Copyright 2009, Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Originally published in Blakes Bulletin on Securities Regulation, April 2009
The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) have announced that they expect to submit a final version of National Instrument 31-103 – Registration Requirements to their respective commissions for approval in June 2009, with the intention of publishing the rule in mid-July 2009. Assuming the necessary approvals from government authorities in each jurisdiction, the new rule will come into force at the end of September 2009.
As previously described in our April 2008 Blakes Bulletin on Securities Regulation: Securities Commissions Republish Proposed Dealer Registration Reform, the new rules will make sweeping changes to many of the requirements relating to the registration of dealers and advisers across Canada, and implement new requirements for the registration of investment fund managers.
The CSA have not released a new version of the proposed rule, and so the version published in February 2008 remains the most current publicly available version. However, it appears that the CSA are not contemplating substantial changes from the February 2008 version – if they were, they would be required to republish another version for comment, which is not the approach that they have announced.
Therefore, assuming that the final version of the rule will be substantially similar to the February 2008 draft, it is likely that the new rule will provide some transitional relief to provide market participants adequate time to make necessary changes to satisfy any new requirements. Generally speaking, the February 2008 rule provided for six-month transition periods for this purpose.
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.
