The Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) has finalized a rule that aims to facilitate capital raising among issuers in that province to investors outside Alberta, particularly in cross-border offerings.
The new rule, which was published for comment in April and will take effect on Aug. 31, will expand the exemptions issuers can utilize to distribute securities to foreign investors significantly, the ASC says in a notice published on Friday.
“The new rule principally addresses offerings made to investors outside of Canada, exempting issuers from the potentially duplicative application of Alberta prospectus and registration requirements where the offering materially complies with the securities laws of the foreign jurisdiction,” the notice states.
In addition, the new rule provides an exemption for distributions made under the offering memorandum (OM) exemption within Canada and it introduces prospectus exemptions for the resale of securities outside Canada for certain issuers.
“This will benefit Alberta stakeholders by consolidating all of the primary distribution and resale exemptions applicable in Alberta to cross border activities in one instrument,” the ASC’s notice says.
“This rule is a key part of the ASC’s business plan to deliver intelligent regulation that supports a thriving capital market for Alberta issuers,” said Stan Magidson, chairman and CEO of the ASC, in a statement. “It strikes the right balance between investor protection and facilitating cross-border offerings by avoiding the duplicative application of Alberta requirements, where the offering is subject to foreign securities laws.”