Here are the top reads on deals and financial services from the past week,
Fined: Former star Bay Street money manager Ben Cheng was ordered to pay a $400,000 fine and banned from working at a senior level in the Canadian securities industry for six years, in an insider-trading settlement approved Friday by the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC). Story (Niall McGee, for subscribers)
Investing: Some of Canada’s largest institutional investors are concerned about the increased use of adjusted and inconsistent measures of financial results, saying more caution is needed – especially when the metrics are used to calculate compensation. Story (Jacqueline Nelson and Alexandra Posadzki, for subscribers)
Allegations: Market regulators targeted Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. with possible fines and suspension on Thursday, alleging the mutual fund firm overcharged clients by directing trades to its wholly owned dealer when rival firms offered better prices. Story (Andrew Willis, for subscribers)
Fined: Royal Bank of Canada has reached a $4.4-million settlement with a Brazilian regulator over a former trader’s role in a cartel that allegedly manipulated foreign-exchange rates. Story (James Bradshaw, for subscribers)
Venture capital : Toronto restaurant point-of-sale software provider TouchBistro Inc. is close to finalizing a deal that will see it raise more than $70-million in a venture financing led by OMERS Ventures and U.S. banking giant JP Morgan Chase & Co., The Globe and Mail has learned. Story (Sean Silcoff, for subscribers)
Fintech: Amid a digital revolution that is changing norms in nearly every industry, Royal Bank of Canada is investing heavily in a new division that will fundamentally alter the way it targets and attracts personal and commercial banking customers. Story (Tim Kiladze and James Bradshaw)
Media sector: Corus Entertainment Inc. CEO Doug Murphy took the stage on Wednesday to talk up his vision of the media company of the future. It was a pitch targeted at both investors and potential buyers of the TV and radio station owner, which has been put in play by major shareholder Shaw Communications Inc. Story (Andrew Willis, for subscribers)
Energy sector: Iron Bridge Resources Inc. is urging its shareholders to reject a $116-million hostile offer from privately held Velvet Energy Ltd., saying the suitor aims to wrest potentially big production from its key property on the cheap. Story (Jeffrey Jones, for subscribers)
Insider trading: Ontario’s securities watchdog has approved a settlement with Peter Volk over allegations that he traded on insider information while acting as general counsel for Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp. Story (Alexandra Posadzki, for subscribers)
CEO appointment: After 18 years as president and chief executive officer of iA Financial Group, industry veteran Yvon Charest is set to retire in September and pass the reins over to chief operating officer Denis Ricard. Story (Clare O’Hara, for subscribers)
On the block: Shaw Communications Inc. is attempting to sell its stake in broadcaster Corus Entertainment Inc. as part of a strategy to build a war chest for expansion of its Freedom Mobile wireless network. Story (Andrew Willis, for subscribers)
Energy merger: Quebec oil junior Junex Inc. is merging with Calgary’s Cuda Energy Inc., the latest driller to lose its independence in the French-speaking province as Premier Philippe Couillard’s government moves to tighten the rules on oil and gas exploration and production. Story (Nicolas Van Praet, for subscribers)
Pot sector: Tilray Inc. is looking to become the next big publicly traded medical cannabis producer. According to people familiar with the matter, the British Columbia-based company is working with BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc. and New York City-based investment bank Cowen and Co. on an initial public offering. Story (Christina Pellegrini and Andrew Willis, for subscribers)
Lawsuit: Richardson GMP has fired back at a former star broker suing the investment dealer for wrongful dismissal and demanding repayment of $2.1-million in loans while denying allegations it ignored his pleas to help him deal with substance abuse. Story (Jeffrey Jones, for subscribers)
Financing: A fast-growing Montreal startup hoping to bring the “sharing economy” to the office market has raised $60-million in a financing led by the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Singapore sovereign wealth fund Temasek and several U.S. venture capital firms. Story (Sean Silcoff, for subscribers)
Investing: Ten months after going public, Canaccord Genuity’s private-equity arm is close to taking over a business, allowing the investment bank to try its hand at an acquisition strategy that has felled some reputable Canadian names. Story (Tim Kiladze, for subscribers)
Regulation: Canadian securities regulators are providing additional clarity on what factors to consider when determining whether a particular cryptocurrency token offering contravenes securities laws. Story (Alexandra Posadzki, for subscribers)
Mining: Robert Friedland’s Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. is selling a minority stake to a Chinese state-owned firm, securing an important financing source, as uncertainty lingers over how a new African mining code could affect the Canadian base metals miner. Story (Niall McGee, for subscribers)
Fintech ventures: A new Canadian venture-capital fund focused on financial technology, and seeded by several top finance institutions operating in Quebec, has opened for business with $75-million in backing and two tech-sector veterans as partners. Story (Sean Silcoff, for subscribers)
Private equity fund targets asset managers: The torrent of asset-management industry tie-ups over the past few years put a spotlight on the largest players’ claims that size and scale hold the keys to success. But one Montreal family office is taking the opposite approach, betting that a new private-equity fund set to invest in North America’s smaller, niche money managers will lead to higher returns – even if a market meltdown is around the corner. Story (Jacqueline Nelson, for subscribers)
FRIDAY’S FINANCIAL SERVICES NEWS
Libor: Citigroup Inc. agreed on Friday to pay US$100-million to settle charges that its bankers manipulated an important interest rate used to price everything from credit cards to mortgages. Story
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