Briefly:

(August 13, 2004) Dundee Wealth Management says its integration of Cartier Partners Financial Group is moving ahead according to plan. In a statement today announcing the firm’s quarterly earnings, Dundee said it had completed the licensing transfer of all Cartier advisors and merged similar operating entities

The Toronto-based firm has also integrated the operations of Cartier Mutual Funds into Goodman & Company, Dundee’s investment management subsidiary.

Although several major projects have yet to be completed, Dundee says the integration process “is progressing in accordance with our expectations.”

Dundee Wealth, which acquired Cartier last year, says net earnings increased to $21.5 million in the second quarter of 2004, compared to $5.2 million last year.

But Dundee added it expected to incur higher than normal operating costs over the remainder of 2004 and early 2005 as the integration process continues.

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Precious metal funds get Iamgold boost

(August 13, 2004) Some Canadian mutual funds could get a lift from a takeover bid involving Iamgold. Data compiled by Morningstar Canada reveals several funds with significant holdings of the Toronto-based gold producer.

TD Precious Metals has 7.2% of its portfolio in Iamgold shares, Sentry Select Precious Metals Growth has 8.5% while Mackenzie Universal Precious Metals and the Capital Class version of the fund each have 6.7%.

Several other precious metals funds, including BMO, AGF, Altamira and Ethical, have smaller holdings, around 3% of each fund’s portfolio.

Earlier this week, South Africa’s Gold Fields announced a $2 billion bid for Iamgold, whose earlier merger with Wheaton River Minerals was rejected by shareholders. Iamgold’s stock rallied this week on the takeover news, closing 12% higher on Thursday.

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Geist appointed to MFDA board

(August 13, 2004) Stephen Geist, the president of TD Mutual Funds, has been appointed to the MFDA board as an industry director. Geist replaces Ted Cadsby, head of CIBC Securities, who resigned from the board.

The MFDA board — currently chaired by Terry Wright of Investors Group — includes six public and six industry directors.

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Dundee reports lower quarterly earnings

(August 12, 2004) The parent company of Dundee Wealth Management is reporting weaker quarterly profits compared to last year. Dundee Bancorp says Q2 profits fell to $11 million from $23.5 million in 2003, mostly due to acquisition-related costs.

Dundee Wealth Management took over Cartier Partners Financial Group last year. “As expected, we have incurred higher than normal operating costs in this division as we continue to integrate the operations of Cartier’s business with Dundee Wealth,” the company said in a news release.

Dundee Wealth has approximately $40 billion in assets under management, 2,300 financial advisors and 600 insurance specialists in 745 branches across the country.

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CPPIB appoints two new external managers

(August 12, 2004) The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has appointed Barclays Global Investors Canada and Goldman Sachs Asset Management as external managers. The appointments are part of the CPPIB’s active overlay program, which allows external managers to buy and sell securities within the board’s portfolio.

Traditionally, CPPIB’s external managers are given cash to invest.

CPPIB now has four external managers, after appointing Connor, Clark & Lunn and UBS Global Asset Managements in April. Each will manage the equivalent of a $500 million equity portfolio within the CPP reserve fund of $73.2 billion.

“Barclays Global Investors Canada and Goldman Sachs Asset Management each have world-class credentials and extensive experience managing large-scale equity portfolios. We fully expect them to become valuable partners as we work to diversify our portfolio and maximize investment returns over the long term,” said CPPIB vice president Don Raymond.

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RBC waives policy fee on term life insurance product

(August 10, 2004) RBC Insurance is scrapping the policy fee on its Preferred Term 10 life insurance product. RBC says the change is based on feedback from the company’s distribution network and is intended to provide a more competitive term life insurance option for clients.

“We have listened to our distributors and know they need an enhanced option to offer clients,” says RBC Life Insurance president Neil Skelding. “Waiving the policy fee on Term 10 is the first step towards eventually offering a completely re-designed, industry-leading term life insurance portfolio.”

The no policy fee applies to all Preferred Term 10 policies of $250,000 or more issued after July 1, 2004 and is effective for the life of the policy.

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Fraud warning issued by IDA

(August 10, 2004) The IDA has issued a warning about identify theft following an attempted fraud case reported by a brokerage firm. The alleged fraudster apparently used stolen identification and deposited a cheque from a major Canadian bank to open an account with the IDA firm.

He then followed up with a request to have the firm issue a cheque to him.

“The particular matter has been resolved and the bank account used in this attempt has been closed,” the IDA says. “However, it is possible that the suspect may be using other accounts or that he has successfully completed similar frauds in the securities community.”

Toronto police have identified the alleged fraudster as Olsegun Olubakinde, who may also have used several aliases, including David Rexach, Patrick Gates and David Pugh.

The IDA is encouraging member firms to review their accounts and to be aware of the growing prevalence of identity theft.

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OSC appoints general counsel

(August 9, 2004) The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) has named Monica Kowal as general counsel for the commission.

“Monica has a rare combination of skills that will serve her well in her new functions at the OSC,” said Charlie Macfarlane, executive director of the OSC. “Her technical expertise in securities and corporate law, her industry perspective coloured by her experience in public policy development, specifically as it applies to capital markets regulation, and her international experience make Monica a terrifically suited candidate for the position. We are happy to welcome Monica to the OSC.”

Kowal was previously a Partner at Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, where as a member of the Blake securities group, she was involved in securities and corporate law, acting as general counsel to a number of clients.

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OmbudsNetwork offers tips on complaints

(August 9, 2004) The Financial Services OmbudsNetwork is now offering a resource kit on its Web site, laying out a selection of themes related to financial consumer complaint-handling. The kit also provides links to reference material and tip sheets.

“During the course of our research to flesh out our own guiding principles, we uncovered a wealth of information from Canadian and international sources,” notes Pierre Gravelle, chief executive officer of the Centre for the Financial Services OmbudsNetwork. “We are making this representative sampling available as a reference tool to industry practitioners and others who have an interest in complaint-handling and prevention.”

The resource kit can be accessed at http://www.cfson-crcsf.ca/en/news/resources/default.asp.

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08/13/04