CSE tallies another record year in 2016; personnel, infrastructure additions strengthen 2017 outlook

Canadian Securities Exchange CEO Richard Carleton. — Photo: CSE

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Jan. 12, 2017) - The Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) is pleased to report record trading results for 2016 featuring triple-digit percentage growth in share turnover, value traded and number of transactions. As the year came to a conclusion, the CSE completed the integration of a completely new trading system. The system will provide a solid foundation for the future growth of the exchange with improved performance, new order types and features, and a suite of risk management and trade support capabilities that meet the needs of the global broker-dealer community.

• Trading volume in CSE listed securities rose 159% to a record 6.4 billion shares;
• Trading value in CSE listed securities was $1.5 billion, up 334%;
• CSE companies conducted 364 financings, raising just over $400 million, up 106% from 2015.

Trading volume and value records were driven by a significant increase in activity during the second half of the year, as specific market sectors attracted strong investor interest ahead of the presidential election in the United States. October-December was the busiest quarter in CSE history, with volume higher by 334% compared to the same period in 2015.

Investment in digital infrastructure was another key theme at the CSE in 2016, the introduction of a new website in spring being followed by the delivery of the exchange's new trading platform in early December. Trading platform upgrades include order routing and new compliance/risk management tools for dealers, as they strive to optimize their execution services for CSE listed company investors. The new system functions approximately 11 times faster than its predecessor version.

Personnel additions also played an important role in development at the CSE in 2016. Experienced team members were added in compliance, listings review and listings development, as well as at the board level. The CSE is positioned even more strongly as 2017 begins to provide pre-listing and ongoing review of financial and geological disclosure to applicants and existing issuers, thus helping ensure that companies listed on the CSE meet high standards of disclosure.

The exchange welcomed 38 new issuers during the year. Companies listing on the CSE came from a variety of business fields, including oilfield services, medical cannabis, mineral exploration and mobile technology. In a year during which the virtual absence of Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) in Canada made headlines on more than one occasion, the CSE welcomed five new companies via IPOs.

With trading platform enhancements and personnel additions complete, the CSE plans to devote considerable resources in 2017 to further augment order depth and overall market quality for its issuers. These efforts will include ongoing initiatives to inform the financial community about individual CSE issuers, as well as about the exchange and its commitment to facilitating Canada's lowest cost of public capital. Updated requirements for listed companies are under consideration and likely to be introduced during 2017.

"It is gratifying to consider the dramatic growth the CSE has experienced over the past few years, not just in number of issuers but in volume, market quality, and overall interest in our listing environment," said Canadian Securities Exchange CEO Richard Carleton. "We believe the CSE offers distinct benefits for small-cap companies considering a presence as a publicly traded entity. Our mission to reduce the financial and administrative costs faced by public companies is one that every member of the CSE team believes in, as it enables entrepreneurial companies to devote more resources to growing their businesses. We plan a variety of initiatives domestically and internationally during 2017 to reach new audiences and ensure as many people as possible know about the CSE's advantages."

The CSE encourages issuers and investors to learn more about the exchange's accomplishments in 2016 and to preview the 2017 business year through an interview with CEO Richard Carleton available on the CSE website: http://blog.thecse.com/2017/01/05/record-growth-evolving-marketplace-interview-richard-carleton/. Mr. Carleton discusses measures taken recently by the exchange to refine services for both investors and issuers, offers a market outlook for 2017 and details how the CSE plans to build on its recent success going forward.