Thomson Carswell, the Canadian market leader in regulatory compliance solutions, today announces IRC Partner™, the first software-based solution uniquely designed to help Canada’s mutual fund sector meet new federal requirements.
Under National Instrument 81-107, every investment fund, which is a reporting issuer, must establish an Independent Review Committee (IRC) to oversee all fund manager decisions that involve an actual or perceived conflict of interest in the operation of the fund.
IRC Partner™ provides mutual fund managers with the framework and tools needed to rapidly set up their IRC, and to efficiently manage its ongoing operation. IRC Partner™ puts project planning templates, IRC member recruitment tools, a draft of a written IRC charter, committee policies and procedures, and standing instructions for dealing with a range of conflict issues in the hands of investment fund managers. As a result, IRC Partner™ is well suited for fund managers who want to balance the use of external consulting resources and reduce dependency on a third-party for compliance activities.
“Many fund managers have been caught off-guard by tight deadlines as the CSA moves forward with NI 81-107. The deadline of May 1st, 2007, for fund managers to have established an IRC for each fund, is already behind us”, says Bob Freeman, VP Strategic Market Groups, Thomson Carswell. “IRC Partner™ enables fund managers to quickly and cost-effectively get an IRC up and running before November’s deadline.”
By November 1, 2007, all investment funds that are reporting issuers must have their Independent Review Committee in full operation and capable of reporting any conflicts of interest. To facilitate this, IRC Partner™ offers a step-by-step, governance-based approach to take funds of all sizes from the initial set-up to establishing a sustainable framework for the ongoing operational requirements of NI 81-107. It provides a strong reporting capability with a full set of reporting formats and compliance dashboards. It is designed to make an IRC function more efficiently by reducing the amount of time required to evaluate conflicts and generate reports.
“IRC Partner™ significantly reduces the cost and business interruption associated with establishing and operating an IRC. By combining best practices templates with rapid data capture and documentation capabilities the result is a cost-saving solution for CSA NI 81-107 compliance”, says Don Van Meer, President and CEO, Thomson Carswell.
Thomson Carswell worked with Issues Central Inc., developers of financial compliance software solutions, along with leading providers of IRC professional governance services, to develop IRC Partner™. The result is an effective solution employing methodology, templates and functionality designed to assist funds in meeting compliance requirements in a timely and cost sensitive manner.
IRC Partner™ is available today in Canada. Visit www.carswell.com/areasofinterest/compliance.