Founder's Biography
Serge Beausoleil: Financier – Philanthropist – Committed Globe-Trotter
Driven lifelong by a profound sense of injustice in the face of the trials that strike our world — war, poverty, illness, and violence, particularly against women and children — Serge Beausoleil founded the Beausoleil Foundation with a clear mission: to transform indignation into concrete action.
His professional background reflects solid expertise. A former securities broker and financial planner with leading institutions such as the Bank of Montreal, CIBC, and the National Bank, he has accumulated more than 50 years of experience in financial markets with his first transaction at 16 years old.
Since 2002, he has specialized in the publicly traded mining company sector, where he has developed an extensive business network and a recognized ability to identify quality opportunities.
It is from this expertise that an innovative philanthropic approach was born — one that is both simple and powerful. Serge structured a strategy allowing donors to maximize the impact of their contribution through the use of flow-through shares.
The result: with the same capital, it becomes possible to benefit from two major tax levers — charitable donations and flow-through share benefits — rather than just one. This approach makes it possible, in certain cases, to obtain tax benefits exceeding the amount of the donation itself. But beyond tax efficiency, Serge’s vision is deeply human: enabling everyone to contribute more, without necessarily giving more.
Give smarter, to do more.
An avid traveler having explored 116 countries to date, Serge also draws inspiration from his discovery of the world. From the ice fields of Antarctica to legendary summits such as Aconcagua, Kilimanjaro, and Everest Base Camp, to the depths of the South Pacific and Indian Oceans, these experiences have strengthened his conviction: we are all interconnected, and everyone can make a difference.
Today, through the Beausoleil Foundation, he invites donors to take a gesture that is both intelligent and meaningful: maximizing their philanthropic impact while optimizing their tax situation.
Because changing lives should never be limited by the way you give.
Our Philanthropic Mission
“Growing Happiness” — This statement takes on its full meaning in the fact that happiness, normally, cannot be calculated, counted, or evaluated, whereas the Foundation’s primary mission is not only to calculate, count, and evaluate it, but even better, to grow that happiness.
I hesitated for a long time between “growing happiness” and “growing the volume of happiness.” Why this dilemma? Simply because I want to highlight the SOURCE of this precious abundance. This abundance which, combined with my grand ambitions, makes it possible to fulfill the dreams not only of the final beneficiaries, but of all those people who, just like me, have grand ambitions to help others, yet unfortunately do not have the means to match their ambitions.
These people will always be the primary recipients of our benevolence, and it is principally to them that this Foundation is addressed. Indeed, the BF’s primary mandate (letters patent) is to give to other foundations. So what is this source of abundance? It is simply the penny stock market on public exchanges (Stock Exchange). The well-known world of penny stocks and start-ups.
Arguably the most risky and dangerous field that exists, yet potentially enormously profitable and rewarding for those who know how to play their cards right. It is for this very reason that a stock market chart forms an integral part of the Foundation’s logo.
The mission of the Beausoleil Foundation is to “grow” happiness. But how does one calculate happiness in numbers, and more importantly, how does one measure the growth of this happiness — which, in this case, represents the ultimate return on investment sought by my Foundation? Because this foundation will be managed exactly like my stock market investments: in pursuit of the greatest possible return.
Therefore, this return is measured simply by the NUMBER of people for whom the BF has contributed to improving, even if only marginally, their level of happiness. That is how I calculate the growth of happiness.
Commercial Mission
Commercial Mission of the Foundation
The commercial mission of the Beausoleil Foundation is divided into 2 components.
1. Optimizing the tax situation of its donors by adding an additional tax credit of approximately 65% through the purchase of flow-through shares, on top of the 50% tax credit they would have received by simply making a cash donation. Through the double tax deduction, the Foundation allows donors to more than double their tax benefit for the same donation.
2. Allowing donors to still direct their donation toward the non-profit organization of their choice simply by communicating this information to the Beausoleil Foundation at the time of the donation. The Foundation ensures the success of the second component of its commercial mission by allowing donors to choose the non-profit organization to which they would like to make a donation. Let us take the example of a donor who has always supported the Centraide Foundation, for instance. The donor need only inform the Beausoleil Foundation, and the latter will take care of remitting a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the flow-through shares to Centraide.