Updates to the Investment Fund Survey for 2024 and launch of IFS Data Dashboard

The annual Investment Fund Survey (IFS) collects comprehensive information and data about the Canadian investment fund industry and is a key tool that allows staff of the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) to monitor investment fund exposure to various market segments. The IFS is also used as a risk framework to help OSC staff identify higher-risk investment funds within the Canadian investment funds market.

Staff continue to streamline and reconcile the IFS with other data requests while maintaining comprehensive oversight of the Canadian investment fund industry in order to perform key regulatory functions within the mandate of the OSC.

As part of these efforts, staff will be amending the January 2024 version of the IFS as follows:

• Investment fund managers (IFMs) registered in Ontario will be required to complete the IFS for all investment funds for which they act as the IFM, including labour-sponsored investment funds and scholarship plans. The IFS will no longer only be required for funds that exceed the minimum net asset threshold of $10 million.
• For each investment fund, IFMs will be required to report the following information, as applicable:
  • annual net performance return
  • management expense ratio (MER) of the series or class with the highest MER
  • performance fee charged, if any
  • termination date for any investment funds that may have been closed, merged, or sold during the calendar year
  • risk rating.

In addition, in order to promote greater transparency and accountability, as well as to support open data initiatives in Ontario, historical IFS data is being published in an aggregated manner that protects IFM confidentiality via an online dashboard.

For further information about the IFS, please refer to the IFS page on the OSC's website.

Questions:

[email protected]