The British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) is joining the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) in offering financial rewards for enforcement tips. The BCSC is now paying between $1,000 and $500,000 for tips that “meaningfully contribute” to investment fraud investigations that result in successful enforcement action.

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The Regulators understand that changes in the regulatory environment, have been challenging for financial advisors. An August report released by the Canadian Securities Administrators and CIRO found that most firms were falling short on conflicts-of-interest compliance. Registrants can review the report and look for ways to improve their compliance with rules.

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Under the joint total cost reporting initiative of the insurance and securities regulators, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) has published proposals to introduce beefed-up reporting requirements for segregated funds. The new rules are to take effect on January 1, 2026, with investors receiving their first reports for the year ended December 31, 2026.

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The CFA Institute, the Global Sustainable Investment Alliance (GSIA) and Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) have developed a new resource to define five common terms used in responsible investing. The new resource comes as regulators around the world develop ESG disclosure rules for the fund industry.

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The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) is raising liquidity requirements for high-interest savings account (HISA) ETFs. OSFI said that banks holding deposits for HISA funds will have to hold sufficient high-quality liquid assets, that can be withdrawn within 30 days. The liquidity treatment must be in place by January 31, 2024.

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The Mutual Fund Dealer CE Program will be ending on November 30, 2023. Program Administrators can access the Compliance Status section of the CERTS dashboard to view and export reports on the progress of Participants, to identify and follow-up with Participants who have not met their CE credit requirements, under Policy 9.

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CIRO Staff conducted a review of accreditation of continuing education (CE) activities recognized under the Mutual Fund Dealer (MFD) CE program. Administrative Bulletin 23-0159, outlines some of the best practices that were noted. Accreditors are encouraged to review and consider the guidance.

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CIRO is amending Part II of the Mutual Fund Dealer Form 1. The objectives of the Housekeeping Amendments are to ensure Part II Report on Compliance, complies with current auditing standards. The Housekeeping Amendments were approved by the Recognizing Regulators on October 17, 2023 and are effective immediately.

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According to the latest data in the 2022 – 2023 Enforcement Report from CIRO, investor complaints are soaring. In its first enforcement report, the newly-merged self-regulatory organization detailed a sharp rise in complaints in both its investment dealer and mutual fund dealer divisions.

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Legislative revisions proposed by the Ontario government, seek to cut Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) and Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA) regulatory policy proposals minimum comment periods, from 90 days to 60 days. The proposed legislative change is now out for comment until December 4, 2023.

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