Statement of Disclosure (Important Information You Need to Know)
1) Who is FundEX?
FundEX Investments Inc. (“FundEX”) is a national mutual fund dealership dedicated to providing the support and services to our mutual fund Representatives (“Representative”) need to best serve clients like you. Headquartered in Vaughan, Ontario, FundEX currently services over 750 Mutual Fund Representatives across Canada and has in excess of $13 billion in assets under management. FundEX is a member of the Investment Funds Institute of Canada (“IFIC”) and is regulated by the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (“MFDA”) and applicable provincial securities commissions. FundEX endorses and adheres to the IFIC Code of Ethics and the IFIC Privacy Code. We meet or exceed the provincial regulators’ requirements for bonding and insurance, protecting those investments administered by our firm. In addition, each Representative maintains a minimum of $1 million of individual Errors and Omissions liability insurance coverage.
2) Who is the MFDA?
The Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (“MFDA”) is the national self-regulatory organization (“SRO”) for the distribution side of the Canadian mutual fund industry. The MFDA is structured as a not-for-profit corporation and its Members are mutual fund dealers that are licensed with provincial securities commissions. As an SRO, the MFDA is responsible for regulating the operations, standards of practice and business conduct of its Members and their Representatives with a view to enhancing investor protection and strengthening public confidence in the Canadian Mutual fund industry.
3) Who is the AMF?
The Autorité des marchés financiers (“AMF”) is the body mandated by the government of Quebec to regulate the province’s financial markets and provide assistance to consumers of financial products and services. The AMF is unique by virtue of its integrated regulation of the Québec financial sector, notably in the areas of insurance, securities, deposit institutions (other than banks) and the distribution of financial products and services.
4) Disclosure of Related Registrants (Affiliates)
Industrial Alliance Insurance and Financial Services Inc. (“Industrial Alliance”) is the controlling shareholder of FundEX. Industrial Alliance is a public company whose stock, “IAG”, is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and consequently, Industrial Alliance is an issuer of securities. FundEX is a mutual fund dealer registered with the securities authorities of certain Canadian jurisdictions. Moreover, Industrial Alliance, the controlling shareholder of FundEX, is also the sole shareholder of the following companies: Investia Financial Services Inc., a mutual fund dealer; IA Clarington Investments Inc., a manager of mutual funds and a portfolio manager; Industrial Alliance Securities Inc., a securities dealer; Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc., a portfolio manager; Jovian Capital Corporation. Consequently, FundEX is related to the above mentioned companies. The policy of FundEX is to fully comply on all points with applicable securities laws and to make all necessary disclosures. To this end, FundEX is making the current disclosure and informing its clientele that it has also adopted the following Protocol for minimizing potential conflicts of interest.
The relationships that unite FundEX with Industrial Alliance and its subsidiaries make it necessary to implement the policies described below in order to avoid any potential conflicts of interest and ensure that the advice, services and products offered by FundEX are provided in your best interests.
a) All advice, products and services that will be provided to you by Representatives who act on behalf of FundEX shall be made in the normal course of business, without Industrial Alliance or one of the entities currently connected or affiliated with Industrial Alliance being involved. FundEX shall maintain its decision-making and operational autonomy with respect to the advice, products and services that it offers to you.
b) The advice, products or services shall be given in good faith by FundEX Representatives, without being influenced by any motives other than your best interests.
c) Neither Industrial Alliance nor any other entity affiliated with FundEX, nor their directors, officers or employees, shall participate in or influence, directly or indirectly, the formulation of any investment recommendation that FundEX Representatives may give you. However, certain of these affiliated entities shall be able to provide to FundEX, upon request, investment research services and from time to time, these entities can collaborate with a view to offering products and services in the interests of their clients. However, it is understood that in this case, no information about you can be exchanged without having first obtained your express written consent.
5) Products and Services Offered by FundEX
FundEX is a mutual fund dealer that provides mutual funds offered via prospectus, as well as principal protected notes and guaranteed investment certificates (“GICs”). FundEX is also an exempt market dealer that provides exempt products offered via offering memorandum, such as approved limited partnerships, hedge funds, pooled funds and real estate income trusts (“REITs”). Additionally, FundEX is licensed to provide segregated funds. However, it is not required that all GICs or segregated funds be provided through FundEX. Please contact your Representative to determine if any of your GIC and segregated fund holdings are held outside of FundEX.
