In outlining its three-year priorities, the CSA, the umbrella organization of all provincial and territorial securities regulators, said it is considering a regulatory framework for crypto-asset trading platforms that would be subject to securities or derivatives regulation. The CSA said some of these platforms are, in fact, subject to securities regulation. In addition, the CSA also said it would analyze the extent of activist short selling behaviour including how these short sellers use social media.(BetaKit)

Talking point: There are currently no platforms facilitating the secondary trading of crypto-assets that are regulated in Canada. The CSA has sought input from Canadian fintechs on a regulatory framework in the past, but it hasn’t moved forward with regulation. A clear regulatory regime would also protect investors from fraud. Investors have lost money due to a lack of regulations in the past; one notable example is QuadrigaCX, which was incorporated in British Columbia. It owes US$190 million to about 115,000 customers after its founder, Gerald Cotten, died in December 2018, and no one could access his encrypted laptop. There are no Canadian laws that prevent running a crypto exchange from a laptop without independent oversight.