OBSI Board Announces New Chair of the Consumer and Investor Advisory Council

Toronto, October 5, 2020 – The Board of Directors for the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI) announced the appointment of a new chair of its independent Consumer and Investor Advisory Council (CIAC).

Harold Geller has been appointed the new Chair of the CIAC. Harold is a lawyer who represents investors and insureds with claims against financial advisors, MFDA and IIROC representatives, insurance salespeople and their firms. He is a member of the Canadian Bar Association and Ontario Bar Association Elder Law Committee's Executive, the Ontario Bar Association Insurance Law Committee's Executive and the Actuarial Profession Oversight Board. He has been a member of the CIAC since 2018.

Harold replaces Wanda Morris as the Chair of the CIAC following the recent announcement of her appointment to the OBSI Board of Directors as a designated Consumer Interest Director.

The CIAC provides the board with the perspective of consumers and investors, complementing the input OBSI receives from industry stakeholders, community and consumer organizations, and regulatory and government officials. Council members come from across Canada and have backgrounds that ensure they are familiar with consumer issues and concerns relevant to OBSI’s mandate.

Information about the CIAC is available on the OBSI website here.

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Canada’s Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI) is a national, independent and not-for-profit organization that helps resolve and reduce disputes between consumers and financial services firms in both official languages. OBSI is responsive to consumer inquiries, conducts fair and accessible investigations of unresolved disputes, and shares its knowledge and expertise with the stakeholders and the public. If a consumer has a complaint against an OBSI participating bank or investment firm that they are not able to resolve with the bank or firm, OBSI will investigate at no cost to the consumer. Where a complaint has merit, OBSI may recommend compensation up to a maximum of $350,000.

For more information, contact:

Mark Wright, Director, Communications and Stakeholder Relations
416-287-2877 ext.2225
mwright@obsi.ca