40-F 1 d82482d40f.htm 40-F 40-F

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

Form 40-F

[Check one]

 

     ¨ REGISTRATION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 12 OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

or

 

     x ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13(a) OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended October 31, 2015

Commission File Number 002-09048

THE BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

CANADA

(Province or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

6029

(Primary Standard Industrial Classification Code Number (if applicable))

Not Applicable

(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number (if applicable))

44 King St. West, Scotia Plaza, 8th floor,

Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5H 1H1

(416) 866-3672

(Address and telephone number of Registrant’s principal executive offices)

The Bank of Nova Scotia, 250 Vesey Street,

New York, N.Y., U.S.A. 10281

Attention: Hector Jimenez

(212) 225-5000

(Name, address (including zip code) and telephone number (including area code)

of agent for service in the United States)

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act.

 

Title of each class        Name of each exchange on which registered
Common      New York Stock Exchange

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act.

Not applicable

(Title of Class)

Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act.

Not applicable

(Title of Class)

For annual reports, indicate by check mark the information filed with this Form:

x  Annual information form            x  Audited annual financial statements

Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuer’s classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report.

 

Common Shares

      1,202,937,205   

Preferred Shares, Series 14

      13,800,000   

Preferred Shares, Series 15

      13,800,000   

Preferred Shares, Series 16

      13,800,000   

Preferred Shares, Series 17

      9,200,000   

Preferred Shares, Series 18

      7,497,663   

Preferred Shares, Series 19

      6,302,337   

Preferred Shares, Series 20

      8,039,268   

Preferred Shares, Series 21

      5,960,732   

Preferred Shares, Series 22

      9,376,944   

Preferred Shares, Series 23

      2,623,056   

Preferred Shares, Series 30

      6,142,738   

Preferred Shares, Series 31

      4,457,262   

Preferred Shares, Series 32

      16,345,767   

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports) and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

Yes  x            No  ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to submit and post such files).

Yes  x            No  ¨

 

 

 

CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

Management’s responsibility for financial information contained in the Annual Report is described on page 126 of Exhibit 3, 2015 Consolidated Financial Statements. In addition, the Bank’s Audit and Conduct Review Committee of the Board of Directors has reviewed, and the Board of Directors has reviewed and approved, the 2015 Consolidated Financial Statements and Management’s Discussion and Analysis prior to release. Scotiabank is committed to providing timely, accurate and balanced disclosure of all material information and to providing fair and equal access to such information. The Bank’s disclosure policies and practices are published on its website.

Disclosure Controls and Procedures

The Bank’s disclosure controls and procedures are designed to provide reasonable assurance that information is accumulated and communicated to the Bank’s management, including the Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) and Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”), as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

As of October 31, 2015, the Bank’s management, with the participation of the CEO and CFO, evaluated the effectiveness of its disclosure controls and procedures, as defined under the rules adopted by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the Canadian securities regulatory authorities, and have concluded that the Bank’s disclosure controls and procedures are effective.

Internal control over financial reporting

Management of the Bank is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. These controls include policies and procedures that: (1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the Bank; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board, and that receipts and expenditures are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the Bank; and (3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of the Bank’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

All control systems contain inherent limitations, no matter how well designed. As a result, the Bank’s management acknowledges that its internal control over financial reporting will not prevent or detect all misstatements due to error or fraud. In addition, management’s evaluation of controls can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that all control issues that may result in material misstatements, if any, have been detected.

Management assessed the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, using the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) 2013 framework, and based on that assessment concluded that internal control over financial reporting was effective as of October 31, 2015.

Changes in internal control over financial reporting

There have been no changes in the Bank’s internal control over financial reporting that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the Bank’s internal control over financial reporting during the year ended October 31, 2014.

INTERNAL CONTROL OVER FINANCIAL REPORTING

Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting and the Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm are provided in Exhibit 4.

AUDIT COMMITTEE FINANCIAL EXPERT

All of the members of the Bank’s Audit and Conduct Review Committee of the Board of Directors (“audit committee”) are financially literate and independent, and one or more members of the audit committee meet the definition of a financial expert. The Bank’s Board of Directors has determined that Messrs. Paul D. Sobey, Guillermo E. Babatz and Thomas C.

O’Neill are audit committee financial experts and are independent, as that term is defined by the New York Stock Exchange’s corporate governance standards applicable to the Bank.

The SEC has indicated that the designation of a person as an audit committee financial expert does not impose on such person any duties, obligations or liability that are greater than the duties, obligations and liability imposed on such person as a member of the audit committee and board of directors in the absence of such designation.

CODE OF ETHICS

The Bank has adopted a code of ethics, entitled “Guidelines for Business Conduct” (the “Guidelines”). These Guidelines have been in place for many years and apply to all directors, officers and employees of the Bank. A copy of the Guidelines was most recently filed as an exhibit to Form 6-K filed with the SEC (EDGAR Company Filings) on February 4, 2013. The Guidelines are also available on the Bank’s website at www.scotiabank.com, in the Corporate Governance section, and are available in print to any person, without charge, upon written request to the Secretary of the Bank at the Toronto executive office address shown above. Two supplements to the Guidelines, the Whistleblower Policy and Procedures and the Directors’ Addendum, are also posted on the Bank’s website. Amendments to the Guidelines and waivers, if any, for directors and executive officers will be disclosed on the Bank’s website. There were no such waivers granted in fiscal 2015.

PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES

The disclosure provided in Table 79 “Fees paid to the shareholders’ auditors” on page 116 of Exhibit 2, Management’s Discussion and Analysis, is incorporated by reference herein. The nature of these services is as follows:

 

  •   Audit services generally relate to the statutory audits and review of financial statements, regulatory required attestation reports, as well as services associated with registration statements, prospectuses, periodic reports and other documents filed with securities regulatory bodies or other documents issued in connection with securities offerings.

