After 30 years in the mortgage industry, Yousry Bissada wasn’t ready to start his retirement. Instead, he’s helping millions of Canadians fund theirs as the new President and CEO of HomeEquity Bank.
Bissada joined the reverse-mortgage provider in early January after seven and a half years at Home Trust, most of which was spent as the president and CEO of the alternative lender. Bissada took the reins of that company following its near total collapse in 2017, and remained at the until the Fairstone Bank merger closed in early 2025.
As part of that transition, Bissada swapped his CEO title for vice chair last January 2025. Bissada said he believes it was the right decision for Home Trust, and he’s proud of the legacy he leaves behind, but the 65-year-old admits he wasn’t ready to slow down just yet.
“I always felt like I’ve got a little more in me, so this satisfies that itch,” he says. “I’m very fortunate to be in a position where, if I don’t want to do something, I don’t have to. It’s a choice, not a necessity to be here, and I’m very happy to be here.”
Canadian Mortgage Trends spoke with Bissada two weeks into his new job about that decision, where he hopes to take HomeEquity Bank, and the central role he sees for brokers in those plans.
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
First off, congratulations on being named president and CEO of HomeEquity Bank. How’s it going so far?
Thank you.
You know, there have been many of the difficulties in working for two companies named “home.” I got very, very kind comments on social media and text messages, but every now and then someone will say “congratulations on being appointed CEO of Home Trust,” not HomeEquity Bank. I even got Equitable Bank a few times. It’s like the world’s run out of names.
To answer your question, it’s only been two weeks, but it’s been great to work with people who eat, sleep and breathe reverse mortgages. They’re very passionate about what they do. I’ve never enjoyed showing up to work unless everyone is rowing in the same direction, loving what we do, so it’s been a very pleasant two weeks of learning here.
What did you know about HomeEquity before?
I knew past-CEO Steve Ranson very well; in fact I was the guy who announced him into the Hall of Fame two years ago. He was very passionate, very committed, and same with CEO Katie Dudtschak, who was the CEO before me. That’s how I would like to be thought of at the end of all this; I’ve grabbed the baton and I want to keep that going.
How did this opportunity come about?
I left my CEO role at Home Trust in 2025 and became Vice Chair, but I always felt like I had a little more in me. At the time I didn’t know if another opportunity like this would come, so I was working hard in 2025 on my board career, and on coaching and mentoring CEOs and executives. I kept myself busy; I wasn’t sitting on the beach or golfing every day.
Then, about two months ago, the owners, Ontario Teacher’s Pension Plan, asked me if I was done or not done, and if I was willing to look at this, and I answered very honestly. I said I liked the company, but I needed to know more.
We ultimately came to an agreement, and I’m very excited to be here.
What do you see as your legacy at Home Trust?
I think I’ve left a well-built culture that loves the broker community and loves what they do.
They serve Canadians who are under-served elsewhere. It is a values-driven company that understood if you take care of your clients, they will take care of your bottom line. So, I left a very strong culture in place.
The merger and the leadership change absolutely made sense to me. I wasn’t going out kicking and screaming. It was the right decision, given the context.
What do the two brands have in common?
What I loved at Home Trust is that we were serving a niche market that was underserved, and it feels like I’m continuing that journey. Now, that market is Canadians who are 55-plus, which is about 7.5 million households, and demand is growing.
I’m in that demographic and I see it all the time with friends and family. People are living into their 80s and 90s, which was unthinkable 40 or 50 years ago, and pensions are underfunded, so they have insufficient savings. Meanwhile costs are going up.
The biggest asset they own is their home. They have most likely paid off their mortgage, and they want to continue to live in their home while funding their lifestyle.
As I started looking into it, I realized this is a really important way to serve Canadians, and that really mattered to me.
How has the reverse mortgage segment matured?
Everyone thinks I’m new to reverse mortgages, which I am, but I did my first reverse mortgage at First Line Trust in 1989. We did 10 of them, and it was way ahead of its time, but it was met with a lot of stigma back then. People said, “what are you doing taking away people’s homes?” and we decided it wasn’t the right time.
HomeEquity Bank was around then, too, and it plotted through all these issues and concerns, and it took many years to become something that’s now widely accepted.
How does it feel working directly with brokers again?
I love brokers.
Brokers are serving people who don’t have expertise in mortgages, in general, let alone reverse mortgages.
HomeEquity is in the broker channel, but our goal is to expand our presence, because we think we can do much more.
Having been in the industry for 30 years, my goal is to marry brokers’ needs with our products so that we can continue to expand. You’ll see us more in the broker world and at broker events.
Why are more lenders offering reverse mortgages and how will HomeEquity stand out in an increasingly crowded field?
Anytime you’re in a successful business, you’re going to get competition. That’s no surprise.
If you look at our competition today, it is a side product that they offer along with other, bigger products. This is our only one.
We spend all our time, money, R&D budgets and resources on reverse mortgages. We’re putting all our customer data insights, AI and technology into improving reverse mortgages, and we’re going to continue to evolve this category. In fact, we already have a lot in the hopper.
Can you share details?
It’s mostly variations of the reverse mortgage that are more customizable, rather than trying to fit a reverse mortgage to every customer need.
Some people want a reverse mortgage to fund their lifestyle, that’s the standard product, but then there are people who want a piece of it to help their kids with a down payment or want a shorter-term product.
We’re going to have things off the shelf that can address what we’re hearing and what clients are asking for.
What do you hope to achieve at HomeEquity Bank?
If you think of the business as a skyscraper; it has a great foundation, we’re on the 20th floor, and my job is to get it to the 60th.
This is a really good investment for Ontario Teachers’, which is one of the reasons why I chose it. They are a formidable owner with patience for long returns. They’re not pushing me for quarterly results. The bottom-line matters to them, but so does the reputation of the company, so that we represent the Teachers’ brand well in the street, and that’s a big deal.
You’re going to see HomeEquity Bank more in the broker world. My team and I are going to spend a lot of time with brokers, listening to what they want, listening to what they’re hearing their customers want as part of the input to what we bring out over the long term, and I look forward to it.
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Last modified: January 29, 2026