2004 News Releases

Toronto - Peter Rubenovitch, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Manulife Financial Group, will be honoured as Canada’s CFO of the Year™ for 2004 at a gala dinner tonight in Toronto attended by more than 600 guests from some of Canada’s leading organizations.

Canada’s CFO of the Year Award is presented annually by Financial Executives International Canada (FEI Canada) and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, in association with The Caldwell Partners International, to honour and recognize the quality, insight, direction and leadership of Canada’s senior financial leaders.

Canada’s CFO of the Year Award is sponsored through the generous support of American Express Corporate Services, Certified Management Accountants of Canada (CMA Canada), the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA), Fasken Martineau, Marsh Canada Limited, Scotiabank Group and Watson Wyatt Worldwide. The media sponsor is The Globe and Mail.

“Canada’s CFO of the Year Award honours the achievements of an exceptional individual, while also celebrating the leadership of senior financial executives who daily encourage business practices based on the principles of quality and integrity,” says Kevin J. Dancey, Canadian Senior Partner and CEO of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. “Peter Rubenovitch is a shining example of the balance that successful financial executives now need to achieve between the quantitative and qualitative elements of leadership.”

Rubenovitch was named as CFO of the Year by an independent committee composed of some of Canada’s most prominent business leaders. The criteria by which nominees were judged centred around five key attributes: Vision and Leadership, Corporate Reporting and Performance, Social Responsibility, Innovation and Global Competitiveness. Candidates for the Award are nominated in all business sectors by CEOs, members of boards of directors, financial analysts and other senior executives.

“Today’s CFO faces new challenges and an increasing level of scrutiny around not only the financial performance of a company, but in the confidence he or she instils in all stakeholders within a company,” said Isabel Meharry, President and CEO of Financial Executives International Canada.

To view more information on Canada’s CFO of the Year Award, please visit the CFO of the Year Web site at:
http://pwc.com/ca/cfoaward. To arrange an interview on the Award and its mandate, please contact Nicholas Greenfield at 416-869-2383 or press.contact@ca.pwc.com.

About Financial Executives International Canada (FEI Canada)
FEI Canada (www.fei.org/canada) is a cross-industry professional association for senior financial executives. With 11 chapters across Canada and more than 1,500 members, FEI Canada is an integral part of the larger 86 chapter, 15,000-member organization based in the U.S. Together, the members of FEI Canada and FEI represent 8,000 of North America’s leading and most influential corporations. FEI Canada provides many valuable services to its members including peer networking opportunities, emerging issues alerts, personal and professional development opportunities, and advocacy services.

FEI Canada members are Chief Financial Officers, Controllers, Treasurers, Tax Executives, Finance and Accounting Professors. Other typical titles held by FEI members include Assistant Controller, Subsidiary CFO or Controller, Assistant Treasurer, Director of Tax and CEO.

For more information regarding FEI Canada, please visit the Web site: www.fei.org/canada.

About PricewaterhouseCoopers
PricewaterhouseCoopers (www.pwc.com) provides industry-focused assurance, advisory and tax services for public, private and government clients in all markets. More than 120,000 people in 139 countries connect their thinking, experience and solutions to build public trust and enhance value for clients and their stakeholders. In Canada, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (www.pwc.com/ca) and its related entities have more than 4,200 partners and staff, and offices in 25 locations.

(Unless otherwise indicated, "PricewaterhouseCoopers" refers to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Canada, an Ontario limited liability partnership. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Canada, is a member firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited.)

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For more information, please contact:
Media inquiries:brp>Nicholas Greenfield
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
(416) 869-2383
press.contact@ca.pwc.com