Ep.106 | Benjamin Sammut on MIC Growth, M&A, and Capital Raising

In Episode 106 of the Canadian Private Lenders Podcast, hosts Ryan MacNeil and Neal Andreino sit down with Benjamin Sammut, Founder & Principal of Dabble Capital Advisory, for a deep dive into how institutional money is reshaping Canada’s private lending landscape.

Benjamin shares how he transitioned from growing up in a family of mortgage brokers to building a firm that bridges the gap between MICs and global asset managers. Together, they unpack what’s next for capital raising, M&A activity, and innovation in the mortgage investment sector, plus his bold prediction that a new “golden age” is coming for Canadian private lenders.

Show Notes:

00:00 – Opening thoughts on innovation in the MIC space

01:00 – Benjamin’s background and how Dabble Capital Advisory began

05:00 – Challenges of liquidity and trust between MICs

07:00 – How large asset managers enter the private-lending market

10:00 – Structuring capital: SPVs, tranches, and diversification

16:00 – How Dabble Capital earns and structures fees

17:00 – Global capital raising: from Toronto to India to the U.S.

22:00 – Overcoming skepticism in international investor outreach

23:00 – The saturation of new MICs and where opportunity lies

26:00 – Why acquisitions are rare — and how private equity could change that

31:00 – Evolution of capital-raising strategies in Canada

33:00 – The rise of “originate-to-sell” MICs

34:00 – Market cycles, risk, and investor appetite

38:00 – What brokers really want from lenders

41:00 – The “new age” of MICs and a coming heyday

45:00 – Benjamin’s wish for Canada: robust sub-prime securitization

47:00 – Bonus: Calgary food talk — and the legendary dill-pickle pizza 🍕

Resources:
Keystone Capital Group
CPLP Instagram: @cplpodcast
Keystone Instagram: @keycapgroup

Find Neal On:
Instagram: @neal.andreino
LinkedIn: Neal Andreino

Find Ryan on:
LinkedIn: Ryan MacNeil
E-mail: ryan@keycap.ca