« Quebec securities regulator seeks compromise with provinces on takeover rules »

« Quebec’s market watchdog says it is pursuing talks with other provinces to try to strike a compromise on changes to Canada’s takeover bid and defensive tactics regulation.

“The vulnerability of our public companies is a Canadian problem, not only a Quebec one,” Louis Morisset, chief executive of the Autorité des marchés financiers, said in the text of a speech to the Canadian Club of Montreal Monday. “[We need to] re-establish a proper balance of power between a board of directors and an opportunistic buyer.”

The comments come amid a heightened public sensitivity toward hostile takeovers in Quebec as parties campaigning in the April 7 election vow to better protect head offices in the province. Montreal miner Osisko Mining Corp., the subject of an unsolicited $2.6-billion bid from Vancouver-based Goldcorp Inc., is playing up its local roots as it searches for a white knight.

“It’s urgent that after the election, Quebec’s finance minister convince his provincial counterparts of the merits of the Autorité’s proposals,” said Yvan Allaire, executive chair of Montreal’s Institute for Governance. “Unwanted takeovers are a Canadian issue. » » … Lire la suite