Darren McKall

The Filer applied for exemptive relief on behalf of the Tradex Global Equity Fund to permit the Fund to invest in closed-end funds and foreign closed-end funds, contrary to paragraphs 2.5(2)(a) and (c) of National Instrument 81-102.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the exemption, finding it was not prejudicial to the public interest, subject to conditions including limits on leverage exposure and compliance with certain investment restrictions.

The applicant, TD Asset Management Inc., applied for exemptive relief on behalf of the TD Corporate Bond Capital Yield Fund from the requirement under s. 5.1(1)(c) of National Instrument 81-102 to obtain securityholder approval before changing the fundamental investment objectives of the Fund.

The change was prompted by amendments to the Income Tax Act that eliminated the tax benefits associated with Character Conversion Transactions.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the exemption, provided that securityholders are sent a written notice at least 60 days before the effective date of the change.

The Filer applied to the Ontario Securities Commission for approval of the merger of certain terminating funds into continuing funds under paragraph 5.5(1)(b) of National Instrument 81-102.

The mergers did not satisfy the criteria for pre-approved reorganizations because the investment objectives were not substantially similar and the trust fund merger was not a qualifying exchange under the Income Tax Act.

The Commission granted the requested approval, subject to the Filer obtaining prior securityholder approval at a special meeting.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief from the requirement to obtain prior securityholder approval before changing the fundamental investment objective of the Fund under subsection 5.1(1)(c) of National Instrument 81-102.

The change was necessitated by amendments to the Income Tax Act that eliminated the favourable tax treatment of character conversion transactions, rendering the Fund's forward purchase and sale agreement inefficient.

The principal regulator granted the requested relief, provided the Filer sends a written notice to securityholders at least 30 days before the effective date of the change.

The Filers applied for exemptive relief from certain provisions of National Instrument 81-102 to permit their mutual funds and exchange-traded funds to enter into cleared swaps.

The requested relief included exemptions from counterparty rating requirements, mark-to-market exposure limits, and custodianship requirements to allow the deposit of margin with Futures Commission Merchants.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the relief, subject to conditions regarding the regulatory status and financial position of the Futures Commission Merchants, noting that central clearing mitigates risks and aligns with global commitments to improve transparency in derivatives markets.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief on behalf of itself and certain top funds to permit the top funds to invest in underlying funds managed by the Filer or its affiliates.

The relief sought included exemptions from related issuer restrictions and consent requirements under securities legislation.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested relief, subject to conditions including that the top funds' securities are distributed solely pursuant to prospectus exemptions and that no duplicative fees are payable.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief from certain provisions of National Instrument 81-102 to permit its mutual funds and non-redeemable investment funds to enter into cleared swaps and deposit cash and portfolio assets as margin with a Futures Commission Merchant.

The principal regulator granted the requested relief, subject to conditions regarding the regulatory status and financial position of the Futures Commission Merchant, noting that clearing OTC derivatives mitigates systemic risk and aligns with global regulatory commitments.

The Filers applied to the Ontario Securities Commission for approval of a change of manager for the BNP Paribas Global Equity Exposure Fund from BNP Paribas Investment Partners Canada Ltd. to IA Clarington Investments Inc. under section 5.5(1)(a) of National Instrument 81-102.

The Commission found that the proposed change of manager met the test set out in the legislation and granted the requested approval.

The applicant, Mackenzie Financial Corporation, applied on behalf of several mutual fund pools for exemptive relief from the concentration restriction in section 2.1(1) of National Instrument 81-102.

The relief sought to permit the pools to invest up to 20% or 35% of their net asset value in evidences of indebtedness issued or guaranteed by certain foreign governments or supranational agencies, depending on their credit rating.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested relief, subject to conditions including disclosure in the simplified prospectus and that the securities are traded on a mature and liquid market.

The applicant applied for an exemption from paragraph 2.5(2)(b) of National Instrument 81-102 to permit its mutual funds to invest in other mutual funds managed by the applicant, creating a three-tier fund structure.

The principal regulator granted the exemption, finding that the structure would be tax efficient, reduce tracking error, and be no more complex than currently permitted structures, provided the investments otherwise comply with section 2.5 of NI 81-102.

