The Canadian financing and leasing industry is seeing continued growth with new opportunities on the horizon, according to Blake Macaskill, Managing Director of CIT Canada at CIT Group Inc. This view and others, are presented in “Equipment Financing and Leasing Opportunities in Canada,” the latest in a series of in-depth executive video Q&As featured in the award winning CIT Executive Insights video series.

A Perfect Time To Lease

“We’ve always thought leasing is a great alternative to purchasing, but I don’t think there’s ever been a better time in the market to lease than right now,” explains Macaskill. “Interest rates are at an all-time low, so customers get the benefit of financing their equipment at low rates.”

Growth Potential in Renewable Energy and in the Cloud

The renewable energy and technology sectors continue to experience steady growth and are well positioned to benefit from leasing, Macaskill comments, “There’s been a lot of activity recently in renewable energy, both wind and solar. That’s a focus for CIT right now because it aligns extremely well to our expertise.”

He continues, “The other spot that we see some value in is technology finance, the whole idea of cloud financing and how to best go at the market and finance that. I think the financial services organizations that figure that out quickly are going to be the ones that provide the best value to the market.”

Equipment Financing and Leasing Market Needs To Evolve

Commenting on what’s on the horizon for the financing and leasing markets in Canada, Macaskill comments, “The equipment financing and leasing market in Canada needs to evolve. I think that the market has looked at it fairly consistently for decades, which was based on traditional asset based lending, where the asset was the security.

“I think the most successful companies, and the ones that are going to bring the most value to the marketplace, are going to start looking at the total finance solution, including services, in addition to equipment finance. The companies that can do that are the companies that are going to win.”

Expertise Through Market Cycles

Canada has long been viewed as a stable banking environment and now more than ever local banks are looking to do business. “Some people see those banks entering the market as a challenge,” comments Macaskill. “We really see it as an opportunity. I think our customers and our partners are going to benefit from that long-term expertise when everybody else has come and gone.”

CIT Canada provides lending, leasing and other financial and advisory services to the small business and middle market sectors, with a focus on specific industries, including: Chemicals, Communications, Energy, Entertainment, Gaming, Healthcare, Industrials, Public Sector debt, Information Services & Technology, Restaurants, Aerospace, Retail, Sports & Media and Transportation & Construction.

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