Stephan Crétier
Canadian entrepreneur (born 1963)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Stephan Crétier (born 8 August 1963) is a Canadian entrepreneur and businessperson.[1] He is the founder and chief executive of GardaWorld, a security firm based in Montreal.[2]
Stephan Crétier | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 8, 1963 |
| Education | University of Montreal (Industrial relations), California Pacific University (MBA) |
| Known for | CEO of GardaWorld |
Early life and Education
Crétier was born in Montreal, Quebec to a Swiss mother and Italian father, both of whom immigrated to Canada in the 1950s.[3]
Crétier studied Industrial relations at the University of Montreal and got his MBA at California Pacific University.[4]
Career
Crétier founded GardaWorld in 1995 as Trans-Quebec Security Inc. with an investment of C$25,000, which he raised by placing a second mortgage on his home[5] and selling his car.[6]
Crétier was the recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.[7] In 2012, he took GardaWorld private in a $1.1 billion transaction with support from U.K. private equity firm Apax Partners.[8]
In 2019, Crétier led the largest private equity buyout in Canadian history with private equity firm BC Partners, valuing the company at $5.2 billion.[9] The transaction resulted in Crétier owning 49 percent of GardaWorld,[10] making him a billionaire.[9]
In 2024, Crétier resumed majority ownership of GardaWorld in a management buyout, making his net worth an estimated $2.6 billion.[11]
In January 2025, the Competition Authority of Kenya granted Crétier permission to acquire and obtain ownership of Kenyan security company KK Security Limited.[12]
Philanthropy
In 2006 Crétier and his wife Stephany Maillery founded Canadian charity the Stéphan Crétier Foundation.[13] Through the foundation, he created the B.O.L.O Program, which offers financial incentives to the public for finding Canada's top 25 most wanted fugitives, in 2018.[14]
In 2018, Crétier and his wife made a donation to the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts to fund the opening of “Arts of One World Stephan Crétier and Stéphany Maillery Wing.”[13]