The New Brunswick Securities Commission says that illegal distributions topped its list of securities enforcement cases last year.

According to statistics released today by the NBSC, illegal distributions, including unregistered trading and advising, accounted for 70% of new enforcement files opened in 2011. This is consistent with overall statistics reported by the Canadian Securities Administrators. Earlier this year the CSA said that illegal distributions made up 66% of concluded cases across the country.

The NBSC says that the enforcement cases it concluded in 2011 resulted in six companies and five individuals being ordered to pay almost $1.3 million in administrative penalties and $16,750 in costs. It also made various orders against 12 companies and 14 individuals which cease-traded operations, barred the use of exemptions or prohibited them from acting as an officer or director of an issuer. The majority of cases continue to relate to illegal distributions and the exempt market, it said.

“New Brunswickers can help us prevent illegal investment activity by becoming an informed investor,” said Rick Hancox, executive director of the NBSC. “Informed investors recognize the signs of potential investment fraud; know with whom they are investing; know whether their adviser is registered; know in what they are investing; and know where to report suspicious activity.”

“We rely on New Brunswickers to report suspicious investment activity to help prevent others from being taken in by investment fraud,” said Hancox. “Early reporting of suspicious activity helps us stop investment fraud before more New Brunswickers are harmed.”