Prof. Anita Anand is one of four independent experts named to an Ontario panel to review the regulations relating to financial advisers and planners, provincial finance minister Charles Sousa announced April 27th.
Anand’s research focuses on regulation of capital markets, and she is the inaugural chair of the Investor Advisory Panel to the Ontario Securities Commission. She also directs the Centre for the Legal Profession, which includes the innovative Program on Ethics in Law and Business.
Sousa said the panel review will enhance oversight in this sector, the province’s second-largest sector after manufacturing, based on output, as well as help investors and consumers "make informed investment and financial choices."
“[The] appointment of this expert committee reaffirms Ontario’s commitment to reform and strengthen the province’s financial services sector, protect investors and consumers, and bolster the stability and efficiency of financial markets,” said Sousa.
Currently, financial advisers and planners are not subject to general regulatory oversight, in contrast to many financial service sectors in Ontario. In its release, the government says this could leave consumers and investors vulnerable, and that this “review will focus on addressing this gap by examining more tailored regulations.”
In addition to Anand, the review panel also includes:
- Malcolm Heins (chair of expert committee), a lawyer, director and business advisor, who successfully reformed the regulation of paralegals during his tenure as the CEO ofthe Law Society of Upper Canada
- Paul Bates, a chartered professional accountant, Fellow of the Society of Management Accountants, a certified management consultant and the former chair of the Investor Education Fund, with experience in investor advocacy
- Lawrence Haber, executive chair of the board of Diversified Royalty Corp. and a special policy adviser to Ontario Securities Commission staff
A final report is expected in early 2016.