6) Nature of the Advisory Relationship
You are responsible for making investment decisions, but can rely on the advice given by your Representative. In recommending a mutual fund or another approved investment product to you, it is your Representative’s and our responsibility to ensure that the product selected is suitable based on your financial position, specific investment needs and objectives, and the level of risk you are willing to assume, regardless of the nature or source of compensation that we will receive from the transaction. In order for us to do that, we need accurate and complete details of your financial situation, and if there are changes to your circumstances, you should bring these to your Representative’s attention. You also have the responsibility to question your Representative and make reasonable efforts to understand the strategies and the products you are investing in. 2 Statement of Disclosure
7) Intermediary Accounts
FundEX has entered into an arrangement with B2B Bank, another MFDA Member, whereby, accounts of FundEX (the “introducing dealer”) are carried by B2B Bank, (the “carrying dealer”). Such client accounts are deemed to be held in an intermediary account. When applicable, with respect to any transactions you may enter into, B2B Bank will be responsible for trade execution and settlement, custody of cash and securities and the preparation of confirmations and account statements. FundEX will be responsible for determining the suitability of, and ensuring appropriate supervision is performed for, all trading activity in a B2B Bank account. B2B Bank may pay a portion of its fees to FundEX and FundEX may pay B2B Bank for trade execution services on your behalf.
8) Referral Arrangements
You understand that in certain circumstances your Representative may choose to refer you to a different financial services organization for other products and/or services. You understand that your Representative plays no part whatsoever in that relationship, and you should receive a disclosure statement detailing the nature of your relationship with FundEX and the referral entity, including potential compensation, as well as a statement pertaining to your other account(s).
9) Outside Business Activity Disclosure
Your Representative may be involved in other outside business activities and/or fee-for-service activities, collectively referred to as Outside Business Activities (“OBA”). If applicable, your Representative will disclose and provide you with the Outside Business Activity Disclosure form referenced in the Signatures and Acknowledgements section of the New Client Application Form disclosing all such other activities and the business entity through which the products or services are offered. All Outside Business Activities conducted by your Representative are not in his/her capacity as an agent of FundEX.
Your Representatives OBAs may include, but not limited to, advising in or selling any type of insurance, mortgage service, estate and tax planning or tax return preparation. It is important to clarify that any compensation resulting from OBA is solely received by your Representative and does not inure to FundEX. Accordingly, FundEX is neither liable nor responsible for any OBA conducted by your Representative, as FundEX does not directly supervise OBA, and any advice provided by your Representative with respect to the OBA is strictly independent of his or her role as a Representative of FundEX.
If you have questions about what products your Representative has sold you through FundEX, please contact your Representative or FundEX directly for clarification. All products sold through FundEX Investments Inc. will be reflected on FundEX Dealer Statement(s).
10) Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”)
The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act is a piece of legislation implemented by the United States Department of Treasury and the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS”). FATCA was introduced to target tax non-compliance by United States taxpayers with foreign (i.e. non-U.S.) accounts. Canada and the United States have signed an Inter-Governmental Agreement (“IGA”) to improve international tax compliance and to implement FATCA. Under the IGA, financial institutions in Canada will report all relevant information to the Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”). The CRA will then exchange the information with the IRS through the existing provisions and safeguards of the Canada-U.S. Tax Convention. All non-registered accounts held by U.S. persons will be subject to the rules of FATCA. Registered accounts are exempt from FATCA.
11) Suitability Review of Trades
Under securities legislation and MFDA Rules, FundEX is required to ensure that each recommendation made to you by its Representatives to purchase a mutual fund and other approved investment product is suitable for you in relation to your specific investment objective(s), risk tolerance, time horizon and other personal circumstances. Additionally, FundEX has an obligation to perform a suitability determination on your account(s), whether or not a recommendation or transaction is made by your Representative or if you request specific transactions. FundEX will perform a suitability assessment in the following circumstances:
• When you transfer assets into an account with FundEX;
• When your Representative or FundEX becomes aware of a change in your personal information or circumstances that result in changes to your stated risk tolerance, time horizon or investment objective(s) or a significant impact on your stated income or net worth;
• When there is a change in your Representative at FundEX.
12) Mutual Fund Information
The Fund Facts and simplified prospectus (“prospectus”) are documents from the mutual fund company that explains the important features of the mutual fund(s) that you are buying, including compensation and fees specific to each product. Details regarding how applicable fees are calculated and charged to you, as well as your rights of rescission and withdrawal are outlined in the Fund Facts and prospectus. It is recommended that you read the Fund Facts and/or prospectus carefully and retain it for future reference, together with all other information pertaining to your investment(s).
