IR Leader
March 17, 2015

Top Stories

CSA Identify Local Variations in NI 31-103 and Other National Instruments

The CSA yesterday issued a notice identifying local amendments to national instruments, in particular NI 31-103 Registration Requirements, Exemptions and Ongoing Registrant Obligations, in Alberta and NI 58-101 Disclosure of Corporate Governance Practices in Yukon that may be of importance outside of those jurisdictions.

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2015 Canadian Capital Markets Report: Looking Back, Looking Forward

The beginning of 2015 has correctly borne out many predictions of economic events - with a strengthening U.S. economy, a dip in interest rates in Canada, a drop in value in the Canadian dollar and a shift in regional growth from the west to central Canada all playing a role in Canadian capital market activity. As we all make our way through the current environment, clients, regulators and other market participants learn to adapt to and roll with the times.

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TIAA-CREF Joins 'Proxy Access' Push With Letter to Top Holdings

TIAA-CREF, one of the largest U.S. assets managers, is asking the top 100 companies in which it invests to make it easier for shareholders to nominate board candidates, according to sources close to the matter.

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New Brand of Shareholder Activism Targets GM

When most people think shareholder activism, they think big names and big hedge funds - Carl Icahn, Bill Ackman, Jana Partners - who have the wherewithal to obtain a sizeable stake in the target company. However, as explored by Ronald Barusch in the Wall Street Journal, a new form of activism, spearheaded by a former Obama aide, Harry J. Wilson, has shown that you don't need to carry a big stick (or have a major stake in the target company) to have clout as an activist.

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New Securities Rules for ABCP Conduits Coming Into Effect May 5, 2015

Canada’s C$30-billion market for "asset-backed commercial paper" will soon be regulated by Canada's securities regulators (CSA) for the first time. The new rules published by the CSA (New Rules) are much less extensive than the CSA's initial 2011 proposals, which contemplated the comprehensive regulation of securitized products, and are milder than the CSA's more targeted 2014 rewrite (2014 Proposals).

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Murky Press Releases Can Conceal Poor Results

Poorly written earnings releases can be used to manipulate investors by encasing bad results in murky language, says a study.

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