VANCOUVER, BC, July 8, 2024
/CNW/ - An investment firm has paid $12,000 to the B.C. Securities Commission (BCSC)
under a new enforcement mechanism in which financial penalties may
be imposed without a hearing before a panel of commissioners.
This is the first penalty levied under the authority given to
the BCSC in 2020 by amendments to the Securities Act, in
which the Executive Director can directly impose an administrative
penalty for violations of investment market rules. The BCSC is the
only Canadian securities regulator to have this power.
BCSC Executive Director Peter
Brady imposed the penalty on Capstone Asset Management Inc.,
a Langley firm registered under
the Securities Act as an investment fund manager, exempt
market dealer and portfolio manager, for failing to maintain the
required level of insurance and for failing to have adequate
compliance policies and procedures related to insurance.
The firm's underinsurance during that period followed a previous
BCSC staff finding that the firm failed to comply with insurance
requirements in 2018. There was no client harm.
The Executive Director said a $12,000 penalty was appropriate for the two
violations combined. The firm did not dispute the finding and paid
it.
"The purpose of Administrative Penalties Imposed by Notice is to
address violations of investment rules that typically won't be
serious enough to warrant a full-blown enforcement hearing," said
Peter Brady, the Executive Director.
"They help the BCSC encourage compliance with a wide range of
industry rules that protect investors or make investment markets
work efficiently."
About the B.C. Securities Commission (www.bcsc.bc.ca)
The B.C. Securities Commission, an independent provincial
government agency, strives to make the investment market benefit
the public. We set rules, monitor compliance by industry, take
action against misconduct, and provide guidance to investors and
industry. As guardians of B.C.'s investment market, we're committed
to maintaining a market that is honest, fair, competitive and
dynamic, enabling British Columbians to thrive.
Learn how to protect yourself and become a more informed
investor at www.investright.org
SOURCE British Columbia Securities Commission