MFDA and IIROC approve the creation of a single new SRO

Torys acted as counsel to IIROC with a team that included Kevin Morris, Thomas Yeo, Sophie Courtois and Danielle Marjoram (corporate/M&A), Andrew Gray and Nic Wall (court proceedings), Mitch Frazer (employment and pensions), Jerald Wortsman and Andrew Silverman (tax).

On September 29, 2022, members of the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (“MFDA”) and the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (“IIROC”) passed a special resolution approving the amalgamation of the two self-regulatory organizations (“SRO”). Effective January 1, 2023, subject to the conditions outlined in the combination agreement, the MFDA and IIROC will become one organization temporarily known as the New Self-Regulatory Organization of Canada (“New SRO”).

The New SRO will provide investors with easier access to different products and remove the need to change firms or advisors as investing needs evolve. It will also enhance investor protection by creating a separate investor office dedicated to investor education and to helping support rule development. A dedicated Investor Advisory Panel will advise the New SRO on investor issues.

The transaction was first announced on August 3, 2021 following a decision by the Canadian Securities Administrators (“CSA”) to create a new, single, enhanced SRO that would support meaningful and impactful change, fostering an innovative and competitive industry.

The official launch of the new single organization was announced on January 1, 2023.

Further information can be found on Canada Newswire’s website.

The MFDA is the self-regulatory organization for Canadian mutual fund dealers, regulating the operations, standards of practice and business conduct of its Members and their approximately 76,695 Approved Persons with a mandate to protect investors and the public interest.

IIROC is the pan-Canadian self-regulatory organization that oversees all investment dealers and their trading activity in Canada's debt and equity markets. It carries out its regulatory responsibilities through setting and enforcing rules regarding the proficiency, business and financial conduct of 174 Canadian investment dealer firms of varying sizes and business models, and their more than 32,000 registered employees.