Ms. Alison Walker reports

RECEIVER TO DISTRIBUTE MONEY TO BOSSTEAM INVESTORS

During its investigation of Bossteam E-Commerce Inc., Yan Zhu (also known as Rachel Zhu) and Guan Qiang Zhang, the British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) froze more than $10-million held in several bank accounts. The BCSC also registered a charge on land Ms. Zhu owned and collected approximately $123,000 from the sale of that land.

On Aug. 8, 2014, a BCSC panel found that Bossteam, Ms. Zhu and Mr. Zhang committed fraud, illegally distributed securities and withheld information from BCSC investigators. On June 23, 2015, the panel issued sanctions against the respondents, including monetary orders and prohibitions against participating in the capital markets.

The BCSC applied to the Supreme Court of British Columbia on April 7, 2017, for an order appointing Grant Thornton Ltd. as a receiver, to administer a claims process for the frozen money. The receiver has completed the claims process, as detailed in the receiver's report, which is available on the Bossteam website.

"This is an excellent result for investors who lost money in the Bossteam scheme. The commission used two of its powerful tools in this case -- freeze orders and the appointment of a receiver -- to get money back to investors," said Doug Muir, director, enforcement, BCSC. "Once the court approves the payments, Grant Thornton Ltd. will begin issuing cheques to investors."

About the B.C. Securities Commission

The B.C. Securities Commission is the independent provincial government agency responsible for regulating capital markets in British Columbia through the administration of the Securities Act. Its mission is to protect and promote the public interest by fostering:

• A securities market that is fair and warrants public confidence;
• A dynamic and competitive securities industry that provides investment opportunities and access to capital.