On November 19, 2021, the Honourable Peter Bethlenfalvy, Minister of Finance of Ontario, requested that the Ontario Securities Commission (the OSC) undertake an analysis of questions regarding the practice of tied selling raised by the Capital Markets Modernization Taskforce (the Taskforce) in their consultation in 2020. In response, on November 30, the OSC issued OSC Staff Notice 33-753 OSC Consultation on Tied Selling and other Anti-Competitive Practices in the Capital Markets (the Notice).
The Notice requested submissions and supporting evidence and analysis from issuers, dealers and other market participants as well as from investors and other stakeholders in order to establish the extent to which tied selling may be impeding competition. More specifically, the Taskforce identified concerns that certain commercial lenders might be engaging in practices that impede competition such as where a lender requires issuer clients to retain the services of a dealer or adviser affiliate of the lender for their capital raising and/or advisory needs as a condition of entering into a commercial transaction, or vice versa.
The Notice included a series of specific questions that the OSC would like feedback on from academic and regulatory experts and professional advisors. The OSC asked to receive submissions in response to the Notice by January 10, 2022. The OSC then plans to incorporate the submissions in its report to the Minister by February 28.
January 29, 2021