John H. McCall MacBain (born ) is a Canadian billionaire businessman and philanthropist who is the founder of the McCall MacBain Foundation and Pamoja Capital SA, its investment arm.
Prior to establishing the McCall MacBain Foundation, in the late 1980s he bought Auto Hebdo magazine in Quebec City and bought and consolidated several other existing Auto Traders to form
Trader Classified Media
Trader Classified Media NV (formerly Hebdo Mag) was an international classified advertising company based in the Netherlands and run by Canadian John MacBain.
History
The company was founded in 1987 as Hebdo Mag by John MacBain and Louise Blou ...
based on the Auto Trader Magazine concept developed by Stuart Arnold in Florida in 1973.
Education
McCall MacBain received an
MBA
A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...
from
Harvard Business School (1984),
an MA in
Law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...
(Jurisprudence) from the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
as a
Rhodes Scholar and an
Honours BA in
Economics
Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...
from
McGill University
McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...
(1980).
He holds honorary degrees from
Dalhousie University, the
University of Ottawa
The University of Ottawa (french: Université d'Ottawa), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ottaw ...
,
Brock University
Brock University is a public research university in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. It is the only university in Canada in a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, at the centre of Canada's Niagara Peninsula on the Niagara Escarpment. The university bears t ...
,
McGill University
McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...
and
Monash University
Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university h ...
.
He served as president of the
Students' Society of McGill University
The Students' Society of McGill University (SSMU) is the accredited representative of the undergraduate student body at the downtown campus of McGill University.
Membership
The SSMU is composed of all undergraduate students studying in faculties ...
, as well as
valedictorian
Valedictorian is an academic title for the highest-performing student of a graduating class of an academic institution.
The valedictorian is commonly determined by a numerical formula, generally an academic institution's grade point average (GPA ...
. While at Oxford, he was co-captain of the university's ice hockey team.
Career
He worked from 1984 to 1987 as director of marketing at
Power Corporation
Power Corporation of Canada () is a management and holding company that focuses on financial services in North America, Europe and Asia. Its core holdings are insurance, retirement, wealth management and investment management, including a portfol ...
.
From 1987 to 2006, McCall MacBain was the founder,
president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
and
CEO of
Trader Classified Media
Trader Classified Media NV (formerly Hebdo Mag) was an international classified advertising company based in the Netherlands and run by Canadian John MacBain.
History
The company was founded in 1987 as Hebdo Mag by John MacBain and Louise Blou ...
, the world's leading
classified advertising company.
Starting with his purchase of three small publications in
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...
in 1987, when he was 29 years old, he developed the classified business to include 500 print titles and 57 internet sites in over 20 countries, including in
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
,
Australia,
China,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
,
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
and
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
.
After its IPO in 2000, Trader Classified Media was publicly traded on
NASDAQ and the
Euronext Paris Stock Exchange. In 2006, McCall MacBain sold the company and set up the McCall MacBain Foundation.
He is now chancellor of McGill University for a three-year term from 2021 to 2024.
Philanthropy
Since its formation in
Geneva
, neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier
, website = https://www.geneve.ch/
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...
,
Switzerland, in 2007, the McCall MacBain Foundation has made tens of millions of dollars of grants to fund projects relating to education and scholarships, health and climate change, and the environment. In addition to his role as a director and chair of the foundation, McCall MacBain is the Founding Chair of the
European Climate Foundation, Chair of the
McGill University
McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...
Principal's International Advisory Board, a member of the Advisory Board for the
Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy and a Foundation Fellow of
Wadham College
Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road.
Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...
, Oxford. Additionally, he is a director of the
Mandela Rhodes Foundation in Cape Town.
McCall MacBain, a Canadian
Rhodes Scholar (
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
and Wadham, 1980), donated $120 million to the
Rhodes Trust
Rhodes House is a building part of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on South Parks Road in central Oxford, and was built in memory of Cecil Rhodes, an alumnus of the university and a major benefactor. It is listed Grade II* ...
in order to help fund the scholarships and aid the expansion of the program to Brazil, China, Japan and Russia. He made that gift in September 2013, during the Rhodes 110th anniversary celebrations. As a result, he was named a 'Second Century Founder of the Rhodes Scholarships' in honour of that significant gift. Additionally, McCall MacBain was honoured in 2014 as a Fellow of the Chancellor's Court of Benefactors at Oxford University and at
Rhodes House
Rhodes House is a building part of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on South Parks Road in central Oxford, and was built in memory of Cecil Rhodes, an alumnus of the university and a major benefactor. It is listed Grade II* on ...
, where his portrait hangs and a room bears his name. The McCall MacBain Graduate Centre at
Wadham College
Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road.
Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...
, Oxford, was endowed by him.
McCall MacBain has also donated more than $1.2 million to fund McCall MacBain Loran Scholars through the
Loran Scholars Foundation
Founded in Toronto in 1988, the Loran Scholars Foundation is a national charitable organization awarding scholarships for students entering university in Canada. Loran Scholars receive the country's largest undergraduate merit award on the basis o ...
– the largest undergraduate entry scholarship programme in Canada.
On June 30, 2016, McCall MacBain was named an
Officer of the Order of Canada
The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit.
To coincide with ...
by
Governor General
Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy ...
David Johnston
David Lloyd Johnston (born June 28, 1941) is a Canadian academic, author, and statesman who served from 2010 to 2017 as Governor General of Canada, the 28th since Canadian Confederation. He is the commissioner of the Leaders' Debates Commis ...
for "his achievements as a business leader and for his contributions to academic institutions as a philanthropist."
On February 13, 2019, John and Marcy McCall MacBain donated $200 million to
McGill University
McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...
, the single-largest gift in its history, for a graduate scholarship program – the McCall MacBain Scholarship – modelled on the Rhodes Scholarship.
In 2019, he also seeded the Kupe Leadership Scholarship at the
University of Auckland
, mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work
, established = 1883; years ago
, endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021)
, budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021)
, chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant
, vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:MacBain, John
Officers of the Order of Canada
McGill University alumni
Harvard Business School alumni
Canadian Rhodes Scholars
Alumni of Wadham College, Oxford
Canadian chief executives
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Rhodes Trustees
1950s births
Mazz
Mazz is a Tejano band originally from Brownsville, Texas. The band was known for their idiosyncratic and innovative form of Tejano cumbia which made them distinguishable among their counterparts. Mazz became one of the most popular Tejano music ...
Mazz
Mazz is a Tejano band originally from Brownsville, Texas. The band was known for their idiosyncratic and innovative form of Tejano cumbia which made them distinguishable among their counterparts. Mazz became one of the most popular Tejano music ...