Scott Thomson, the outgoing CEO of Caterpillar dealer Finning International, will succeed Brian Porter in February 2023. (The Logic)

Talking point: Porter, who became CEO in November 2013, turned over the firm’s leadership and spent significantly on technology. The lender has followed its Big Five counterparts by building its own AI tools and partnering with fintech startups. Unlike some other large banks, Scotiabank has limited its limited-partner participation in venture funds, with just two publicly-disclosed capital commitments since Porter took over, per PitchBook data. Thomson hasn’t worked directly in the financial-services sector in two decades, when he left Goldman Sachs for Bell; before joining Finning, he was CFO of Calgary-based Talisman Energy. But he’s been on Scotiabank’s board since April 2016, and chaired the committee that oversees succession planning. The choice of an outsider “clearly suggests to us that perhaps some significant changes may be on the way” for the firm, RBC Capital Markets analyst Darko Mihelic wrote in an investor note. Scotiabank shares were down nearly three per cent Monday afternoon.