An overview of the Alberta Securities Act

An overview of the Alberta Securities Act

Investments – in whatever form they are – are great financial drivers of any economy.

Because of this power that they have over businesses and investors, laws are in place to regulate how they are dealt with. In Alberta, one of these laws is the securities laws led by the Alberta Securities Act.

What is the purpose of securities law in Canada?

Securities regulation in Canada is with the province and territories, since there’s no federal securities law nor a federal regulatory body for securities.

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The main purposes of securities law are to:

What is Alberta’s Securities Act?

The Securities Act sets up the provincial securities laws and provides the Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) with its powers and duties. It has been amended several times after the revision in 2000 of the original Securities Act.

The Act is divided into different parts, which may be summarized as follows:

Below are discussions of the highlights of some important provisions of the Act:

The Alberta Securities Commission

As will be discussed further, it is the ASC that administers the Alberta Securities Act, among other securities laws in the province.

It was continued by virtue of the Act, which also provides for its powers, responsibilities, and the procedure when appealing the decisions of the ASC.

Part of ASC’s role is to protect investors from fraud and other schemes, such as through its registration requirement of securities dealers.

Watch this video to know more about binary options, and how investors are protected by the securities law of Alberta against these schemes:

Reach out to one of the Lexpert-ranked best corporate finance lawyers in Alberta to learn more about Alberta’s Securities Act.

Investigations, whistleblowing, and review

The ASC can conduct investigations for violations of the securities laws in Alberta. For this, investigators are empowered to:

The Act also safeguards whistleblowers, keeping their identities safe and protecting them against reprisals.

Registration requirement

One of the requirements set by Alberta’s Securities Act is that dealers, advisers, and investment fund manager of securities must be registered with the ASC.

ASC says that this includes firms and individuals that:

Those registered are burdened with the duty of care, which requires registrants to deal fairly, honestly, and in good faith with their clients.

Exemption of registration

However, there are certain entities that do not need to be registered, according to the Alberta Securities Act (which are mostly the same with the other provinces).

For example, below are some entities or transactions that are exempt from this registration requirement:

In any case, the ACS may also exempt someone from the registration requirement when it is not prejudicial to the public interest.

However, to better understand the language of the law if an entity must be registered or not, it is still important to consult with a corporate finance lawyer.

Trading in securities and derivatives

Canadian laws on securities and derivatives prescribe certain requirements and prohibitions to traders or dealers.

Some examples of prohibition under the Securities Act of Alberta are:

Prospectus requirement and exemptions

When an issuer trades in securities, they are required to do so through what is called a prospectus, unless they are exempted by the Alberta Securities Act.

A prospectus is a document which shall reveal everything that an investor needs to know regarding the transaction.

This will be first filed with the ASC, which will issue a receipt showing that the offer has been properly reviewed.

Who does the Alberta Securities Act apply to?

Broadly speaking, the Alberta Securities Act apply to the three sides of an investment or securities deal:

When in doubt, it would be more prudent for any of these participants to check with a corporate finance lawyer to stay compliant with the Act.

Who regulates securities in Alberta?

The regulatory body for securities in the province is the ASC, which mainly implements the province’s securities law, which includes the:

For instance, to address different matters and parties, the ASC has the power to issue the following:

ASC is also a member of the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA), the umbrella body composed of all the provincial and territorial securities commissions.

With harmonization of securities regulation across Canada under the CSA, the ASC also implements regulatory instruments as part of its rules, such as the:

The Alberta Securities Act: protecting investors and markets

The Alberta Securities Act plays an important role in safeguarding the interests of investors and maintaining the integrity of the financial markets in Alberta. Understanding this act is essential for anyone involved in securities in Alberta, whether they are issuing, trading, or advising on investments.

For further insights into how this legislation affects your investments or business, consult a corporate finance lawyer in your area.

For more on Alberta’s Securities Act and other similar laws, reach out to the best corporate finance lawyers in Canada as ranked by Lexpert.

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