 

  •   Audit-related services include special attest services not directly linked to the financial statements, review of controls and procedures related to regulatory reporting, audits of employee benefit plans and consultation and training on accounting and financial reporting.

 

  •   Tax services outside of the audit scope relate primarily to specified review procedures required by local tax authorities, attestation on tax returns of certain subsidiaries as required by local tax authorities, and review to determine compliance with an agreement with the tax authorities.

 

  •   Other non-audit services are primarily for the review and translation of English language financial statements into other languages and other services.

None of the above services were approved pursuant to an exemption under paragraph (c)(7)(i)(C) of Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X from the requirement that the audit committee pre-approve the services. The majority of the hours expended on the audits of the 2015 and 2014 consolidated financial statements were attributable to work performed by the full-time permanent employees of the Bank’s independent auditors, KPMG LLP or its affiliates. The audit committee’s pre-approval policies and procedures, as revised effective March 5, 2007, were attached as Exhibit 7 to the Form 40-F filed on December 19, 2007 for the fiscal year ended October 31, 2007. The pre-approval policies and procedures have been subsequently approved without any major changes at each annual review.

OFF-BALANCE SHEET ARRANGEMENTS

The disclosure provided under “Off-balance Sheet Arrangements” on pages 49 to 51 and “Structured entities” on page 50 of Exhibit 2, Management’s Discussion and Analysis, is incorporated by reference herein. Additional information from note 3 on pages 137 to 149, note 7 on pages 151 to 156, note 10 on pages 159 to 163, note 14 on page 170, note 15 on pages 171 to 173, note 23 on pages 177 to 178, note 24 on pages 178 to 180, note 35 on pages 197 to 199 and note 36 on pages 199 to 208 of Exhibit 3, 2015 Consolidated Financial Statements, is incorporated by reference into “Off-balance Sheet Arrangements” in Management’s Discussion and Analysis.

CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS

The disclosure provided under “Contractual maturities and obligations” on pages 92 to 94 of Exhibit 2, Management’s Discussion and Analysis, is incorporated by reference herein. Additional information from note 7 on pages 151 to 156, note 20 on page 176, note 28 on pages 187 to 191, note 35 on pages 197 to 199 and note 36 on pages 199 to 208 of Exhibit 3, 2015 Consolidated Financial Statements, is incorporated by reference into “Contractual Obligations” in Management’s Discussion and Analysis.

IDENTIFICATION OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE

The Bank’s audit committee is composed of the following directors: Paul D. Sobey (Chair and financial expert), Nora A. Aufreiter, Guillermo E. Babatz (financial expert), Charles H. Dallara, William R. Fatt, Tiff Macklem and Thomas C. O’Neill (financial expert).

SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT CORPORATE GOVERNANCE DIFFERENCES

A summary of significant ways corporate governance practices followed by the Bank differ from corporate governance practices required to be followed by U.S. domestic companies under the New York Stock Exchange’s listing standards (disclosure required by Section 303A.11 of the NYSE Listed Company Manual) is available on the Bank’s website at www.scotiabank.com/corporategovernance.

DISCLOSURE PURSUANT TO SECTION 13(r) OF THE EXCHANGE ACT

Pursuant to section 13(r) of the Exchange Act, the Bank is required to disclose certain activities related to both the Islamic Republic of Iran (“Iran”) and certain persons listed on the Specially Designated National and Blocked Persons list maintained by the United States Department of Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control, during the year ended October 31, 2015. Disclosure is generally required even if the transactions or dealings were conducted in compliance with applicable law and regulations. The Bank has established a robust enterprise-wide global sanctions compliance program to ensure compliance with applicable sanctions laws wherever the Bank does business.

The Bank held one Canadian dollar account for the Embassy of Iran in Canada. This account, used for the purpose of official embassy business, has been frozen since 2013 and was closed on June 1, 2015. In addition, the Bank issued a bank draft payable to the “Interest Section of the Islamic Republic of Iran” (the “Iran Section”) for a visa fee. The Iran Section is part of the Pakistani Embassy in Washington, D.C. The Bank has complied with all applicable laws in connection with this account and bank draft.

It is not possible to accurately determine the precise net profit attributable to such account and bank draft, and even if revenues and profits from these were calculated, they would be negligible.

Undertaking

Registrant undertakes to make available, in person or by telephone, representatives to respond to inquiries made by the Commission staff, and to furnish promptly, when requested to do so by the Commission staff, information relating to: the securities registered pursuant to Form 40-F; the securities in relation to which the obligation to file an annual report on Form 40-F arises; or transactions in said securities.

Signatures

Pursuant to the requirements of the Exchange Act, the Registrant certifies that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form 40-F and has duly caused this annual report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereto duly authorized.

 

Registrant:   THE BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA
  By:  

/s/ Sean D. McGuckin

    Name: Sean D. McGuckin
    Title:   Chief Financial Officer

Date: December 1, 2015

EXHIBIT INDEX

 

Exhibit No.    Description
1.    Annual Information Form dated December 1, 2015
2.    Management’s Discussion and Analysis (pages 11 through 125 of the 2015 Annual Report)
3.    2014 Consolidated Financial Statements (pages 127 through 208 of the 2015 Annual Report)
4.    Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting and Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (page 126 of the 2015 Annual Report)
5.    Corporate Governance
6.    Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
7.    Certifications required by Rule 13a-14(a) or Rule 15d-14(a), pursuant to Section 302 of the U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
8.    Certifications required by Rule 13a-14(b) or Rule 15d-14(b) and 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as enacted pursuant to Section 906 of the U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002