The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) has published for comment Proposed Ontario Securities Rule 81-502, Restrictions on the use of the Deferred Sales Charge Option for Mutual Funds (The Proposed Rule) restricting the use of deferred sales charges (the DSC Option) on mutual funds, for a…

As the COVID-19 coronavirus spreads across the globe, investor uncertainty over the economic impact of the coronavirus is increasingly reflected in the markets. Financial regulators have begun to take note and react. Early in March, in the United States, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)…

The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) have published Proposed National Instrument 45-110 Start-up Crowdfunding Registration and Prospectus Exemptions (the Proposed National Instrument), for a 90-day comment period ending May 27, 2020. The Proposed National Instrument would replace and further harmonize the crowdfunding requirements currently in effect in…

The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) have adopted a ban on deferred sales charges (the DSC Option) on mutual funds. Specifically, the ban will prohibit the payment by fund organizations of upfront sales commissions to dealers, which will result in the discontinuation of all forms of…

In its recent MFDA Special Report on Securities Industry Self-Regulation (the Report), The Mutual Fund Dealers Association (MFDA) has proposed the creation of a new securities regulator that if adopted, would replace MFDA. The Report, which explores the self-regulatory organization (SRO) environment in Canada, proposes…

The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) have published CSA Staff Notice 23-326, Order Protection Rule: Market Share Threshold for the period April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021 (the Staff Notice and Proposed Rule), for a second notice and comment period ending May 13, 2020. The…

Two recent announcements, one in the United States, and the other in the European Union, provide further evidence that securities regulators are paying closer to attention to climate change disclosure by market participants. A recent address by Jay Clayton, Chairman of the Securities and Exchange…

The securities regulators of Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, and Saskatchewan (the participating jurisdictions) have  jointly published CSA Multilateral Staff Notice 58-311 Report on Fifth Staff Review of Disclosure regarding Women on Boards and in Executive Officer Positions (The Staff Notice). This…

The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) has published CSA Notice 23-325, Update on Trading Fee Rebate Pilot Study (the Update) on its plans to proceed with the Trading Fee Rebate Pilot Study (the Pilot Study), which would analyze the effects of the prohibition of marketplace trading…

In the U.S., stablecoins may be regulated by two bills recently proposed by members of Congress. The first bill, “Stablecoins are Securities Act of 2019,” aims to classify “managed stablecoins” as securities. The second bill, which is still untitled, could limit directors and executives of…