A hearing panel of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) has accepted a settlement agreement, with sanctions, between IIROC staff and Maison Placements Canada Inc.

With this agreement, Maison Placements has admitted that it failed to comply with its best price obligation, and did not adopt policies and procedures to ensure compliance with this obligation, contrary to the Universal Market Integrity Rules (UMIR).

Maison Placements has agreed to a $95,000 fine and to pay $5,000 in costs.

Specifically, Maison Placements agreed that it failed to:

  • Make reasonable efforts to ensure that orders were executed at the best price, contrary to UMIR 5.2 and UMIR Policy 5.2; and
  • Have adequate policies and procedures in place to ensure reasonable efforts were made to execute orders at the best price, contrary to UMIR 7.1 and UMIR Policy 7.1.

The violations occurred between December 2008 and January 2011. IIROC began its investigation into Maison Placements’ conduct in October 2010. Maison Placements Canada Inc. is currently an IIROC-regulated firm.