All sums owing under this plan are payable in legal Canadian tender. For mutual funds held in U.S. currency, all sums are payable in legal U.S. tender. The provisions of each fund company’s Fund Facts or prospectus shall prevail over this contract.
Group Retirement Savings Plans (“GRSPs”) are individual Registered Retirement Savings Plans (“RRSPs”) that use payroll deductions for contributions. Investments in GRSPs are selected by the contributing employee. The employer may or may not wish to select the investment for any employer contributions.
13) Mutual Funds are not Guaranteed
Mutual funds, although redeemable on any business day, are not guaranteed and are subject to daily fluctuations in market value. The historical performance of mutual funds is not an indication or guarantee of future performance, and past performance may not be repeated. Although redeemable on any business day, professionally managed investment funds are considered to be long-term investments, as their market value(s) may fluctuate over short periods of time. 3 Statement of Disclosure
14) Mutual Fund Classification
FundEX adheres to the fund ranking system of the Canadian Investment Funds Standards Committee that categorizes the volatility measurement of certain mutual fund classifications for the purpose of assessing the suitability of mutual funds in client portfolios.
The following table provides a summary of volatility classifications for typical fund types*:
• Very Low: Canadian Money Market (must have fixed unit price), U.S. Money Market (must have fixed unit price);
• Low: Canadian Mortgage, Canadian Short-Term Bond, Canadian Bond;
• Low to Moderate: Foreign Bond, High-Yield Bond, Canadian Balanced, Canadian Tactical Asset Allocation, Global Balanced and Asset Allocation;
• Moderate: Canadian Dividend, Canadian Equity (Pure), Canadian Equity, Canadian Income Trust, Global Equity, U.S. Equity, International Equity, European Equity;
• Moderate to High: Canadian Small Cap, Healthcare, Asia/Pacific Rim Equity, Japanese Equity, Financial Services, U.S. Small and Mid Cap Equity, Natural Resources, Precious Metals;
• High: Emerging Markets Equity, Asia Ex-Japan Equity, Latin America Equity, Science & Technology, Real Estate Capital, Alternative Strategies, Specialty/Miscellaneous, Labour Sponsored Venture Capital.
*These categories come from the Canadian Investment Funds Standards Committee which are used as a guide to determine fund type risk and could change at any time. Also, the specific prospectus determines the funds specific stated risk tolerance. With this information, FundEX’s Product Review Committee determines the risk associated with each specific fund.
15) Benchmarking
You may assess the performance of your investments by comparing them to an investment performance benchmark. Benchmarks show the performance over time of a select group of securities. There are many different benchmarks. When choosing a benchmark, pick one that reflects your investments. For example, the S&P/TSX Composite Index follows the share prices of the largest companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. This index would be a good benchmark for assessing performance of a Canadian equity fund that invests only in large Canadian companies. It would be a poor benchmark if your investments are diversified in other products, sectors or geographic areas. Please speak to your Representative if you have questions about the performance of your portfolio or what benchmark(s) might be appropriate for you.
16) Risk of Borrowing to Invest
Here are some risks and factors that you should consider before borrowing to invest:
Is it right for you?
• Borrowing money to invest is risky. You should only consider borrowing to invest if:
– You are comfortable with taking risk;
– You are comfortable taking on debt to buy investments that may go up or down in value;
– You are investing for the long term;
– You have a stable income.
• You should not borrow to invest if:
– You have a low tolerance for risk;
– You are investing for a short period of time;
– You intend to rely on income from the investments to pay living expenses;
– You intend to rely on income from the investments to repay the loan.
– If this income stops or decreases, you may not be able to pay back the loan.
You can end up losing money
• If the investments go down in value and you have borrowed money, your losses would be larger than had you invested using your own money.
• Whether your investments make money or not, you will still have to pay back the loan plus interest. You may have to sell other assets or use money you had set aside for other purposes to pay back the loan.
• If you used your home as security for the loan, you may lose your home.
• If the investments go up in value, you may still not make enough money to cover the costs of borrowing.
Tax considerations
• You should not borrow to invest just to receive a tax deduction.
• Interest costs are not always tax deductible. You may not be entitled to a tax deduction and may be reassessed for past deductions.
