The Securities Commission granted an exemption to an investment fund from the margin deposit limits set by National Instrument 81-102 Investment Funds (NI 81-102). The fund, managed by Accelerate Financial Technologies Inc., is allowed to deposit up to 35% of its net asset value (NAV) with any single futures commission merchant in Canada or the United States, and up to 70% of its NAV with all such merchants in aggregate. This is for transactions in standardized futures, exceeding the usual 10% limit.
The exemption is conditional on the fund’s margin deposits being held in segregated accounts, inaccessible to the dealers’ creditors. The fund’s objective is to provide exposure to bitcoin performance through bitcoin futures contracts, primarily traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
The decision was made under the securities legislation of Alberta and Ontario, with the Alberta Securities Commission as the principal regulator. The exemption was considered not to be prejudicial to the public interest and was granted to facilitate more efficient and flexible investment strategies for the fund, while simplifying management and reducing costs.