Thade took Judoca’s advice about doing his own due diligence, at least partially.
Researching an investment, particularly if the investment is in an area where you don’t have much experience, is confusing. It is easy to want to rush the process.
All investments come with risk. An investor has to decide if they can afford to lose their investment. The stock market fluctuates rapidly. An investment with good returns one day can drop in value the next.
One good source of information is Google. Searching the company name or key personnel may provide all the information you need to decide whether or not to invest.
If you want to look further, Sedar+ provides a wealth of information. It is a good practice to search securities databases for the name of a company or individual to see if any actions have been brought against them. Company listings include the company’s identification and access to financials and other documents.
Sedar+ also provides information on companies and individuals that a securities oversight body has disciplined. In an open search of disciplinary actions between January 23 and February 24, 2024, sixty-four companies and individuals were disciplined in jurisdictions across Canada. This raises an important point: you should search for information across Canada. Investment fraud can move from one province to another.
It is tempting to rely on friends who have invested with a company to tell you if an investment is good, but the best due diligence is one you do yourself.
Kathleen O’Donoghue, CFE
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