On October 2, 2019,  the Government of British Columbia introduced proposed legislation that would provide a sweeping set of updates to existing provincial securities law, Bill 33 – 2019, the Securities Amendment Act, 2019 (the Act.) Once given Royal Assent and enacted into law, the…

The TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV) has announced amendments (the Amendments) to its Corporate Finance Manual (the Manual) to reduce the frequency by which directors, officers, promoters, and other insiders (individuals)  have to submit a Form 2A (The Personal Information Form or PIF). The Amendments are…

The newly-created Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA), has announced a standardized approach to guidance (the New Approach), replacing the legacy systems it had inherited from its predecessor regulatory bodies. This change had come in response to stakeholder requests for clarification. The regulator has…

The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA), along with its participating jurisdictions, have published Notice and Request for Comment Proposed Amendments to National Instrument 52-108 Auditor Oversight and Proposed Changes to Companion Policy 52-108 Auditor Oversight (together, the Proposed Amendments), for a comment period ending January 1st,…

The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA), along with its participating jurisdictions, have published Amendments to NI-31-103, Registration Requirements, Exemptions and Ongoing Registrant Obligations, and to its allied companion policy, CP-31-103 (together, the Amendments). The Amendments once adopted will require registrants to address material conflicts of interest…

As part of the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Ontario’s mandate was the new regulator’s introduction of Principles Based Regulation (PBR), representing a marked shift from previous provincial regulatory regimes. The PBR approach integrates the current legislative scheme for the mortgage, insurance and financial…

The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA), along with its participating jurisdictions, have published Multilateral Staff Notice, 58-311, Report on Fifth Staff Review of Disclosure Regarding Women on Boards and in Executive Officer Positions (the Report). In summary, the Report noted these key trends: • 73% of…

With the publication of BC Instrument 13-502, Electronic filing of Reports of Exempt Distribution (the Instrument) and its Companion Policy, 13-502CP (the Companion Policy), the British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) has set forth procedures and expectations for the electronic filing of Reports of Exempt Distribution…

A British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) panel has imposed a total of CAD $1.7 million in fines and lifetime securities trading bans on three British Columbia men and two Mortgage Investment Corporations (MICs) after finding them guilty of committing fraud. At the time, David Scott…

The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) has announced that it is amending the fee rules (the Rules) for the submitting of annual capital market participation fee forms (the Fee Forms) to the OSC to allow market participants great flexibility. All market participants are required on an…