Undisclosed borrowing from clients leads to $17,500 penalty and conflict-of-interest finding
Borrowing less than $14,000 from clients has cost an Edmonton dealing representative $17,500 and a misconduct finding for failing to manage conflicts of interest.
A Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) Hearing Panel accepted a Settlement Agreement with former CIBC Securities Inc. dealing representative Ankit Pravinkumar Thakkar on December 5, 2025, and released its reasons on December 15, 2025, under Re Thakkar 2025 CIRO 59.
Thakkar agreed to pay a $15,000 fine under Mutual Fund Dealer Rule 7.4.1(b) and $2,500 in costs under Mutual Fund Dealer Rule 7.4.2.
The Panel found that in December 2021 and October 2023, Thakkar failed to identify, report to the Dealer Member, or otherwise address in the best interests of the client, conflicts of interest when he borrowed money from clients, contrary to MFDA Rule 2.1.4(2) and Mutual Fund Dealer Rule 2.1.5.
The loans totalled $3,850 on December 6, 2021, repaid by December 8, 2021, and $10,000 on October 16, 2023, repaid by November 27, 2023.
The loans were not in writing and had no set terms for repayment, duration, or interest, and the Dealer Member did not know about them.
At all material times, the Dealer Member’s policies and procedures manual and Code of Conduct required Approved Persons to identify, assess and respond to conflicts of interest, and prohibited personal financial dealings and borrowing from clients.
The Panel highlighted that MFDA Rules expressly prohibit borrowing from clients and that a conflict of interest exists whether or not a loan is repaid. It also noted that Thakkar obtained a benefit by accessing funds on terms more favourable than normal banking or lending channels.
The clients, ND and MP, a married couple, were clients of both CIBC Securities Inc. and its retail banking affiliate.
Thakkar serviced their mutual fund accounts from February 22, 2021 to March 9, 2022, when they transferred their mutual funds to an affiliate of the Dealer Member, and he continued to service their Bank accounts.
The clients did not complain to the Dealer Member or CIRO and did not report any financial loss.
The Panel treated several factors as mitigating: Thakkar had no prior MFDA or CIRO disciplinary history, expressed remorse, and received additional training on personal financial dealings and conflicts of interest following the firm’s investigation.
In September 2023, for unrelated reasons, the Dealer Member discovered the first loan; Thakkar confirmed it when questioned and, in approximately November 2023, voluntarily disclosed the second loan.
Thakkar conducted business in the Edmonton, Alberta, area and was registered in Alberta as a dealing representative with CIBC Securities Inc. during four periods between March 24, 2014 and January 24, 2024.
He also worked for the Bank from approximately 2013 to January 2024. He resigned from both the Dealer Member and the Bank on January 24, 2024, for reasons unrelated to this matter, and is not currently registered in the securities industry.
In accepting the Settlement Agreement, the Panel applied the test that settlement sanctions must fall within a “reasonable range of appropriateness.”
It concluded that the agreed fine and costs, given the relatively small loan amounts, full repayment, lack of complaint or reported loss, and the mix of aggravating and mitigating factors, achieved both specific and general deterrence without being disproportionate.
