Kaleido, previously known as Universitas Financial, was founded in 1964 in Quebec City, and is currently registered as a scholarship plan dealer in the provinces of Quebec and New Brunswick. The plans offered by Kaleido are eligible for registration with the Canada Revenue Agency as Registered Education Savings Plans (RESPs).

Given the non-profit structure of Kaleido, any surplus each year is deposited directly into an account maintained for beneficiaries, from which they receive educational assistance payments (EAPs).

Kaleido Growth Inc. is the subsidiary of the Kaleido Foundation. Kaleido Growth is registered as the distributor and the investment fund manager of the plans promoted by the Foundation, and generally oversees the business, operations and affairs of the RESPs. Kaleido Growth is also responsible for the offering and distribution of the plans through its duly authorized scholarship plan representatives.^[1]

Kaleido’s head office is located in Quebec City since the organization’s founding year in 1964.^[2]

In the early 1960s, a group of students and graduates from Laval University in Quebec City formed an “investment club” and pooled their savings to increase their investment returns. Further to this experience, several members decided to create a new investment club in 1963, this time with the purpose to yield returns to assist parents in funding their children's post-secondary education.^[3]

One year later, on January 10, 1964, the group registered their foundation in Quebec City, and the Universitas Foundation of Canada was created. Co-founder Jean Marchand is still one of the Foundation’s board members. In 2015, he was inducted into the Académie des Grands Québécois in recognition of his contribution to Quebec’s social prosperity.^[4] · ^[5]  

In late 2014, Universitas Financial’s assets under management crossed the $1 billion mark.^[6] · ^[7] · ^[8] Over the years, the products offered by the Foundation have been revised to stay in line with the evolving education system. The RESPs offered currently entitle students to educational assistance payments (EAPs) for all post-secondary education whether at a vocational, college or university level, both in Canada and abroad.

Over 100 employees currently work at Kaleido’s head office in Quebec City^[9], while a team of a hundred scholarship plan representatives distribute the Foundation’s RESPs in both Quebec and New Brunswick.

As at December 31, 2018, Kaleido had issued over $885 million in educational assistance payments and refund of contributions payments, while assets under management amounted to $1.5 billion. The organization currently serves over 172,000 subscribers and over 229,000 beneficiaries.^[10]

In June 2017, Kaleido launched the RESP Corporate Program, which is intended for companies and associations of all types that wish to include the RESP in their fringe benefits for employees or members.^[11]

In 2018, Kaleido broadened its services and introduced a program exclusive to its subscribers: the Stepping Stone Program. Thanks to this initiative, families have access to support and coaching from a professional team in the field of education.

A Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) is an investment vehicle specifically designed to save for a child’s post-secondary education. The education savings plan is registered with the provincial and federal governments, which allows for government grants to be paid into it and to accumulate, until these can be used by the beneficiary to cover expenses related to post-secondary education.^[12]

The subscriber (the person who opens the RESP) makes contributions, which attract government grants, on behalf of a beneficiary (future student). The contributions and grants grow on a tax-deferred basis in the RESP.

Once an RESP reaches maturity and the beneficiary enrolls in an eligible post-secondary program of study under the Income Tax Act (Canada)^[13], funds can be withdrawn from the account. There are two types of withdrawals:

-         Refund of capital/contributions or an ROC: consists in the refund of the principal (initial contributions) invested by the subscriber. ROC payments are tax-free.

-         Educational assistance payment or EAP: consists of the grant money and investment income (on grants and contributions) accumulated in the RESP. EAPs are taxed in the beneficiary’s hands.

The grants offered by the federal government as part of the Canada Education Savings Program (CESP) are the Canada Education Savings Grant (CESG) and the Canada Learning Bond (CLB).

In addition to these, two Canadian provinces also offer a provincial incentive to encourage education savings in an RESP: The Quebec Education Savings Incentive (QESI) and the British Columbia Training and Education Savings Grant (BCTESG).

Kaleido commissioned a financial study in 2006 recommending the creation of an education savings incentive in Quebec and gave a number of presentations for this purpose to the provincial government. The Foundation was acknowledged by the Minister of Finance in 2008 for its part in the introduction of the QESI. Again in 2014, Kaleido released a memorandum on the impact of the QESI in Quebec and the importance of maintaining the incentive in place.^[14] · ^[15] · ^[16]

Initially, the Foundation’s “scholarships” were exclusively paid out to university students. However, further to legislative amendments, the designation for payments issued from an RESP was changed to “educational assistance payments” (EAPs).^[17] In 1975, vocational training became eligible for EAPs.

The EAPs beneficiaries receive, once they are enrolled in an eligible post-secondary program of study, are made up of the grant money and investment income (on grants and subscriber contributions) accumulated in the RESP.

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