NIN 2000/49 - Development of Exemptions with Alberta [NIN - Rescinded]

The British Columbia and Alberta securities commissions have agreed to examine and, where appropriate, harmonize certain registration and prospectus exemptions in British Columbia and Alberta. Our goal is to create and maintain an exemption regime that will permit issuers to raise capital more easily while not compromising investor protection.

We are prepared to establish entirely new exemptions as well as to modify or discard certain existing registration and prospectus exemptions.

As part of this process, the Commission and the Alberta Securities Commission (the “ASC”) are reviewing the proposed new exemption rules recently published for comment by the Ontario Securities Commission (the “OSC”) in proposed OSC Rule 45-501 - Exempt Distributions and expect to provide joint comments to the OSC regarding the OSC Rule by the deadline of December 8, 2000. The joint comment letter of the Commission and the ASC will be available at our respective websites at www.bcsc.bc.ca and www.albertasecurities.com.

The OSC Rule, if adopted, may affect transactions involving issuers, investors and registrants in British Columbia. For that reason, we encourage affected market participants in British Columbia to provide comments to the OSC in response to the OSC Rule. The OSC Rule, related forms and a companion policy can be found at the OSC website at www.osc.gov.on.ca. We also request that any comment letters in response to the OSC Rule be copied to the Commission and the ASC at the addresses provided below.

The Commission and the ASC will be seeking input from various market participants during this exemption project. At this point, the Commission seeks comments from interested parties on the effectiveness of, and any problems associated with, the registration and prospectus exemptions that are currently available in British Columbia, including the:

• private issuer exemption under section 75(a) of the Securities Act
• $97,000 exemption under section 74(2)(4) of the Act
• 50 purchasers exemption under section 128(a) of the Securities Rules
• $25,000 - sophisticated purchaser exemption under section 128(b) of the Rules
• $25,000 - registrant required exemption under section 128(c) of the Rules
• friends and relatives exemption under section 128(h) of the Rules

Comments are also welcome respecting any of the other registration and prospectus exemptions currently available under the Act or Rules or any proposed new exemptions that the Commission and the ASC might consider adopting.

Interested parties are encouraged to direct written comments by December 15, 2000 to:

Brenda Benham
Director
Policy and Legislation
British Columbia Securities Commission
Email: bbenham@bcsc.bc.ca
(604) 899-6635
Before Dec 01/2000: 200, 865 Hornby Street
Vancouver, British Columbia V6Z 2H4
After Dec 02/2000: P.O. Box 10142, Pacific Centre
9th Floor, 701 West Georgia Street
Vancouver, British Columbia V7Y 1L2

Denise F. Hendrickson
Legal Counsel
Alberta Securities Commission
Phone: (403) 297-2648
E-mail: denise.hendrickson@seccom.ab.ca
4th Floor, 300 Fifth Avenue, S.W.
Calgary, Alberta T2P 3C4


DATED at Vancouver, British Columbia, on November 2, 2000.


Adrienne Salvail-Lopez
Commissioner

Ref : Proposed OSC Rule 45-501
Securities Act, sections 74(2)(4) and 75(a)
Securities Rules, sections 128(a), (b), (c) and (h)

This NIN may refer to other documents. These documents can be found at the B.C. Securities Commission public website atwww.bcsc.bc.cain the Commission Documents database or the Historical Documents database.