The British Columbia Securities Commission has identified several offerings, advertised on Craigslist, which promised risk-free guaranteed returns ranging from 12% in one year to 100% in six months. There is no such thing as a risk-free investment. As reported by Janet McFarland, the BCSC is urging people not to use Craigslist to find investment opportunities. According to an article by David Baines…

FAIR Canada has provided its comments to the Provincial/Territorial Council of Ministers of Securities Regulators setting out why the project to permit incorporation of individual registrants of registered dealers and advisers should not proceed. FAIR Canada believes that if incorporation is allowed, it will weaken efforts to protect consumers and will result in a higher risk to the investing public and a lower risk to registrants themselves…

Banks in Canada should not be allowed to choose and hire their own external dispute resolution (“EDR”) provider. Canadians deserve to have an ombudsman that meets the basic principles of independence and effectiveness, and that is easily accessible for all of their banking and investment-related complaints. Consumers should not be sent to a variety of EDR providers, chosen and compensated by the banks…

In its recent submission to the AMF, FAIR Canada stated that better compensation in cases of fraud or insolvency of regulated firms is needed. At present, many registrant firms are not members of a self-regulatory organization (“SRO”) backed by a compensation fund which provides coverage in the event of the firm’s insolvency. In addition, coverage under the Québec’s Financial Services Compensation Fund (the “Fund”) will not be provided if the product sold was outside the registrant’s authority (a consumer will not know the scope of that authority)…

In a recent Financial Post Comment, Ian Russell (CEO of IIAC) and Ed Waitzer (J.D. Professor) ask many important questions, including “Are stock exchanges still a necessary public utility, ensuring the efficient allocation of capital and, thereby, contributing to economic growth? As for-profit entities, should they continue to have regulatory responsibility?” The Comment points out many potential conflicts of interest inherent in the current exchange business model…

FAIR Canada’s Executive Director, Ermanno Pascutto, appeared on BNN’s Headline with Howard Green along with Carol Hansell (Davies) and Stan Magidson (Institute of Corporate Directors) to discuss the quality of Canadian boards. During the discussion, Mr. Pascutto suggested that board governance is more problematic with junior companies (including emerging market listings) and recommended that director compensation include shares in order to align directors’ interests with those of the company and its shareholders…

A fake financial scam website created by Canadian securities regulators found that Canadian investors remain vulnerable to online investment fraud. Between November 27, 2011 and February 5, 2012, Canadian securities regulators ran a public education initiative that included online ads and social media promotions pointing to the website for a fictitious company, BlueHedge Investments…

FAIR Canada submitted comments to the CSA in response to a request for comments regarding the minimum amount (MA) and accredited investor (AI) exemptions. FAIR Canada pointed out a number of concerns regarding these exemptions, including: the lack of data available regarding the exempt market in Canada; the limited protection afforded to investors by current suitability obligations…

On behalf of the Board of Directors of FAIR Canada, I am pleased to present FAIR Canada’s first Accountability Report. This Report covers our first three and a half years as a non-profit, independent, national organization mandated to represent the interests of Canadian investors in securities regulation. The Report describes what we have accomplished since our launch in mid-2008 through to December 2011. It provides information about our governance, mandate, strategic priorities, and our accountability to our funders and the public.