• You may want to consult a tax professional to determine whether your interest costs will be deductible before borrowing to invest.
Your Representative should discuss with you the risks of borrowing to invest.
17) Procedures Regarding Handling of Cash, Cheques and Failed Settlement
FundEX does not accept cash for the purchase of mutual funds or any other investment products or services. All purchases must be by cheque made payable to: “FundEX Investments Inc. In Trust”. You must never make cheques payable to your Representative. Additionally, Representatives must always refuse to accept cash or cheques made payable to themselves.
FundEX will require you to pay compensation for any losses suffered by the company in connection with a failed settlement of a purchase of securities of the mutual fund caused you.
Should you wish to establish a Systematic Withdrawal Plan, and if cash withdrawals are in excess of net income and capital appreciation of the fund, such withdrawals will result in the encroachment on or possible exhaustion of your original capital invested. 4 Statement of Disclosure
18) Content and Frequency of Reporting
FundEX sends you a statement to on a quarterly basis. Additionally, a monthly statement will be sent to you if you have trading activity in exempt market products. These statements will be sent to you by the end of the month following the end of the statement period. The statement will include at a minimum a summary of portfolio holdings and a summary of trading activity for the specified period.
You will also receive Client Transaction Confirmations which are issued by the fund company directly or the trustee that holds your account. Transaction confirmations will include specific information about the date of the trade, the name and code of the fund, the unit price and balance, as well as the market value.
It is your responsibility to review your statements carefully and to immediately notify us in writing of any errors, omissions or discrepancies, including any transactions you did not authorize. We will assume trades reported on your statement are accurate if you do not contact us within 90 days.
19) Dealer Declaration (British Columbia)
FundEX is registered in the Province of British Columbia as a Mutual Fund Dealer and an Exempt Market Dealer. If you reside in British Columbia you are entitled to certain additional information about us, including information regarding commissions and fees that we charge, and any administrative proceedings that may relate to our firm or staff. To obtain additional information about FundEX and/or further information with regard to this Statement of Disclosure, please contact our Head Office in Vaughan, Ontario at 1-800-324-6048.
20) Privacy and Confidentiality
Your information and the business you do with FundEX is kept in strict confidence. Only authorized personnel have access to your information. We collect, use and disclose personal information that a reasonable person would consider appropriate for the circumstances. Our procedures and systems are designed to protect your information from errors, losses and unauthorized access. We keep your information for only as long as it is needed and/or required by regulation. We monitor our compliance with applicable privacy legislation.
To help serve you better, we may review and analyze your use of products and services, including transactions in your account(s), to help protect you from unauthorized use of your account(s). Self-regulatory organizations (“SROs”) and other regulatory authorities require access to your personal information. Regulatory authorities collect, use or disclose such personal information obtained from regulated persons for regulatory purposes. You understand that in signing the New Account Application Form you are giving permission to your Representative, to obtain and keep on file personal information that you have provided to him/her. You understand that this personal information, not publicly published about you, may include but is not limited to: income tax information; account statements from other firms, including banks, trust companies or fund companies; pension plan information; legal documents including wills, trusts, and power of attorney.
You understand that your Representative may use and disclose this information in order to communicate with you in a timely and efficient manner; assess your application for investment, insurance and other services available to you by his/her firm; assess your financial situation and contact you with any other suitable products that he/she is authorized to sell; detect and prevent fraud; analyze business results; and act as required or authorized by law.
You understand that you have the following rights concerning your privacy:
• You have the right to know why an organization collects, uses or discloses your personal information;
• You have the right to expect an organization to handle your information reasonably and to not use it for any purpose other than the one to which you consented;
• You have the right to know who in an organization is responsible for protecting your information;
• You have the right to expect an organization to protect your information from unauthorized disclosure;
• You have the right to inspect the information an organization holds about you and make sure it is accurate, complete and current;
• You have the right to confidentially complain to an organization;
• You have the right to confidentially complain to an organization about how it handles your information and may escalate your complaint to the Privacy Commissioner of Canada if need be; and
• You have the right to remove your consent at any time by contacting your Representative in writing.
You understand that your Representative will NOT sell your information to anyone or share your information with organizations outside of our relationship that would use it to contact you about their own products or services.
Your Representative must also decline to accept or administer an account in respect of which an individual does not consent to such intended collection, use or disclosure of personal information to SROs and the use and disclosure of that information by SROs.
