OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney is appointing a global investment banker and pension fund manager to be Canada’s next ambassador in Washington.

Carney’s office says Mark Wiseman will take the role on Feb. 15, and he will be tasked with leading negotiations with the United States on the review of the continental free trade deal.

Wiseman is a longtime friend of Carney who was among the first to contribute to Carney’s leadership bid, donating the maximum $1,750 to that as well as an additional $1,750 to the Liberal party during last April’s election campaign.

He will replace Kirsten Hillman, who announced this month she would end her posting, saying that a new team would be able to focus on next year’s review of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement.

Wiseman is a member of the Prime Minister’s Council on Canada-U.S. Relations, a body first created by former prime minister Justin Trudeau just as Donald Trump was about to be sworn in as president for the second time.

Trudeau did not include Wiseman on the council, but Carney added him to it just days after being sworn in as prime minister in March.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 22, 2025.

Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press