Changes will help protect vulnerable investors in British Columbia: regulator

VICTORIA – The British Columbia government is expanding the reach of an investment watchdog to protect vulnerable investors.

The Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada along with anti-poverty and seniors’ groups have lobbied the government for legislation that allows the organization to enforce its rules and discipline those who bilk investors.

The organization’s CEO, Andrew Kriegler, says changes to the B.C. Securities Act will help protect investors, especially seniors who rely on their retirement investments.

Finance Minister Carole James says the legislation works for people and promotes a fair and efficient capital market in the province.

The amendments give the organization better enforcement tools, which the group says will allow it to collect its fines through the B.C. Supreme Court.

The changes extend the organization’s authority to six provinces and the group says in a news release that when governments give it better enforcement tools, it has seen higher fine collection and a change in behaviour among advisers.

Note to readers: This is a corrected story. An earlier version stated that the B.C. Supreme Court could collect $4.7 million in unpaid fines