21) Commercial Email Consent
Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) requires FundEX to obtain your consent to send emails that could be considered as promotional or commercial.
You can withdraw your consent to receive emails at any time. Should you choose not to provide your consent to receive commercial emails, you may still consent to receive electronic delivery of documents, such as Fund Fact Sheets, to your email address. For electronic delivery of your quarterly Dealer statement you will need to provide your acknowledgement and consent through FundEX’s secure online website, WebCONNECT.
Please be aware that the majority of communications you receive from FundEX and your Representative are required by regulation or provided through our existing business relationship to service your account with us, and it is your choice whether to receive communications by email or in paper format.
By accepting to receive communications by email, you agree to check your emails as often as may be required and to send FundEX any changes to your email address. If address changes are not communicated to us and you do not receive any required information, FundEX cannot be held responsible. 5 Statement of Disclosure
22) Email Delivery of Documents
If you have provided your consent to the electronic delivery of documents in the New Account Application Form, the electronic delivery of documents and/or types of documents such as, but without being limited to, mutual fund periodic updates, annual or semi-annual reports, educational or promotional material, portfolio summaries (excluding official statements), administrative forms pertaining to your account(s) and transaction data, that your Representative elects to deliver to you electronically, will be in accordance with the conditions set out below:
• My Representative may email any such Documents to the email address set out in the New Account Application Form. No separate notice of delivery is required, although my Representative may request acknowledgement, in the form of a ‘read receipt’, that I have received and reviewed such Documents. I agree to notify my Representative of any change in my email address without unreasonable delay.
• I agree to maintain a current email account on a system with sufficient capacity to retrieve and review messages from my Representative, including large documents or attachments.
• I understand that, in addition to a current version of email and Internet browser software, current versions of standard desktop software such as Microsoft Word, Excel or Adobe Reader will be required to view Documents. It is my responsibility to keep all my computer programs up-to-date.
• I understand that, upon my notification and request, my Representative will provide a paper copy of any Documents delivered electronically if electronic delivery fails.
• I understand that Documents posted on my Dealer’s website(s) are subject to revision and removal without notice and that, if I wish to retain a copy for my personal records, I will need to save a copy to my local drive immediately and make regular, periodic backups of my local data to prevent loss due to hardware, software or communications failure.
• I will take reasonable measures to ensure that the privacy and confidentiality of Documents are maintained and I will not forward Documents received from my Representative to any third party without my Representative’s prior consent. This undertaking does not apply to Documents of a purely promotional or marketing nature.
• I understand that my Consent may be revoked or changed, including any change in the electronic mail address to which documents are delivered, at any time by notifying my Representative.
If you wish to consent to the electronic delivery of Dealer Statements and other documents, you will need to provide your acknowledgement and consent through FundEX’s secure online website, WebCONNECT, available from the following address https://client.fundex.com.
23) Complaint Handling Procedures
FundEX has procedures in place to handle any written or verbal complaints received from you in a fair and prompt manner. This is a summary of those procedures, which we provide to new clients, to clients who have filed a complaint and it is also available for review on our website at www.FundEX.ca.
The Client Complaint Information Form
The Client Complaint Information Form (“CCIF”) provides general information about options available to you for making a complaint. The CCIF can be found below and it is also available as a standalone document to provide to clients at the time of complaint.
How to File a Complaint with FundEX
If you wish to file a complaint with FundEX you may make your complaint to FundEX’s Head Office by contacting the Assistant Chief Compliance Officer – Complaints or to any Branch Manager or FundEX Representative. All complaints are forwarded to qualified compliance officers or supervisory personnel to be handled. We encourage you to make your complaint in writing or by email where possible. Where you have difficulty putting the complaint in writing, you should advise us so that we can provide assistance. For confidentiality reasons, we will only deal with you or another individual who has your express written authorization to deal with us.
Complaint Handling Procedures
We will acknowledge receipt of complaints promptly, generally within five days. We review all complaints fairly, taking into account all relevant documents and statements obtained from you, our records, our Representatives, other staff members and any other relevant source. Once our review is complete we provide you with our response, which will be in writing if the complaint was made in writing. Our response may be an offer to resolve your complaint, a denial of the complaint with reasons or another appropriate response. Where the complaint relates to certain serious allegations1, our initial acknowledgement will include copies of this summary and the CCIF. Our response will summarize your complaint, our findings and will contain a reminder about your options with the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (“OBSI”).
