We certainly do live in interesting times. The beginning of 2015 has correctly borne out many predictions of economic events – with a strengthening U.S. economy, a dip in interest rates in Canada, a drop in value in the Canadian dollar and a shift in regional growth from the west to central Canada all playing a role in Canadian capital market activity. As we all make our way through the current environment, clients, regulators and other market participants learn to adapt to and roll with the times.

Against this backdrop, we are pleased to provide you with an overview of some of the more notable developments in Canadian capital markets in the past year and to share with you our thoughts on those developments and their potential impact for 2015.

  • The combination of an iconic American brand and a flagship Canadian franchise generated tremendous buzz as one of 2014's mega-deals. Davies worked with Burger King and its other advisers to reinvent a well-known Canadian structure, resulting in a tax-efficient transaction for Burger King's U.S. stockholders. We explain the intricacies in Whopper of a Deal with a Double-Double Take on the Canadian Exchangeable Share Structure.
  • In 2014, the Canadian Minister of Finance, together with the provinces of British Columbia, Ontario, New Brunswick, Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island finally released for comment a draft Provincial Capital Markets Act and a federal Capital Markets Stability Act. The proposed statutes raised a number of concerns, leaving many with the question raised in The Cooperative Capital Markets Regulator: To Be or Not to Be?
  • Canadian securities regulators undertook an extensive review of the exempt market in 2014, which resulted in several new and proposed prospectus exemptions. We discuss these new and proposed rules in Exempt Offerings to Shareholders and Canadian Regulators Adopt Changes to the Exempt Market Regime.
  • In 2014, IIROC published guidance on due diligence best practices in an effort to promote consistency in the dealer community. We provide the details in New Guidance Codifies Underwriting Due Diligence Best Practices.
  • The TSX recognizes the regulatory burden on interlisted issuers that must comply with two or more sets of exchange requirements that may be similar but not identical. We examine the TSX's proposed rule amendments in TSX Relaxes Regulation of Interlisted Issuers.
  • With bond yields at historic lows, REITs have become progressively more popular as investors seeking yield have increasingly looked to equity issuers that pay regular dividends or distributions. In the chapter the OSC Provides Guidance on REIT Distribution Disclosure, we review the OSC's notice.
  • The Alberta Securities Commission has made an effort to reduce the red tape associated with private placement of foreign securities. We look at the details in Increased Access to Private Placements for Institutional Investors.
  • In To Buy or Not to Buy – That Is the Question When Dealing with a Target's Bonds, we discuss the issue of how an acquirer deals with a target's bondholders.
  • In 2014, the SEC introduced rules to implement and streamline the application of the JOBS Act as well as dealing with other market phenomena. In our U.S. update, U.S. Securities Law Matters Affecting Canadian Issuers, we provide an overview of some of these developments that affect Canadian issuers.

To read the 2015 Canadian Capital Markets Report, please click here.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.