Profile

Anthony R. “Tony” Melman was born in Johannesburg, South Africa on 1 June 1947 to Frances and Jack Melman. He was Frances and Jack’s second child, their first being Tony’s older sister, Lillian. Both of Tony’s parents were second-generation South Africans, his father’s family originating from Lithuania and his mother’s from Poland.

Tony describes himself as having been “quite naughty” as a child, which, among other things, resulted in him being sent to a Methodist boarding school. The experience was not entirely negative as Tony forged close friendships with other Jewish boys at the school. Prefiguring his lifelong passion for music, he even formed a rock ‘n’ roll band while he was there.

After high school, Tony enrolled in the army, eventually becoming a major. His rebellious streak alive and well, he would sometimes go AWOL in order to play music at different nightclubs around town.

Tony’s postsecondary education spanned several institutions: He holds a bachelor of science degree from Wits University, a master of business administration degree (gold medalist) from the University of Cape Town, and a doctor of philosophy degree (also from Wits). At the time, Tony thought of his PhD as a kind of “ticket” for leaving South Africa.

Tony and his wife came to Toronto in February 1977 and fell in love with the city. In July, Tony took up a position at CIBC, where he rose to the position of senior vice president. In 1984, he left CIBC to co-found Onex Corporation, where he stayed until 2006. Upon leaving Onex, he enjoyed a brief retirement before returning to the world of finance, co-founding Acasta Capital in 2012 and Acasta Enterprises in 2015.

In addition to music, Tony is passionate about health and fitness. He and his wife Valerie have three children.