Darren McKall

The applicant, on behalf of existing and future mutual funds, applied for exemptive relief from the restriction in subsection 4.1(1) of National Instrument 81-102.

The relief sought to permit the funds to invest in equity securities during a distribution or the 60-day period thereafter, even when an affiliate of the applicant acts as an underwriter in a foreign jurisdiction.

The principal regulator granted the exemption, subject to conditions including independent review committee approval and that the securities are distributed via prospectus or private placement in the foreign jurisdiction.

The Filers applied to the Ontario Securities Commission for exemptive relief from certain custody requirements under National Instrument 81-102.

The relief sought to permit Fidelity Clearing Canada ULC to act as custodian, and Fidelity Digital Asset Services, LLC to act as sub-custodian, for the crypto assets of the Fidelity Advantage Bitcoin ETF and other future funds.

The Commission granted the requested relief, subject to conditions including insurance, SOC reporting, and equity requirements, finding it appropriate given the specialized nature of crypto asset custody.

The applicant, Portland Investment Counsel Inc., applied to the Ontario Securities Commission for exemptive relief on behalf of certain investment funds from the annual and interim financial statement filing and delivery deadlines under National Instrument 81-106.

The funds invest heavily in underlying funds, which causes delays in obtaining the necessary audited financial statements to complete their own reporting.

The Commission granted the requested relief, extending the annual filing and delivery deadline to 180 days and the interim deadline to 120 days, subject to certain conditions.

The applicant sought exemptive relief on behalf of a continuing mutual fund to permit it to use the past performance data and financial information of two terminating funds following a merger.

The principal regulator granted the relief, allowing the continuing fund to include the terminating funds' data in its simplified prospectus, fund facts, management reports of fund performance, and sales communications, subject to specific disclosure conditions.

The applicant, an investment fund manager, applied for exemptive relief from the short selling concentration restriction in National Instrument 81-102.

The relief was sought to permit alternative mutual funds managed by the applicant to short sell index participation units up to 100% of their net asset value.

The principal regulator granted the requested relief, subject to conditions including compliance with aggregate exposure limits and disclosure requirements.

The filer, acting as the investment fund manager for several top funds, applied for exemptive relief from the financial statement filing and delivery deadlines under National Instrument 81-106.

The top funds invest in underlying funds that have varying financial reporting deadlines, making it impossible for the top funds to finalize their own financial statements within the standard regulatory timeframes.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested relief, extending the annual filing and delivery deadline to 183 days and the interim deadline to 120 days, subject to certain conditions including disclosure to securityholders.

The Filers applied to the Ontario Securities Commission for exemptive relief from certain custody requirements in National Instrument 81-102.

Specifically, they sought permission to appoint The Royal Canadian Mint, Brink's, and Loomis as sub-custodians to hold the Funds' physical bullion in Canada, despite these entities not meeting the standard regulatory requirements for sub-custodians.

The Commission granted the requested relief, subject to conditions including that the sub-custodians maintain a specified shareholder equity threshold and that their use is limited strictly to holding bullion.

The applicant, CI Investments Inc., applied on behalf of its managed investment funds for exemptive relief from certain provisions of National Instrument 81-102.

The requested relief would permit the funds to invest up to 10% of their net asset value in securities of foreign underlying funds (SICAV and UCITS funds) that are not subject to NI 81-102 and are not reporting issuers in Canada.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the exemption, finding that the foreign underlying funds are subject to substantially similar regulatory oversight and investment restrictions as Canadian mutual funds, and that the investment would provide an efficient way for the funds to achieve diversification.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief from the dealer registration and prospectus requirements under Ontario securities legislation.

The relief was sought to allow the Filer to provide its proprietary mutual funds as investment options within capital accumulation plans (CAPs) and non-tax assisted CAPs, alongside funds managed by other managers.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested relief, revoking and replacing a previous decision, subject to specific conditions regarding disclosure, performance reporting, and contribution limits.

The Filer applied to the Ontario Securities Commission for exemptive relief under section 6.1 of National Instrument 81-101.

The relief sought an exemption from subsection 2.1(2) of NI 81-101, which prohibits filing a prospectus more than 90 days after the preliminary prospectus receipt.

The Director granted the exemption, permitting the prospectus to be filed no later than October 16, 2023.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief on behalf of existing and future mutual funds that offer exchange-traded fund (ETF) securities either alone or alongside mutual fund securities.

