OBSI abandons jurisdiction over seg fund complaints

Proposed changes to the “terms of reference” applied by the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments would definitively remove segregated funds from the list of financial instruments falling under the dispute resolution body’s jurisdiction.

In a public consultation paper intended to solicit industry feedback, OBSI notes its current mandate is limited to investigating complaints about banking sector products and services, as well as those that fall under the jurisdiction of securities regulators.

Read: OBSI welcomes comments on governance reform

Further, it concedes those don’t currently include firms whose main business is “the provision of insurance products or services.”

To correct that, it’s proposed a modification to the definition of the term “Participating Firm” as well as incorporate what it calls the “affiliates concept.”

Read: OBSI details cases…and who’s complaining

“The greatest consequence of this change will be that OBSI will refer the investigation and analysis of segregated funds to the OmbudService for Life and Health Insurance (OLHI) even if they form a part of a larger portfolio that is the subject of a complaint to OBSI,” according to the consultation paper.

More to come.