General Ruling
Order 21-901 Market Facilitation Activities by Issuers in Their
Own Securities
On September 7, 2005 the Director granted
General Ruling Order 21-901
Market Facilitation Activities by Issuers in Their Own
Securities (“GRO 21-901”). GRO 21-901 grants the
necessary exemptions to permit an issuer to carry out certain
activities that facilitate trades in its own securities (“Market
Activities”).
The intention
of GRO 21-901 is to allow issuers to carry out Market Activities
to provide some liquidity for its security holders. Under GRO
21-901 an issuer may set up an information system that brings
buyers and sellers together so that they can complete their own
trades. Or an issuer may set up a system that completes trades
between buyers and sellers.
There a number
of eligibility criteria under GRO 21-901 including:
-
The issuer
must be a reporting issuer;
-
Its
securities must be not subject to resale restrictions;
-
The issuer
must file its continuous disclosure material on SEDAR; and
-
Its
securities must not be trading on an exchange or over the
counter market.
In carrying
out Market Activities an issuer must also comply with a number of
conditions, including:
-
It may
facilitate trades in only its own securities;
-
It must make
the Market Activities equally available to all of its security
holders and the public;
-
It must make
information about the Market Activities equally available to all
of its security holders and the public;
-
It must not
provide investment advice; and
-
It must act
honestly, fairly and in good faith.
September 7,
2005
Contact:
Dean
Murrison
Deputy Director, Legal and Registration
Saskatchewan Financial Services Commission
(306) 787-5879
dmurrison@sfsc.gov.sk.ca
