To beat money laundering, check ID – Financial Post Op-Ed
On Nov. 30, the B.C. government launched the world’s first publicly accessible registry of beneficial ownership of land, requiring disclosure of the people behind the companies, trusts and partnerships that own B.C. property (and who therefore benefit from such ownership). For implementing this new weapon to combat money laundering, the B.C. government deserves praise and thanks.
Unfortunately, in its present condition, the registry will do little to deter the world’s criminals from laundering their dirty money in B.C. real estate. That’s because it’s missing the most important element — verification of the identity of the beneficial owners listed on the registry. To understand why “verification of identity” is essential to the…
Climbing Out of COVID
New C.D. Howe Institute Book Chronicles COVID-19 Policy Insights A new book from the C.D. Howe Institute provides an overview of the Institute’s critical policy recommendations made in response to the developing COVID-19 pandemic. “Climbing Out of COVID” compiles communiqués from the Institute’s Crisis Working Groups, as well as Intelligence Memos and op-eds, published up […] BC’s Public Registry to Combat Money Laundering: Broken on Arrival
Money Launderers Will Easily Dodge Detection under New BC Public Land Registry British Columbia’s new public land registry has significant flaws that greatly undermine its ability to help investigators detect money laundering in BC real estate. In “BC’s Public Registry to Combat Money Laundering: Broken on Arrival” Kevin Comeau lays out the changes that should be […] Koeppl, Kronick – An Open Banking Playbook
From: Thorsten Koeppl and Jeremy M. Kronick To: Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Finance Date: September 25, 2020 Re: An Open Banking Playbook Open banking may not seem like a pressing matter in the middle of a global pandemic, but it is exactly the type of productivity-enhancing file that can stimulate the economic recovery. Every time a person or business […] Open Banking in Canada – The Path to Implementation
Open Banking Holds Promise, Risks for Consumers The path towards safe and secure implementation of open banking should be guided by three consumer-focused pillars: generating value for consumers, building secure infrastructure for data sharing, and improving the regulatory framework to protect consumers. Authors Thorsten V. Koeppl and Jeremy Kronick lay out a roadmap to guide […] Joanne De Laurentiis – The Case For Speedy Reform Of The Self-regulatory Organizations Function
From: Joanne De Laurentiis To: Canadian Securities Administrators Date: July 28, 2020 Re: The Case for Speedy Reform of the Self-Regulatory Organizations Function The case for streamlining the stratified, overlapping regulatory bodies overseeing the operations of dealers and advisors providing financial advice to consumers has been proven and accepted by regulators. In their recent request […] Investir Notre épargne En Accord Avec L’urgence Climatique – La Presse Opinion
Nos choix de placements peuvent accélérer les changements exigés par l’urgence climatique. Heureusement, les institutions financières développent des produits plus amicaux pour la planète. La finance durable s’impose comme nouvelle norme.
Les entreprises qui composent les grands indices boursiers génèrent des gaz à effet de serre (GES) cadrant avec un réchauffement climatique de 3,5 à 5 degrés. L’indice du marché canadien TSX60, où le secteur pétrolier est fortement représenté, correspond à un scénario de 4,6 degrés, estime Mirova, filiale de la banque d’investissement Natixis.
Que faire alors ? Le réflexe de larguer les actions des pétrolières réussit davantage à nous donner bonne conscience qu’à réduire les GES.…
James A. Haley – Securing The Recovery
From: James A. Haley To: Canada’s Policymakers Date: June 23, 2020 Re: Securing the Recovery COVID-19 threatens the economic security of all Canadians. It has already led to massive unemployment; it could yet unleash a wave of business failures. Existing bankruptcy frameworks resolve creditor coordination problems and promote orderly restructurings. They are not designed to deal with an […] Guidelines and Creativity Key to Restoring Financial Confidence: Crisis Working Group on Monetary and Financial Measures
June 22, 2020 – Governments and regulators should set out guidelines to allow for creativity in encouraging investments, such as a “sandbox” where innovative approaches can be tested, according to a new C.D. Howe Institute working group report.
The C.D. Howe Institute Crisis Working Group on Monetary and Financial Measures argues such measures would increase the confidence of lenders and investors when engaging with businesses.
The group, co-chaired by David Dodge, former Governor of the Bank of Canada, and Mark Zelmer, former Deputy Superintendent, OSFI, also tackled issues such as the underwhelming uptake of certain support measures offered by governments, uncertainty on future policy responses to the pandemic,…
Don’t Force Canadian Banks To Cut Dividends – Financial Post Op-ed
Banks are often in the political and regulatory crosshairs during times of economic stress, and COVID-19 is no different. Support for the payments system and credit markets can look like support for banks themselves. And supports for businesses are controversial. Few people want to prop up firms with no future and nobody wants government credit or transfer payments to fund executive bonuses or flow to shareholders through share buybacks or unsustainable dividends. Canada’s banks have just reported weak second-quarter earnings. Laurentian Bank just cut its dividend. Should the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) ask other Canadian banks to do the same?
If they did, they would be following a trend. The…
Randy Bauslaugh – Esg Investing Will Get A Boost From The Pandemic
From: Randy Bauslaugh To: Businesses and institutional investors Date: June 3, 2020 Re: ESG Investing Will Get a Boost from the Pandemic Pension fund fiduciaries and other institutional investors in Canada are increasingly using environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations to better understand and predict financial risks and opportunities. They have become, in recent years, […] Kronick, Robson – Making Sure Zombie Firms Aren’t Propped Up Post-covid
From: Jeremy M. Kronick and William B.P. Robson To: Bill Morneau, Minister of Finance Date: May 21, 2020 Re: Making sure zombie firms aren’t propped up post-COVID COVID-19 has put much of Canada’s economy on life support. As we emerge from the crisis and resume more normal activity, a challenge awaits. We do not want viable businesses to […]