By James Langton

(January 4 – 12:30 ET) – Late last year, TD Waterhouse Investors Services (Canada) Inc. received regulatory relief allowing it to remove the suitability review from client orders.

TD Waterhouse Investor Services (Canada) Inc. will operate a separate division, known as TD Waterhouse Direct, for investors who don’t require advice.

TD Waterhouse Direct will be a distinct internal operating division of the discount brokerage firm, and it will operate uacross the country using its own letterhead, accounts, Registered Representatives and account documentation.

TD Waterhouse Direct and its reps will not provide advice or recommendations. Clients who request advice will be referred to another division of TD Waterhouse, or to another dealer. TD Waterhouse Direct also will not compensate its reps on the basis of transactional values.

Thanks to the regulatory relief, TD Waterhouse Direct and its reps will no longer be required determine the general investment needs and objectives of the client or the suitability of a proposed trade.

The decision follows on the heels of a general decision by regulators last year to offer exemption relief, and several other firms have already taken advantage of the new policy.

Some small dealers complain that the stringent requirements for relief prevent them from competing. The Investment Dealers Association is said to be working on some form of relief for full-service dealers too, on trades completed without advice.