Friday Market Monitor

Friday Market Monitor is an investment talk show created by original (and current) host Walter Traversy, that went live on the air in October of 1994, just as the stock market started to capture the imagination of savers and investors everywhere. The show has made a lot of friends since then with a long list of regular listeners, and a guest list that boasts the who's who in the investment world. The likes of Sir John Templeton, Don Coxe, Sir Terry Matthews, Richard Dreihauss, Fred Sturm, Robert Prechter and Dennis Gartman have all shared their views with listeners.

Walter credits his early co-hosts, Marco DiGirolamo, followed by Barrett Preuter, with helping to make the show a Friday afternoon habit for investors in the Ottawa Valley. Long-time friend Pina Bernardi joined the team as research assistant early in the new millenium and was persuaded to bring her pleasant voice and light hearted funny bone to the airwaves shortly thereafter. Now Walter and Pina bring their own easy going and often humerous style to the otherwise serious business of hosting a show about investing and the economy. They have as much fun getting listeners to interact and participate as they do interviewing some of the finest nvestment thinkers in the world. They realized too that the show could become a champion of local Ottawa enterprises and they try to reserve time every week to profile our up and coming companies.

Walter Traversy is host to Friday Market Monitor and Halt Trading. He offers his expert opinion and sound investment advice to listeners with an interest in the trading of stocks, bonds, commodities and futures and also investigates new business growth and potential.

A serial entrepreneur with a passion for business, he started and ran several companies but investing sparked his interest. He started working as a stockbroker in 1989 with Richardson Greenshields and never looked back. He was named as the national rookie of the year and was appointed Vice-President in three short years. When RG was sold in 1996 he moved to Midland-Walwyn which was subsequently purchased by CIBC Wood Gundy. Walter continues to work out of their office in Kanata where helping clients make good investment choices for their retirement savings and investment accounts.

Walter has been with CFRA since 1994 when he started out with Experts on Call then to host Friday Market Monitor. He added a second program that is now called Halt Trading in 1997. Listeners enjoy his insightful chart analysis and investing experience but he credits his co-host Pina Bernardi's hard work and sense of humour for the show's popularity. She keeps the show running with guest interviews and brings some fun to the program by adding a lighter side to the world of investing.

Pina Violante Bernardi grew up in the west end of Ottawa and enjoyed all the richness of a typical large extended Italian family. Her interest in the stock market began in late 1980's and eventually lead to a position as a researcher for the Friday Market Monitor and The Halt Trading Program in the late 90s. Pina's responsibilities involved lining up interviews and establishing themes for both programs. Her pleasant voice and her ability to hold her own without losing her funny streak led to her on-air role within a couple of years.

While trying to satisfy her passion for business and the stock market she accepted a position with Recognia Inc. an Ottawa firm that provides automated technical analysis of markets. With a strong entrepreneurial streak of her own along with her insight of the industry she has been successful in developing numerous strategic relationships with some of the most prominent brokerages in North America and in Asia.

While balancing her dual career her main passion in life is all about her family.