Order

WHEREAS on December 13, 2022, the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (the “MFDA”) issued a Notice of Settlement Hearing pursuant to section 24.4 of MFDA By-law No. 1 in respect of Queen Financial Group Inc. (the “Respondent”);

AND WHEREAS the Respondent entered into a settlement agreement with Staff of the MFDA (“Staff”), dated December 12, 2022 (the “Settlement Agreement”), in which the Respondent agreed to a proposed settlement of matters for which the Respondent could be disciplined pursuant to ss. 20 and 24.1 of MFDA By-law No. 1;

AND WHEREAS Staff and the Respondent made a joint request pursuant to Rule 2.2(1)(a) of the MFDA Rules of Procedure (the “ROP”) for the abridgement of the ten day notice period required by Rule 15.2 of the ROP in order to permit the Hearing Panel to proceed with the Settlement hearing on December 15, 2022;

AND WHEREAS on the basis of admissions made by the Respondent in the Settlement Agreement, the Hearing Panel is of the opinion that between January 1, 2017 and April 6, 2020, the Respondent approved and allowed the sale of seven exempt products (the “Products”) without using adequate due diligence to understand the material attributes, features and risks of the Products and ensuring that the Products offered to clients were suitable, contrary to MFDA Rules 2.2.1(c)[1] and 2.1.1.

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT the ten day notice period required according to Rule 15.2 of the ROP is abridged in accordance with Rules 1.3, 1.5 and 2.2(1)(a) of the ROP and the Settlement Agreement is accepted, as a consequence of which:

1. The Respondent shall pay a fine in the amount of $30,000 on the date of this Order, pursuant to s. 24.1.2(b) of MFDA By-law No. 1.
2. The Respondent shall pay costs to the MFDA in the amount of $7,500 on the date of this Order, pursuant to s. 24.2 of MFDA By-law No. 1.
3. If at any time a non-party to this proceeding, with the exception of the bodies set out in section 23 of MFDA By-law No. 1, requests production of or access to exhibits in this proceeding that contain personal information as defined by the MFDA Privacy Policy, then the MFDA Corporate Secretary shall not provide copies of or access to the requested exhibits to the non-party without first redacting from them any and all personal information, pursuant to Rules 1.8(2) and (5) of the MFDA Rules of Procedure.

[1]On December 31, 2021, MFDA Rule 2.2 was amended to conform with client focused reforms to National Instrument 31-103.  As the conduct addressed in this proceeding pre-dated the Rule amendments, the contravention in this proceeding is of the version of Rule 2.2 that pre-dated the December 31, 2021 amendments.