MFDA Hearing Panel accepts settlement agreement with Vanessa Sjostrom

TORONTO, Jan. 22, 2021 /CNW/ - A settlement hearing in the matter of Vanessa Doreen Sjostrom ("Respondent") was held by electronic hearing on January 20, 2021, before a three-member Hearing Panel of the Pacific Regional Council of the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada ("MFDA").

The Hearing Panel accepted the settlement agreement dated December 31, 2020 ("Settlement Agreement") between Staff of the MFDA and the Respondent, as a consequence of which the following sanctions were imposed on the Respondent:

• a prohibition from conducting securities related business in any capacity while in the employ of, or associated with, a MFDA Member for a period of 3 years, commencing January 20, 2021;
• costs in the amount of $5,000; and
• shall in the future comply with MFDA Rule 2.2.1.

In the Settlement Agreement, the Respondent admitted that:

1. between about January 2009 and May 2016, she failed to ensure that investment recommendations she made to 7 clients to invest in precious metals sector mutual funds were suitable having regard to the risks associated with concentrating their investment portfolio in precious metals sector mutual funds, contrary to MFDA Rule 2.2.1; and
2. between January 2014 and October 2015, she did not fully explain the risks of investing in precious metals sector mutual funds to 5 clients, thereby failing to ensure that her recommendations were suitable for the clients and in keeping with their investment objectives, contrary to MFDA Rule 2.2.1.

A copy of the Settlement Agreement is available on the MFDA website at www.mfda.ca. During the period described in the Settlement Agreement, the Respondent conducted business out of the Campbell River, British Columbia area.

The MFDA is the self-regulatory organization for Canadian mutual fund dealers, regulating the operations, standards of practice and business conduct of its Members and their approximately 81,000 Approved Persons with a mandate to protect investors and the public interest. For more information about the MFDA's complaint and enforcement processes, as well as links to 'Check an Advisor' and other Investor Tools, visit the For Investors page on the MFDA website.

SOURCE Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada

Charles Toth, Vice-President, Enforcement, 416-943-4619, [email protected]; Jeff Mount, Vice-President, Pacific Region, 604-694-8846, [email protected]

Related Links

www.mfda.ca