mahal Palace in Mumbai

Presented by Taj Mahal Palace

$2,532 dinner at Saint-James

The bills included $436 + taxes to accommodate a foreign holding company at Club Saint-James (CSJ), including a $2,532 dinner and six bottles of wine.

“The confidential content of the conversations dictated the choice of an intimate location,” explained Caisse de Dépot spokeswoman Kate Monfet.

It was argued that “catering services incur similar costs for catering meals at CDPQ offices”.

In response to a request for access to information from NewspaperCaisse indicated that it was not a member of the St-James Club.

Among the 13 guests around the table, there were four employees of Caisse, two representatives of a company, one person from the government and “six other strategic players from the business community”. It is impossible to know who is there, as the fund does not disclose “details of this nature”.

“The meal in question was part of a day when CDPQ acted as a facilitator between a company interested in opening offices in Quebec and several players in the Montreal business ecosystem, including Network University, the financial community and other major companies in Montreal. and government representatives,” states the Quebecers' nest egg.

More than $23,742 at Cercle de la Garrison

In 2023, the Caisse paid $23,742 to Chic Cercle de la Garrison in Quebec, including an annual contribution of $15,000 + taxes.

“Meal for two without alcohol, a room rental and meal service for about twenty people (without alcohol) as part of a forum with business people from the region, and the company featured a cocktail dinner with a dozen Quebec entrepreneurs. For the latter, about fifty people attended and $886 + tax was paid for 17 bottles of wine,” notes Caisse's Kate Monfet.

end of February, News magazine HEC Montreal reported paying $1,699.94 for meals at Club Saint-James. The educational institution has demonstrated transparency by sharing the bill.

In mid-June, we learned that Investments Quebec ( IQ ) spent more than $12,000 on its board of directors meetings at Club Saint-James ( CSJ ) from 2020 to 2022, including five wines at $69 each.

The Saint-James Club is a private club founded in 1857 as the Saint James Club of Montreal. There are about 600 members. About 17% are women.

– In collaboration with Sylvain Larocque

Table of Costs in Private Clubs

Presented by CDPQ