British Columbia Financial Services Authority sets out Mortgage Services Act rollout and regulatory alignment priorities for mortgage brokers

The British Columbia Financial Services Authority published a transcript of a fireside chat with CEO Tolga Yalkin at Mortgage Professionals Canada, setting out the rationale for replacing the 50-year-old Mortgage Brokers Act with the Mortgage Services Act and outlining a practical approach to implementation. The remarks frame the new Act as an update designed for a larger, more complex and faster-moving mortgage market, with rollout intended to be shaped through ongoing engagement with the sector. BCFSA has established a Technical Working Group to support implementation and said it will focus on clear provincial expectations through plain-language guidance and targeted education, while recognising brokers’ need to navigate overlapping provincial rules, federal anti-money laundering requirements and, in some cases, securities oversight. Coordination with Mortgage Broker Regulators’ Council of Canada partners is intended to reduce duplication, including by aligning continuing-education focus areas for multi-jurisdiction registrants. The CEO also highlighted enforcement focus on persistent issues including unlicensed activity, fraud and AML-related problems, alongside guidance and education, and set out fee-setting principles of fairness, proportionality and predictability, with periodic updates intended to align sector fees to regulatory costs and the risk profile of different business models.