Ontario Securities Commission chairman David Wilson announced today the appointments of Margot Howard and Kevin Kelly as commissioners, effective December 6, 2006. Both appointments are for two years.

“Ms. Howard and Mr. Kelly have had long and distinguished careers and are very knowledgeable about the capital markets,” Wilson said in a release. “I know we will benefit from their expertise and experience, in particular with respect to investment products and the interests of retail and institutional investors”

Margot Howard is a chartered financial analyst with 15 years’ investment experience and extensive knowledge of the Canadian markets. Most recently, Howard was a portfolio manager with AMI Partners, where she focused on investing in Canadian companies. She is an active member of the CFA Institute and Women in Capital Markets and holds an MBA degree from the University of Western Ontario.

Kevin Kelly has more than 30 years’ experience in the financial services industry. He served as president of Fidelity Brokerage Co., president and chief executive officer of Fidelity Investments Canada Ltd., and president of Fidelity’s Institutional Services Co. Prior to this, Kelly was the president and chief executive officer of a number of prominent Canadian companies, including Bimcor Inc., the Investment Corp. of Saskatchewan, and Midland Walwyn Capital Corp. Kelly holds a bachelor of commerce degree from Dalhousie University.

As the regulatory body responsible for overseeing the capital markets in Ontario, the Ontario Securities Commission administers and enforces the provincial Securities Act and the provincial Commodity Futures Act and administers certain provisions of the provincial Business Corporations Act. The commission’s mandate is to provide protection to investors from unfair, improper or fraudulent practices and to foster fair and efficient capital markets and confidence in their integrity.