This article entitled “Why it may take ‘several years’ for the B.C. Securities Commission to collect more fines” was written by Graeme Wood on May 12, 2022 and published by the Times Colonist. In it, he reflects on the possibility of new tools provided to the BC Securities Commission (BCSC) in collecting outstanding fines. With a long history of garnering only a fraction of the $553 million debt owing to them year-over-year, the Director of Enforcement, Doug Muir explains that obtaining this balance is more challenging than it may seem. With nearly half of this sum considered difficult or impossible to retrieve, the BCSC focuses on $278 million, changing its course and enforcing more aggressive strategies with the hopes of increasing the rate of collection.
One caveat remains, as Muir points out, that these new practices will take time to reflect in revenue streams. The BCSC’s new powers include removing a 15-year limitation period on collection and targeting assets transferred to family members; however, there are hoops to jump through that may cause a delay of several years, putting the BCSC in competition with other creditors and forcing them into the lengthy process of litigating market violators.
So, after all is said and done, will the BCSC’s new powers change the tides of recollection? Only time will tell.