The requested relief sought to revoke a previous decision, exempt the funds from filing a long-form prospectus for ETF securities provided they file a simplified prospectus and ETF facts document, and permit funds offering both types of securities to treat them as separate funds for compliance with sales and redemption requirements under National Instrument 81-102.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested exemptions, subject to conditions regarding prospectus disclosure and compliance with applicable provisions for each security type.

The applicant, 1832 Asset Management L.P., applied on behalf of the Dynamic Retirement Income Fund for exemptive relief to extend the lapse date of the Fund's simplified prospectus.

The extension was sought to align the Fund's prospectus renewal with the renewal of 126 other mutual funds managed by the applicant, thereby reducing costs and streamlining disclosure.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested relief, finding that it would not be prejudicial to the public interest.

SLGI Asset Management Inc. applied for exemptive relief on behalf of its investment funds from the concentration restrictions in subsections 2.1(1) and 2.1(1.1) of National Instrument 81-102.

The requested relief would permit the funds to invest more than 10% (or 20% for alternative mutual funds) of their net asset value in debt obligations issued or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the exemption, noting the implied guarantee of these securities by the U.S. government, subject to conditions requiring the securities to maintain a U.S. Government Equivalent Rating and a minimum credit rating, as well as specific prospectus disclosure and risk monitoring.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief on behalf of several continuing mutual funds to permit their exchange-traded series to use the past performance data, financial information, and start dates of corresponding terminating ETFs following a merger.

The Filer sought to transition the continuing funds to a dual-class structure offering both mutual fund and ETF securities.

The principal regulator granted the requested relief, allowing the continuing funds to disclose the terminating ETFs' historical data in their simplified prospectuses, ETF Facts, management reports of fund performance, and sales communications, provided certain disclosure conditions were met.

The Filer applied to the Ontario Securities Commission for exemptive relief from subsection 5.1(a) of National Instrument 81-105.

The relief sought to permit the Filer to pay participating dealers for direct costs related to cooperative marketing initiatives where the primary purpose is to provide educational information concerning financial planning matters.

The Commission granted the exemption, subject to conditions including that the Filer does not require dealers to sell specific funds and that the materials contain only general educational information.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief on behalf of its mutual funds to permit the purchase of 144A Securities without such securities being classified as 'illiquid assets' under National Instrument 81-102.

The Filer argued that 144A Securities trade in a deep, liquid institutional market among Qualified Institutional Buyers and that treating them as illiquid would unnecessarily restrict the funds' investment opportunities.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested relief, subject to conditions including that the funds qualify as Qualified Institutional Buyers at the time of purchase and that the securities are traded on a mature and liquid market.

The Filer applied to the Director of the Ontario Securities Commission for exemptive relief under section 6.1 of National Instrument 81-101.

The relief sought an exemption from subsection 2.1(2), which prohibits filing a prospectus more than 90 days after the receipt for the preliminary prospectus.

The Director granted the requested exemption, permitting the prospectus to be filed no later than September 15, 2023.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief on behalf of the Funds from the underwriter's certificate requirement for the distribution of ETF Securities, and from the take-over bid requirements for persons purchasing ETF Securities in the normal course on a marketplace.

The principal regulator granted the requested exemptions, noting that the designated broker and authorized dealers do not perform conventional underwriting services and that applying take-over bid requirements to ETF Securities would adversely impact their liquidity.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief on behalf of the Tralucent Global Alt (Long/Short) Equity Fund and future funds offering both ETF and mutual fund securities.

The requested relief sought an exemption from filing a long form prospectus for ETF securities, provided a simplified prospectus and ETF facts document are filed.

The Filer also sought permission to treat ETF and mutual fund securities as separate funds for compliance with Parts 9, 10, and 14 of National Instrument 81-102.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested exemptive relief, subject to specified conditions.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief on behalf of a mutual fund to permit the inclusion of past performance data in sales communications, fund facts, ETF facts, and management reports of fund performance.

The requested relief would allow the fund to use performance data from the period before it became a reporting issuer and offered units under a simplified prospectus.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested relief, subject to conditions requiring disclosure that the fund was not a reporting issuer during the relevant period and that expenses would have been higher had it been subject to reporting issuer requirements.