Canadian Securities Administrator investigations into fraud, market manipulation, insider trading and other violations resulted in more than $45 million worth of sanctions in the year ending March 2020.
The organization of provincial and territorial securities regulators said in that time period, four individuals received a total of 18 years and 11 months of jail terms for criminal cases, while eight people received 10 years and eight months of prison time for quasi-criminal cases.
The CSA concluded 23 fraud cases resulting in more than $3.3 million in penalties.
Almost 100 interim cease-trade and asset-freeze orders were issued across all of its cases, while 65 individuals and 33 companies were banned from participating in the capital markets.
The CSA says 66 alerts were released to warn the public about possible investment scams, most of which were linked to foreign businesses that are not registered to trade securities in the country but were targeting Canadian investors.
The CSA says it received 291 tips through its whistleblower program, which allows individuals to report possible securities laws violations.
