The Court of Appeal for British Columbia’s ruling in Bollhorn v. Lakehouse Custom Homes Ltd., 2023 BCCA 444 brings attention to a potential gap in the domestic arbitration scheme, stemming from the combined effect of the Arbitration Act (BC) (the Act) and the Vancouver International Arbitration Centre’s (VanIAC) Domestic Rules for Arbitration (the Rules). Mr….
An article by Pete Syme called, “Investigators cracked a $130 million money-laundering scheme by tracing the ringleader’s air miles” discusses how investigators tracked a money-laundering scheme by tracing a ringleader’s frequent flyer miles. The Wall Street Journey initially reported that over US$131 million in cash was smuggled between London and Dubai in 83 trips. UK’s…
On December 7, 2023, the CSA published a summary of the results from its second annual systemic risk survey. The results of this survey provide the CSA with important information on market participants’ concerns about the stability of the Canadian financial system. The CSA received responses to the survey from 489 Canadian portfolio managers and…
The British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) is offering rewards for tips on fraud and serious market misconduct. Whistleblowers are eligible to receive a financial award of $1,000 to $500,000. The BCSC provides information on its “About the Whistleblower Program” on its website.
In an article entitled “Man accused in $78 million pump-and-dump scheme files B.C. court petition,” the Vancouver Sun shares developments in recent court filings made by British businessman, Kevin Miller against the Law Society of British Columbia. A 2015 US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) complaint implicated Miller and others in artificially inflating stock prices…
In a recent announcement, the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) is adopting a new prospectus exemption for issuers listed on a Canadian stock exchange. The Listed Issuer Financing Exemption will provide issuers with a more efficient way to raise capital by reducing regulatory burden for small offerings while maintaining investor protection. To be eligible for the…
In a recently published article in BIV – Business Intelligence For British Columbia and entitled, “B.C couple still owes $19M despite bankruptcy, appeal court rules,” Graeme Wood shares developments in the case of Thalbinder Singh Poonian and Shailu Poonian, a British Columbian couple who are permanently banned from working in the capital markets after a…
BIV – Business Intelligence For British Columbia published Graeme Wood’s article entitled “Will B.C. adopt ‘McMafia’ law to combat money laundering?” on August 11, 2022. In his article, Wood compares the potential advantages and risks of Unexplained Wealth Orders (UWOs) in response to a growing number of large mansions on Richmond farmlands with alleged ties…
This article entitled “The Metaverse Is on the Way: Here’s What You Need to Know” was written by Andrew Morse and Scott Stein and published by CNET in March 2022. Plotting the trajectory of the Metaverse, Morse and Stein conclude that tech giants and developers have only scratched the surface. With an evolving definition, there…
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…