OSC Publishes 2018-2019 Statement of Priorities

TORONTO – The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) today published its 2018-2019 Statement of Priorities, which sets out the 15 priority areas where the OSC intends to focus resources and actions over the coming fiscal year, as well as the expected outcomes.   

The OSC received 20 comment letters on its draft 2018-2019 Statement of Priorities. Feedback was broadly supportive of the proposed priorities, including continued improvements to investor protection and efforts to increase the deterrent impact of enforcement actions. This final publication of the 2018-2019 Statement of Priorities now also includes a priority related to the continued review of the effectiveness of the disclosure requirements regarding women on boards and in executive officer positions.

“Our 2018-2019 Statement of Priorities focuses on protecting investors, keeping markets fair and efficient, and reviewing our current rules and practices to find ways to minimize regulatory burden for market participants,” said Maureen Jensen, Chair and CEO of the OSC.

The OSC also published its Report on the Statement of Priorities for Fiscal 2017-2018, which details its performance against the priorities set out in the 2017-2018 Statement of Priorities.

Key accomplishments in fiscal 2017-2018 include several investor protection-focused initiatives, such as work on the newly proposed Client Focused Reforms and policy decision on embedded fees, the development of a Seniors Strategy, and a ban on binary options. The Report on the Statement of Priorities also highlights the OSC’s collection efforts, which include an innovative pilot project with a specialty law firm. Additionally, the OSC reported on its approach to innovation in the market, brought about by the emergence of fintech and crypto assets, as well as the OSC’s investments in its own data management, analysis systems and platforms.

The mandate of the OSC is to provide protection to investors from unfair, improper or fraudulent practices, to foster fair and efficient capital markets and confidence in the capital markets, and to contribute to the stability of the financial system and the reduction of systemic risk.  Investors are urged to check the registration of any persons or company offering an investment opportunity and to review the OSC investor materials available at www.osc.ca.

 

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