The Canadian Advocacy Council (CAC) is an independent organization comprising of volunteers from across Canada representing over 21,000 CFA Institute members who are the primary market participants in Canada’s capital markets. It strives to advance market integrity, transparency, and investor protection, on behalf of CFA Societies Canada and Canadian CFA charterholders.
Recently, Shahenda El Gindi, CFA, who has also been a volunteer and Board member of CFA Montréal for many years, was appointed Vice-Chair of this important committee, which contributes to the advancement of our profession by publishing comment letters on proposed rules and notices.
Contributing to work of this importance—helping improve regulation and playing an active role in the evolution of the investment industry—must be highly motivating. We had the opportunity to ask Shahenda a few questions to better understand the CAC’s work and her role as Vice-Chair.
The CAC’s work gives us an opportunity to comment on proposed rules before they are finalized and to help shape initiatives that directly affect the framework governing the investment profession. That is what drew me to the Council. In addition, its members have extensive knowledge and experience, and I learn a great deal from them. It is also a meaningful way to give back to the community, which is very important to me.
I support the Chair and the team by helping set the agenda for our meetings and stepping in when the Chair is away. Much of my time goes into our consultation responses: helping decide which ones we take on, identifying members with the right expertise, and helping finalize the letters. I also chair the Nominations Committee, which focuses on maintaining a good mix of regions and expertise on the Council. As this is a volunteer group, most of the credit goes to the members who draft the responses on the issues we decide to address.
Three things are on our radar now. Cybersecurity standards — the rules are principles-based today, so we want clearer minimum expectations, shared tools, and a baseline that scales to the size of the firm. Retail private markets — as private assets reach retail investors, we need consistent performance calculation, clear valuation and governance standards, better cost transparency for exempt products, and standardized product data. And financial influencers — clearer rules for paid promotions, disclosure of pay and conflicts, stronger enforcement on misleading claims, and guidance on when an online recommendation becomes registrable activity.
We speak for the investor. Regulators hear plenty from firms. They hear less from practitioners on what actually works for the end investor. Our letters do not always change a rule, but they shape the discussion, and our points often show up in the final version. For members, it is also a way to take part in policy instead of just living with the outcome.
Learn more about the work of CFA Societies Canada
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