We will generally provide our response within ninety days, unless we are waiting for additional information from you, or the case is novel or very complicated. We will respond to communications you send us after the date of our response to the extent necessary to implement a resolution or to address any new issues or information you provide.
Settlements
If we offer you a financial settlement, we may ask you to sign a release and waiver for legal reasons.
Contacting FundEX Investments Inc.
You may contact us at any time to provide further information or to inquire as to the status of your complaint, by contacting the individual handling your complaint or by contacting the Assistant Chief Compliance Officer – Complaints by email to complaints@fundex.com2. 6 Statement of Disclosure
24) Client Complaint Information
If you are not satisfied with a financial product or service you have a right to make a complaint and to seek resolution of the problem. If you have a complaint, these are some of the steps you can take:
• Your complaint should first be explained to your Representative. The person who sold you the product or service will solve most problems quickly.
• Contact FundEX. FundEX is responsible to you for monitoring the actions of our Representatives to ensure that they are in compliance with the legislation, rules and guidelines governing their activities. You may contact FundEX at 1-800-324-6048. Some problems are easily solved by a phone call. Some matters can be resolved through the Branch Manager. FundEX’s Compliance Department will investigate any complaint that you initiate in writing and contact you with the results of their investigation.
• Contact the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (“MFDA”), which is the self-regulatory organization in Canada to which FundEX belongs. The MFDA investigates complaints about mutual fund dealers and their Representatives, and takes enforcement action where appropriate. There is no cost to you for referring a complaint to the MFDA. The MFDA may be contacted:
– By telephone in Toronto at 416-361-6332, or toll-free at 1-888-466-6332;
– By email at complaints@mfda.ca3; or
– In writing, using the complaint form which is available on the MFDA website at www.mfda.ca.
• Quebec only: If you are dissatisfied with the manner in which your complaint was handled or with its outcome, you may request FundEX to transfer your file to the Autorité des marchés financiers. The Autorité will examine the complaint and, if it so deems appropriate, may act as a mediator if the parties so agree. The Autorité may be contacted in writing at: Place de la Cité, Tour Cominar, 2640 Laurier Blvd., Suite 400, Quebec (Quebec) G1V 5C1, by telephone at 418 525-0311, or toll-free at 1 866 526-0311, or by email at information@lautorite.qc.ca.
1 As defined in the Policies of the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada of which FundEX Investments Inc. is a Member.
2 You may wish to consider issues of Internet security when sending sensitive information by standard e-mail.
3 You may wish to consider issues of Internet security when sending sensitive information by standard e-mail.
Compensation:
The MFDA does not order compensation or restitution to clients of Members. The MFDA exists to regulate the operations, standards of practice and business conduct of its Members and their Representatives with a mandate to enhance client protection and strengthen public confidence in the Canadian mutual fund industry.
• In Québec only, contact the Autorité des marchés financiers:
– By telephone at 418-525-0311 or toll-free at 1-866-526-0311; or
– By email at information@lautorite.qc.ca.
• Manitoba, New Brunswick and Saskatchewan: Securities regulatory authorities in these provinces have the power to, in appropriate cases, order that a person or company that has contravened securities laws in their province pay compensation to a claimant. The claimant is then able to enforce such an order as if it were a judgment of the superior court in that province. For more information, please visit:
Manitoba: www.msc.gov.mb.ca New Brunswick: www.nbsc-cvmnb.ca Saskatchewan: www.sfsc.gov.sk.ca
• Contact the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (“OBSI”), an organization independent of the MFDA, the government and the financial services industry. The OBSI provides an independent and impartial process for the investigation and resolution of complaints about the provision of financial services to clients. The OBSI will investigate your complaint only if you have first exhausted your firm’s internal complaint-handling processes. The OBSI can make a non-binding recommendation that your Representative or dealer compensate you (up to $350,000) if it determines that you have been treated unfairly, taking into account the criteria of good financial services and business practice, relevant codes of practice or conduct, industry regulation and the law. The OBSI process is free of charge and is confidential.
The OBSI may be contacted:
– By telephone in Toronto at 416-287-2877, or toll-free at 1-888-451-4519; or
– By email at ombudsman@obsi.ca.
• Legal Assistance: You may consider retaining a lawyer to assist with the complaint. You should be aware that there are legal time limits for taking civil action. A lawyer can advise you of your options and recourses. Once the applicable limitation period expires, you may lose rights to pursue some claims.
