As an investor, you may be receiving information in the mail about companies in which you have invested. You may be quite happy with that arrangement, but if you are not, rest assured there is something you can do.
When you first open an investment account, you are required to answer a couple of questions relating to receiving shareholder information. This is information that relates to the individual companies, trusts, mutual funds, etc. that you purchase in your investment account. Based on your answers to these questions, your account would have been “coded” with respect to how much information is or is not mailed to you.
If you are currently receiving information you don’t want, check with us. You can always change the coding on your account. We may have different options available as follows.
Option 1 – I want to receive only proxy-related materials sent in connection with a special meeting. I object to the disclosure of your ownership information securities issuers.
Option 2 – I want to receive all security holder materials and, you do not object to the disclosure of your ownership information securities issuers.
Option 3 – I want to receive only proxy-related materials sent in connection with a special meeting. I do not object to the disclosure of my ownership information to securities issuers.
Option 4 – I want to receive all security holder materials however, I object to the disclosure of my ownership information to securities issuers.
Option 5 – I decline to receive all security holder materials and, I object to the disclosure of my ownership information to securities issuers.
Option 6 – I decline to receive all security holder materials, however, I do not object to the disclosure of my ownership information to securities issuers.
If you enjoy reading information about the companies you have invested in then Option 2 or Option 4 are good choices. Reading this information may be prudent for people who do their own investing and do not have access to the internet.
If you are among the many people who do not read this information and tend to just throw it away, then you can easily arrange not to receive it. Before you make a final choice you should consider the environment and costs associated with mail coming to your postal box. Most of the information that is sent to shareholders is available in the “investor relations” tab on the company’s individual websites. Also, you may change your communication option at any time.
The concept of releasing ownership information may be confusing to some. When you open up an account with ScotiaMcleod the underlying investments are held directly by Scotia Capital, in trust for you. As a result, the underlying companies that you have purchased may not know who the direct purchaser is unless you consent for us to release this information.
The release of ownership information refers to your name, address, electronic mail address, securities holdings and preferred language of communication. The only way the underlying companies may send you information directly is if you consent for us to release your beneficial information.
The important thing to remember in all of this is that you need only receive information by mail if you want it. Contact us and we will be happy to help you make whatever arrangement in this regard that you desire.
For more information on all of this, search for “NOBO” or “National Instrument 54-101” under a search engine (i.e. google, yahoo).
