Ian Telfer is a British-born Canadian mining executive, entrepreneur and former chairman of Goldcorp Inc.
Besides leading Goldcorp, he is known for founding and leading other Canadian mining companies, including TVX Gold, Silver Wheaton Corp., and Uranium One, as well as for his philanthropic efforts that include a donation of $25 million to the University of Ottawa's School of Management, now the Telfer School of Management.
[5] At age twenty-five, following five years of working at "nondescript" sales jobs,[2][5] Telfer realized he needed to "reboot" his life [2] and applied to a number of MBA programs in Canada.
"[5] Though Telfer had no long-term plans of working in the mining industry, he credits getting a job at Hudson Bay as a "coincidental opportunity" and something that lit up his entrepreneurial ambitions.
Telfer moved to Rio de Janeiro and spent the next six years leading TVX Gold in Brazil [4] and working with mining executive and entrepreneur Eike Batista.
[3] In order to achieve this goal, Telfer led Vengold in purchasing shares of Lihir Gold from the government of Papua New Guinea [3] through a line of credit.
Taking advantage of the brief window, Telfer sold all the shares of Vengold to pay off the banks, leaving him and his shareholders with a shell company with $30 million to its name.
Together, Telfer and Giustra discussed plans of re-entering the gold market and finding an appropriate investment vehicle to do so.
Giustra pinpointed Wheaton River Minerals, which at the time was a shell company with $5 to $10 million and 6 employees.
In a three-year span, Telfer guided Wheaton River from a roughly $10 million company to one with an approximately $2.4 billion valuation.
In addition to his work with Wheaton River Minerals and Goldcorp, Telfer has founded and led other mining companies.
In 2006, Telfer and Frank Giustra formed UrAsia Energy, a uranium producer operating a mine in Kazakhstan.
[16] Telfer contributed in launching Terrane Minerals, Tahoe Resources, Peak Gold and Primero Mining.
[30] In 2015, the philanthropic contributions of Telfer and his wife were recognized at the "10th Annual Global Forum on Human Settlements" held at the Headquarters of the United Nations In New York.
[33] Telfer often speaks on lessons he has learned during his career and has emphasized the importance of taking advantage of an opportunity when it presents itself.