IIROC to see expanded mandate from updated requirements for government and corporate debt securities
The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) has announced its finalized framework for mandatory post-trade transparency in government debt securities, along with expanded transparency requirements for corporate debt.
“The transparency of trades in government and corporate debt securities is an important element to promote fair and efficient debt markets,” Louis Morisset, CSA Chair and President and CEO of the Autorité des marchés financiers, said in a statement.
Following the changes, information about trades in corporate and government debt securities will be publicly accessible, allowing retail and institutional investors to make more informed trading decisions. The current information processor (IP) for corporate debt securities, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC), will see its mandate expanded to include government debt securities.
“We thank the CSA for expanding IIROC's information processor role to include government debt,” IIROC President and CEO Andrew Kriegler said in a separate statement. “[W]e believe that providing free, comprehensive information on debt securities trading gives all market participants enhanced transparency and access to information that will improve their investment decisions and contribute to their confidence in Canada's capital markets.”
Pending all necessary ministerial approval, the amendments will take effect on August 31, 2020. That would mark the start of the first phase with the distribution of post-trade information for trades in government debt securities made by dealers subject to IIROC Rule 2800, as well as banks already reporting their corporate and government debt securities to IIROC.
In phase two, slated to begin on May 31, 2021, information will be disseminated on corporate and government debt transactions conducted by banks that currently do not report any transactions to IIROC.
