The Alberta Securities Commission will exempt certain market players from the new registration requirements for exempt market dealers, the regulator said Friday.

The ASC has issued a blanket order that will exempt a person trading in securities from the registration requirements when relying on certain commonly used prospectus exemptions, provided they comply with a “narrow set of conditions” laid out in the order.

To be exempt, individuals must not be registered or be required to be registered in any jurisdiction, must not offer suitability advice, and must not hold, or have access to, the purchaser’s assets.

In addition, exempt persons must obtain a signed risk acknowledgement form, and they must file a report to the ASC within 10 days of relying on exemption.

The order will come into effect on March 27, when the existing registration exemptions are repealed.

The commission notes that it issued the order after ASC staff reviewed and considered comments from Alberta market players prior to implementation of the national registration reform on September 28.

“During the comment period, it became obvious that there was a small subset of exempt market dealers for whom the requirements laid out in NI 31-103 were unnecessary and onerous considering the limited involvement they had in the exempt market,” says David McKellar, ASC’s director of market regulation.

“As a result, this blanket order offers relief to those who can meet its specific conditions while still offering protection to Alberta investors and market.”

IE