The British Columbia Securities Commission published its latest Compliance Report Card, summarising a 2024 selective review of B.C. registered firms’ compliance with the Client Focused Reforms, including know-your-client, know-your-product and suitability requirements. The review found that some firms still have material gaps, most commonly in know-your-client and suitability practices. Across 19 compliance reviews, the BCSC identified 130 deficiencies, averaging 6.84 per review. Know-your-client and suitability issues were most frequent, followed by deficiencies in policies and procedures and conflicts of interest. The work also noted an increasing number of deficiencies in annual financial statement submissions, which are required within 90 days of a firm’s annual year-end and can indicate broader compliance issues. Significant failures resulted in terms and conditions on registration, including requirements to hire a compliance monitor and restrictions on onboarding new clients until issues were corrected; the BCSC also took compliance action against two dealer firms (one suspended and one that voluntarily terminated its registration) and referred four firms to the Enforcement Division for further investigation.

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