BCBCA Amendments: Transparency Register To Track Significant Individuals

Effective May 1, 2020, all private companies existing under the Business Corporations Act (British Columbia) (BCBCA), will be required to establish and maintain a transparency register of "significant individuals." The requirement for this new register follows recent changes to the Canada Business Corporations Act relating to registers of individuals with significant control, and implement British Columbia (B.C.)'s commitments under the federal/provincial Agreement to Strengthen Beneficial Ownership Transparency, aimed at increasing ownership transparency to prevent the misuse of B.C. companies for criminal activities, such as money laundering and tax evasion. We anticipate other provinces will create similar requirements in due course.   For more information on the Canada Business Corporations Act's changes relating to registers of individuals with significant control, please see our November 2019 Blakes Bulletin: Beneficial Ownership: New Developments.