The Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) has published the Office of the Investor – Year in Review. The Office of the Investor is responsible for researching investor attitudes, behaviours and experiences, delivering investor education, bringing the voice of Canadian investors to CIRO’s regulatory activities and supporting the work of the Investor Advisory Panel.

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In support of its proposed proficiency model, the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) is publishing the Canadian Investment Regulatory Exam (CIRE) syllabus and practice exam, as a tool for education providers who may decide to offer preparatory courses for the proposed CIRE. Implementation of the proficiency model is contingent on the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) approval.

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The Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) will be issuing a mandatory data request to investment dealers and mutual fund dealers to provide detailed information on the investments held by their retail clients as December 31, 2026. More details on the submission process will be provided closer to the date of the submission, in 2026.

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CIRO released its Annual Public Priorities for Fiscal Year 2026 (April 1, 2025 to March 31, 2026). The Annual Priorities CIRO is focused on are developed across three key themes: Integration, Regulatory Delivery and Operations and Strategic Objectives. CIRO’s 2026 Annual Priorities mark the beginning of the second year of CIRO operations, guided by CIRO’s three-year Strategic Plan.

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Investor advocates are calling on Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) regulators to ban advisor chargebacks and revise the principal distributor model in Canada’s mutual fund market. Principal distributors are investment dealers that receive exclusive rights to sell mutual funds from a single fund family.

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The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) published OSC Rule 81-510, replacing temporary exemptive relief of continued payment of trailing commission rebates to investors in accounts held at order-execution only (OEO) dealers. The Rule permits the continued payment for rebated trailer commissions, effectively codifying the transitional relief into a rule and comes into force by June 17, 2025.

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Effective April 1, 2025. The Nova Scotia government has introduced a new Life Income Fund (LIF) and has made modifications to unlocking policies affecting Locked-In Retirement Accounts (LIRAs) and Life Income Funds (LIFs). Individuals transferring funds to a life income fund (LIF), at age 55 or older, will have the one-time ability to unlock up to 50% of their locked-in pension funds

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CIRO set out the fifth, and final, set of proposed rule changes as part of its ongoing project to harmonize the rules for fund dealers and investment dealers. The latest set of rule proposals covers client complaint handling, outsourcing arrangements, continuing education, complaints, client reporting, solvency, client assets and financing agreements. Comments should submitted in writing, by June 25, 2025.

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Advocis is focusing on title protection harmonization, as part of its advocacy agenda this year. There is a push for greater proficiency for the financial advisor (FA) title and harmonization with other jurisdictions. Title protection discussions have been ongoing among credentialing bodies, including FP Canada.

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CIRO has scheduled the next biennial industry business continuity planning (BCP) trading simulation test for Saturday October 25, 2025. CIRO staff will contact all participant dealers in April 2025 to confirm their required level of participation in the 2025 industry BCP test.

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