New Potential – CSA Amends Rules To Provide For Commodity Benchmarks

As we first mentioned approximately two years ago, a number of the securities regulatory authorities, including the Ontario Securities Commission, proposed changes to Multilateral Instrument 25-102 Designated Benchmarks and Benchmark Administrators, and its Companion Policy, to provide for a regime for commodity benchmarks and their administrators. The proposed amendments arose in part due to the allegations of manipulation of the London inter-bank offered rate back in 2012, which led to a loss of market confidence in the credibility of financial benchmarks in general. On June 29, the regulators announced that amendments to the Instrument are being adopted effective as of September 27, providing for the designation and regulation of commodity benchmarks and their administrators and stated that the amendments will codify international best practices. While the amendments are for the most part unchanged from the original proposals, there is now new guidance in the