New Crowdfunding Regime Adopted By Five Provinces

On November 5, 2015, securities regulators in five provinces published in final form Multilateral Instrument 45-108 Crowdfunding (MI 45-108) setting out rules that will provide a new way for businesses to raise capital over the internet. The rules are aimed at facilitating small investments made through online portals, a practice that has become known as "equity crowdfunding". The regulators anticipate that the regime will be of greatest use to small- and medium-sized businesses, including both reporting and non-reporting issuers.

The five provinces that are implementing the new rules are Manitoba, Ontario, Québec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, and are referred to herein as the "participating provinces". The planned effective date is January 25, 2016.