Market Regulation Services Inc. will hold a contested hearing next month to establish whether Royal Bank of Canada Dominion Securities Inc. and four of their senior employees took part in manipulative and deceptive trading on August 11, 2004.

The hearing, being held in Toronto at the offices of ADR Chambers Inc., is open to the public and will look into actions of Canadian equity derivatives managing director Ian McDonald, Canadian equity derivatives director David Singh, vice president Canadian equity derivatives Edward Boyd and senior equity and derivatives trader Peter Dennis. RS asserts RBC DS and the four individuals acted wrongly when the trades they made in shares of various banks resulted in no alteration of beneficial or economic ownership.

RS will release the decision of the hearing panel and the disciplinary measures taken in a disciplinary notice.