Private Placement Trends: OSC Publishes Report On Exempt Market Activity

In December 2020, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) published  OSC Staff Notice 45-717 Ontario's Exempt Market, a report on capital raising activity by corporate (non-investment fund) issuer's in Ontario's exempt market between 2017 and 2019 (the Exempt Market Report).

What is the Exempt Market?

Generally, securities offered to the public in Ontario must be offered under a "prospectus", which provides details of the issuer and securities being offered and is filed with the relevant securities commissions. However, there are some exceptions to this rule that allow securities to be offered without a prospectus, called "prospectus exemptions". These prospectus exemptions can help an issuer raise money from investors without the time and expense of preparing and filing a prospectus.