Industry News

Decorative pattern

New trade association prepares for launch

It’s not even up and running yet, but the IDA’s recently spun-off trade association has already identified several key tax issues as it prepares for an April 1 launch. The new trade association will retain the Investment Dealers Association name, albeit with a new logo, and will be headed by IDA senior vice president Ian […]

By Doug Watt |March 7, 2006

2 min read

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GrowthWorks considering Crocus buyout

GrowthWorks says it has entered into discussions related to a possible merger with troubled Winnipeg-based labour fund Crocus. In a release late Tuesday, Vancouver-based GrowthWorks said it had been invited to make a presentation to Crocus Investment Fund shareholders on March 8, 2006. More details will be released following the meeting, GrowthWorks said. “GrowthWorks has […]

By Doug Watt |March 7, 2006

1 min read

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Briefly:

(March 10, 2006) Quebec’s Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) announced today that it is filing charges against former Norbourg president Vincent Lacroix. The regulator says it is being very careful in filing charges under the Securities Act in order to avoid hindering any criminal proceedings that may be launched by the Integrated Market Enforcement Team […]

By Staff |March 6, 2006

15 min read

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S&P to assess fund volatility

Standard & Poor’s has announced the introduction of “sensitivity ratings” in an effort to help investors determine how much a fund’s unit price or total return may shift as market conditions change. “We have developed these ratings because currently there is no universally accepted measurement of a fund’s volatility that can be consistently applied to […]

By Doug Watt |March 6, 2006

2 min read

Decorative pattern

IDA approves incorporated agents

The board of the IDA has approved the use of a new business structure that would allow its advisors to incorporate. The association has proposed by-law amendments and is now lobbying provincial regulators to allow the change. The rules governing the relationship between a firm and its sales staff were laid out in By-law 39 […]

By Steven Lamb |March 6, 2006

2 min read

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Alberta urged to adopt tax reforms

Alberta’s debt-free status and massive surplus is the envy of the rest of Canada. The head of the C.D. Howe Institute says the energy-rich province should resist the urge to use all the excess cash to beef up social spending and instead consider tax reforms. “Alberta, in the past few years, is starting to squander […]

By Doug Watt |March 3, 2006

3 min read

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New protection for whistle-blowers?

Canada’s insurance regulators are looking at ways to protect whistle-blowers against retaliation, such as civil actions. The Canadian Council of Insurance Regulators (CCIR), an inter-jurisdictional association of insurance regulators, released a discussion paper at the end of 2005, entitled Privilege and Whistle-Blower Protection, asking for comments from industry stakeholders. The paper proposes new rules that […]

By Kate McCaffery |March 3, 2006

3 min read

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Resource funds hit by pause in commodity rally

Softer commodity prices in the energy and minerals sectors pummeled investment funds focused on natural resources in February, making them the worst performing group, according to Morningstar Canada. Investors in resource funds probably should have expected a correction at some point, as the fund group gained 46.1% in 2005, and 11.6% in January of this […]

By Steven Lamb |March 2, 2006

3 min read

Decorative pattern

February fund sales close to $5 billion

It’s been a strong RRSP season for the mutual fund industry, with IFIC estimating February net sales of about $4.7 billion dollars. Add January’s net sales of $1.6 billion, and the numbers for the first two months of 2006 will likely be even better than last year. Based on a sample of preliminary data from […]

By Doug Watt |March 2, 2006

2 min read

Decorative pattern

Credit cycle set for turning point, Moody’s says

Corporate debt defaults packed a deceptively hard punch in 2005, despite their relatively small number, according to research from one of the world’s largest debt rating agencies. Fixed income investors can expect more defaults among speculative-grade bonds by year end. “It depends who you ask whether 2005 was a good year or not,” says David […]

By Steven Lamb |March 1, 2006

3 min read

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