Last week, the Canadian Securities Administrators released amendments to prospectus exemption rules relating to the short-term debt and short-term securitized products prospectus exemptions.
Ultimately the changes will, among other things, (i) change the requirements that short-term debt securities must satisfy in order to be distributed under the short-term debt prospectus exemption; (ii) make the short-term debt prospectus exemption unavailable for securitized products such as asset-backed commercial paper; and (iii) introduce a new short-term securitized products prospectus exemption. The new requirements for reliance on the amended short-term debt exemption include the imposition of a new "modified split rating condition", which will require that, in addition to satisfying the rating threshold condition (that the short-term debt has at least one credit rating at or above the prescribed threshold), the short-term debt not have any rating that is below those prescribed.
As we've previously discussed, these focused changes in respect of short-term securitized products are a retreat from the more comprehensive proposals to establish a new framework for the regulation of securitized products proposed in 2011.
Assuming Ministerial approvals, the changes will come into force on May 5, 2015. Notably, the CSA has also announced changes to the accredited investor and minimum amount investment prospectus exemptions.
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