History
As one of the founding members of the Canadian Employee Ownership Coalition, Rewrite Capital Advisors was crucial in getting this law passed on January 1, 2024. The original legislation was temporary, set to expire at the end of 2026. But no longer—the capital gains tax exemption on qualifying sales to an EOT is now firmly entrenched.
Combining the redistributive equity power of the US ESOP with the flexibility and ease of implementation of the UK EOT, Canada's EOT is the most innovative and exciting employee ownership structure in the world.
On April 22, 2026, Rewrite Capital Advisors expanded its offerings by acquiring ESOP Builders Inc., a firm that specialized in implementing employee ownership plans across the country. From stock options, share purchase, synthetic equity, MBOs, or a hybrid approach, ESOP Builders worked with Canadian companies in a variety of industries to design and implement the right employee ownership structure for the business.
Perry Phillips founded ESOP Builders in the 1990s. Asked to value a husband-and-wife-run company in Detroit, Michigan, he learned that they were selling their business to their employees. Perry wanted to prove that employee ownership could work for Canadian businesses of every size and in every industry because he believed that employees deserve to share in the wealth they help create. Thirty years later, more Canadian business owners are finding their way to employee ownership, and more Canadian employees are becoming owners.
