The Ontario Securities Commission has approved a memorandum of understanding between the securities regulatory authorities of the other provinces and territories and the Canadian Investor Protection Fund.

The MOU amends and restates an existing MOU, dated July 1991. The purposes for amending and restating the MOU are to: reflect current practices; streamline CIPF’s reporting process; more clearly establish how the securities administrators will rely on CIPF for oversight of the self-regulatory organizations’ financial compliance function; and reflect CIPF’s corporate structure change from a trust to a not-for-profit corporation.

The Ontario Securities Commission, the Alberta Securities Commission, the British Columbia Securities Commission, the Nova Scotia Securities Commission, the Saskatchewan Securities Commission, the Office of the Administrator of Securities (New Brunswick), and CIPF have executed the MOU. The MOU is with the remaining Securities Administrators for execution.

The commission also granted and continued the approval of CIPF in an approval order dated Oct. 17, 2002.

The MOU is subject to the approval of the Minister of Finance. The MOU was sent to the Minister on January 20.