Innovation Office fully operational allowing for experimentation of new business models

TORONTO – The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) announced today that its Office of Economic Growth and Innovation (Innovation Office) is up and running, ready to support and encourage innovative business models.

The Office provides innovative businesses with flexible approaches to meeting regulatory requirements. These services include time-limited registrations, exemptive relief, informal guidance on securities laws, and other tailored support through the business support program, all available on a newly launched interactive website, www.oscinnovation.ca.

The Office has also launched its own social media channels to provide regular updates to key stakeholders and gather feedback from the market. This engagement activity will be complemented with interactive engagement tools, a commitment to modernizing regulation and the launch of an Ontario-focused testing environment in the coming months. The Office will provide educational resources to make it easier for innovation ecosystem participants to understand securities laws, raise or invest capital, and serve novel businesses.

The Office will build new ties with regional innovation centres, incubators, accelerators, venture capital firms and angel investors to ensure outreach and engagement with start-ups and innovative businesses in Ontario. Other services include a beta directory to help connect service providers with eligible businesses for advice that falls outside of the responsibility of securities regulators.

This ongoing work stems from the Ontario Government’s five-point capital markets plan to lower business costs, promote Ontario internationally, attract skilled workers and create further confidence in the capital markets and financial services.

“We are responding to accelerating change in financial markets in a way that is both novel and will help Ontario companies compete and succeed. The Innovation Office has the depth and breadth to keep pace and engage with businesses in a way that will support a strong Ontario innovation ecosystem,” said Grant Vingoe, Chair and CEO of the OSC.

Pat Chaukos, Director of the Innovation Office added, “Our team has one goal and that is to be a catalyst in innovative regulation that promotes confidence and economic growth. We will deliver through our expertise in modernizing regulation, capital raising, lowering business costs, and new financial intermediation technologies and services.”

The mandate of the OSC is to provide protection to investors from unfair, improper or fraudulent practices, to foster fair and efficient capital markets and confidence in the capital markets, and to contribute to the stability of the financial system and the reduction of systemic risk.  Investors are urged to check the registration of any persons or company offering an investment opportunity and to review the OSC investor materials available at http://www.osc.ca.

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