Registration and compliance
The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) regulates firms and individuals who are in the business of advising or trading in securities or commodity futures, contracts and options, and firms that manage investment funds in Ontario. These firms and individuals are referred to as registrants.
The OSC also promotes compliance with the requirements of Ontario’s Securities Act and Commodities Futures Act, and any related rules and instruments. In addition, the OSC assists registrants to better understand and comply with their requirements.
Oversight of registered firms
The OSC oversees approximately 1,300 firms and 70,000 individuals in Ontario that trade or advise in securities, commodity futures contracts or options, or act as investment fund managers and monitors market participants for compliance with securities laws. Mutual fund dealers, investment dealers and futures commission merchants, and the individuals who act on their behalf, are directly overseen by their self-regulatory organization (SRO), the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO). The two predecessor SROs, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) and the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (MFDA) amalgamated to continue as the New Self-Regulatory Organization of Canada, effective January 1, 2023, which subsequently changed its name to CIRO on June 1, 2023.