NEWS WATCH
Ontario Securities Commission chairman David Wilson has said that Canada’s largest securities regulator will publish new rules by the end of the year to more clearly define the way income trusts should report distributable cash,
Judy Wasylycia- Leis, the finance critic for the opposition, New Democratic Party, has proposed that Canada tighten accounting rules for income trusts because many provide “misleading’’ information for investors. At the same time, the Bank of Canada has released a study that notes income trusts can provide a source of financing companies that might not otherwise find access to financial markets.
The Ontario Securities Commission has made a statement that it will look at standardizing the rules for income trusts to report cash distributions.
Finanical critics from the Conservative Party and the NDP have called for an inquiry into the possibility that prior knowledge about the Department of Finance announcement of “no change to trust policies” provided insiders the potential to profit in trading during the day prior to the official announcement.
The board of directors of the Investment Dealers Association (IDA) has approved a proposal to separate the group into a trade association and a separate regulatory body. The idea still requires support from a majority of the brokerage services firms that make up the corporate membership of the IDA. But change is possible.
iTrust Institute is studying the key features, perceived potential & benefits of income trusts starting from the premise that:
Equities managed and structured like income trusts to flow net gains through to owners by way of frequent and regular distributions of cash can offer superior rates of overall return, support market growth, enhance economic productivity and contribute to growth of the tax base with less risk than other equities given honest managers and a fully competitive market supported by open communications.
We will test this notion and explore related questions.