The logo for Canaccord Genuity is shown in Toronto on Wednesday, March 8, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Staff
The Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization has confirmed a settlement involving sanctions against Canaccord Genuity Corp. regarding trading supervision.
The subsidiary of Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. acknowledged a failure to comply with risk management and control obligations related to market access by certain direct electronic access clients from January 2017 to March 2021. As part of the settlement, Canaccord has agreed to a fine of $475,000 and to cover costs amounting to $25,000.
The compliance failure specifically pertained to two clients who executed more than 10,000 trades, where there was seemingly no alteration in economic ownership—a practice known as "wash trades." These transactions, involving buying and selling securities without a genuine change in beneficial ownership, have the potential to mislead investors about trading volume and interest in a security.
Canaccord stated its full cooperation in the investigation, expressed satisfaction in resolving the matter, and highlighted the implementation of significant improvements to its trade surveillance capabilities.
