Here's what changes for fund managers relying on the Bank of Canada's repo backstop
The Ontario Securities Commission has extended, by 18 months, a rule letting investment funds tap the Bank of Canada's contingency repo facility.
The rule, OSC Rule 81-931, was made on July 21, 2026. It extends an existing exemption, Blanket Order 81-930, that has given investment funds relief from certain repurchase transaction rules since July 24, 2025.
That relief exists for one reason: to let funds draw on the Bank of Canada's Contingent Term Repo Facility, or CTRF, if the central bank ever activates it. The Bank of Canada built the CTRF to keep the financial system steady during severe, market-wide liquidity stress. Under the facility, the central bank would repurchase eligible fixed income securities issued or guaranteed by the Government of Canada or a provincial government, offering Canadian-dollar funding for up to 30 days.
Without this extension, the clock would have run out. The original blanket order was due to expire January 24, 2027, and under Ontario law it can't simply renew itself. Left alone, that gap would have put funds under Ontario's watch at a disadvantage, since equivalent blanket orders in other provinces stay in effect with no expiry date at all. The OSC flagged this as exactly the kind of unlevel playing field the extension is meant to avoid.
The new rule pushes the relief out to July 24, 2028. Any investment fund with exposure to Canadian-dollar money markets or fixed income securities can keep leaning on the CTRF as a liquidity backstop if conditions get rough.
Because this rule can't be extended again once it expires, the OSC published it alongside a separate CSA proposal aimed at making the relief permanent instead of temporary.
One step remains. The OSC handed the rule to Ontario's Minister of Finance on or about September 17, 2026. The minister can approve it, reject it, or send it back for another look. Assuming approval, or no action at all, the rule takes effect January 24, 2027 – the same day the current exemption would otherwise have run out.
For fund managers, the upshot is straightforward: the compliance relief you've operated under since mid-2025 isn't going anywhere. There's no gap to plan around, and no scramble needed if the Bank of Canada ever pulls the CTRF lever.
The full text of OSC Rule 81-931 Extension to Ontario Securities Commission Coordinated Blanket Order 81-930 Exemptions from Certain Repurchase Transactions Requirements for Investment Funds is available at https://www.osc.ca/en/securities-law/instruments-rules-policies/8/81-931/notice-commission-approval-osc-rule-81-931-extension-ontario-securities-commission-coordinated.