The applicant, PIMCO Canada Corp., sought exemptive relief from the sales communication requirements in sections 15.3(4)(c) and 15.3(4)(f) of National Instrument 81-102.

The relief was requested to permit the applicant's mutual funds to reference Lipper Fund Awards, Lipper ETF Awards, and Lipper Leader ratings in their sales communications.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the exemption, subject to specific disclosure conditions, finding that the Lipper ratings provide an objective, transparent, and quantitative measure of performance that alleviates concerns about misleading communications.

The applicant, an investment fund manager, applied for exemptive relief from the sales communication requirements in sections 15.3(4)(c) and 15.3(4)(f) of National Instrument 81-102.

The applicant sought to reference Lipper Fund Awards, Lipper ETF Awards, and Lipper Leader ratings in sales communications for its mutual funds.

The principal regulator granted the exemption, subject to conditions including specific disclosure requirements and a limitation that referenced awards must not be older than 365 days.

First Asset Investment Management Inc. applied for exemptive relief from the performance rating and ranking requirements in sections 15.3(4)(c) and 15.3(4)(f) of National Instrument 81-102.

The relief was sought to permit the use of Lipper Awards and Lipper Leader ratings in sales communications for its mutual funds.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the exemption, subject to specific disclosure conditions, noting that the Lipper ratings provide an objective and transparent measure of performance.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief on behalf of two investment funds from the requirement under subsection 5.1(1)(c) of NI 81-102 to obtain prior securityholder approval before changing their fundamental investment objectives.

The changes were necessitated by federal tax amendments eliminating the favourable tax treatment of character conversion transactions (forward agreements).

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested relief, provided the Filer sends written notice to securityholders at least 30 days before the effective date of the change.

The applicant sought exemptive relief under paragraph 5.5(1)(b) of National Instrument 81-102 to permit the merger of the Terminating Fund into the Continuing Fund.

The merger did not meet all criteria for a pre-approved reorganization because it would not be a tax-deferred transaction.

The principal regulator granted the requested relief, finding that the merger would be beneficial to unitholders and that the decision met the test set out in the legislation.

The applicant, an investment fund manager, applied for exemptive relief from the requirement to deliver a Fund Facts document for purchases of mutual fund securities made pursuant to Automatic Switches.

The applicant proposed to create tiered series of securities with lower management and administration fees based on account size, and to automatically switch investors into these series when they meet the thresholds.

The principal regulator granted the exemption, subject to conditions requiring the applicant to provide appropriate notification and disclosure to investors regarding the Automatic Switching Programs and their right to request the Fund Facts document.

The Filer, Mackenzie Financial Corporation, applied for exemptive relief from certain provisions of National Instrument 81-102 Investment Funds on behalf of its mutual funds.

The relief sought to permit the funds to enter into cleared swaps and deposit cash and portfolio assets as margin with Futures Commission Merchants and Clearing Corporations.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested relief, subject to specific conditions regarding margin deposits and regulatory oversight, noting that central clearing mitigates risks in global swap markets.

The Filer applied for exemptive relief from certain provisions of National Instrument 81-102 to permit its mutual funds to enter into cleared swaps and deposit cash and portfolio assets as margin with a Futures Commission Merchant.

The principal regulator granted the relief, noting that clearing OTC derivatives mitigates risk and is consistent with global regulatory trends, provided certain conditions regarding margin deposits and clearing corporations are met.

The Manager applied for exemptive relief on behalf of Canbanc Income Corp. to permit the fund, upon conversion into an exchange-traded fund, to invest more than 10 percent of its net asset value in securities of a single bank.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the relief, subject to conditions including a 20 percent concentration limit per bank and disclosure requirements.

The applicant, FT Portfolios Canada Co., applied for exemptive relief on behalf of the First Trust Advantaged Short Duration High Yield Bond Fund from certain prohibitions in NI 81-102 Investment Funds.

Specifically, the applicant sought relief from the concentration restriction to permit the fund to indirectly hold more than 10 percent of its net asset value in the securities of an underlying fund, and to permit indirect investment in those securities.

The Ontario Securities Commission granted the requested exemptions, subject to conditions including compliance with other provisions of NI 81-102 and the expiration of the relief on May 20, 2016.