BUSINESS WIRE- Toronto – Aequitas Connect, the innovation hub of Aequitas Innovations Inc. (Aequitas) today announced that four investment dealers are now signed on to Aequitas PTF Connect™, its fund technology platform that enables actively managed mutual funds to be transacted and settled like Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs). Four more will shortly be connected. A wide community of investment dealers, portfolio managers and investment advisors across Canada can now access PTFs through some of the largest Canadian correspondent dealers connected to the platform. Early adopters include: National Bank Financial; ITG Canada; Jitneytrade and BBS Securities.

“We are extremely proud to be able to work with some of the most reputable names in the industry to deliver a streamlined, low-cost solution to all Canadian investment advisors, portfolio managers and their clients. This is another example of innovation that puts the interests of Canadian investors first.”

“We are thrilled to be an early adopter of Aequitas PTF Connect and have been pleased with the streamlined process and operational efficiency of the platform,” stated Eric Côté, Chairman and General Manager of Jitneytrade, the most recent Canadian investment dealer to join the platform. “We experienced a flawless onboarding process and are very pleased to be part of such an innovative initiative. We look forward to the future growth of the platform.”

The successful connection of these dealers follows Aequitas Connect’s recent onboarding of Invesco Canada’s (Invesco) full range of PTFs that reduced investors’ mutual funds costs by up to 35%. Invesco’s PTFs have now reached $100 million in assets under management, with positions held for investors across seven Canadian investment dealers, including several Canadian bank-owned dealers.

Connection to Aequitas PTF Connect™ is free for all Canadian investment dealers and provides portfolio managers and investment advisors with ETF-like processing efficiency in actively managed mutual funds. Investment advisors simply enter the unique ticker symbol and number of units they wish to purchase or redeem through their existing securities trading systems.

“PTFs are a timely, practical, low-cost solution for Canadian investors that address prevailing industry challenges,” stated Christopher Enright, President and Managing Director, Aligned Capital Partners Inc. “As our industry undergoes significant reform and more advisors turn to a fee-based model to provide financial advice, access to low-cost, actively managed mutual funds that transact as easily as ETFs is a game changer for our industry. At Aligned Capital, we believe Aequitas PTF Connect™ follows our guiding principle to place our clients’ interests first and gives us access to new products that will help us meet their financial objectives. Congratulations to Aequitas Connect, Invesco and all the connected dealers for leading this fund innovation in Canada.”

Aequitas Connect was the first to launch this revolutionary mutual fund solution, thanks to the support of numerous service providers to the industry including Broadridge (BPS), CST Trust Company, IRESS and ITS. These vendors have participated in, and facilitated, live transactions on Aequitas PTF Connect™.

“With the onboarding of Invesco’s PTFs and a solid group of early adopter investment dealers, we have laid a strong foundation for the further growth of our platform,” said Karl Ottywill, Chief Operating Officer, Aequitas Innovations Inc. “We are extremely proud to be able to work with some of the most reputable names in the industry to deliver a streamlined, low-cost solution to all Canadian investment advisors, portfolio managers and their clients. This is another example of innovation that puts the interests of Canadian investors first.”