Saskatchewan government now regulating financial advisers and planners
Until now there were no restrictions for who could call themselves a financial adviser or planner
Anyone who calls themselves a financial adviser or financial planner in Saskatchewan will now be regulated by the province.
The Financial Planners and Financial Advisers Act was signed into law on Friday.
"This legislation will protect consumers and investors by ensuring that persons using these titles have the appropriate credentials and education," said Justice Minister Don Morgan when the bill was introduced in December.
Up until now, there were no restrictions for who could call themselves a financial adviser or planner in Saskatchewan.
The province still has to flesh out some major details, including the exact definition of what a financial adviser or planner is.
That could mean everybody, including financial advisers with major banking institutions, will have to be screened by a regulatory body to ensure they have the proper credentials that the province decides on.
"We believe there has to be some kind of standard out there so that when someone calls themselves a financial adviser, or they call themselves a financial planner, individuals understand what that means and that's what this legislation will do," said Greg Pollock, president of Advocis, the Financial Advisers Association of Canada.
Pollock said he doesn't think people pretending to be financial advisers is a pervasive problem but his organization polled about 800 Saskatchewan residents.
More than half (51 per cent) of respondents thought financial advisers and planners were already regulated in the province.
Pollock said a large majority of those respondents said they would support legislation that regulates the titles of financial advisers and planners.
"We just believe that all all Canadians, whether they be in Saskatchewan or elsewhere should know clearly who they're dealing with when they're dealing with their own personal finances," said Pollock.
Saskatchewan follows on the heels of Ontario, which passed similar legislation in May 2019.
The province's Financial and Consumer Affairs Authority now has to decide which organizations will be responsible for regulating and providing credentials for financial planners and advisers.
Pollock said Advocis will apply to the province to be one of the credentialing bodies when that process happens.