Torstar Corporation announces that The Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario has issued Notices of Intended Decision for the merger of the defined benefit Torstar Pension Plans into t...

TORONTO, Oct. 25, 2019 /CNW/ - Torstar Corporation announced today that The Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA) has issued Notices of Intended Decision for the merger of the eight Torstar defined benefit pension plans (the "Torstar Plans") into the Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology Pension Plan (the "CAAT Pension Plan"). By issuing these notices, FSRA has indicated an intention to consent to the pension plan mergers following a standard 30-day period to facilitate any applicable requests to the Financial Services Tribunal.

After this 30-day waiting period, and once the final consent is obtained from FSRA, the final steps of the merger can be completed. It is anticipated that the transfer of assets from the Torstar Plans to the CAAT Pension Plan will be completed by the end of 2019, at which point the merger of the Torstar Plans into the CAAT Pension Plan will be completed.

About Torstar Corporation

Torstar Corporation is a broadly-based media company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TS.B). Its businesses include the Toronto Star, Canada's largest daily newspaper, six regional daily newspapers in Ontario including The Hamilton Spectator: StarMetro newspapers in several Canadian cities; and more than 80 weekly community newspapers in Ontario; flyer distribution services: and digital properties including thestar.com, wheels.ca, toronto.com, save.ca, a number of regional online sites and eyeReturn Marketing. It also holds a majority interest in VerticalScope, a North American vertically-focused digital media company.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes, among others, forward-looking statements regarding expectations related to the merger of the Torstar Pension Plans with the CAAT Pension Plan (including the anticipated obtaining and timing of regulatory consent and completion of the merger of the plans).  All such statements are made pursuant to the "safe harbour" provisions of applicable Canadian securities legislation. These statements reflect current expectations of management regarding future events and speak only as of the date of this press release. In addition, forward-looking statements are provided for the purpose of providing information about management's current expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that reliance on such information may not be appropriate for other purposes.

By their very nature, forward-looking statements require management to make assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. There is a significant risk that predictions, forecasts, conclusions or projections will not prove to be accurate, that management's assumptions may not be accurate and that actual results, performance or achievements may differ significantly from such predictions, forecasts, conclusions or projections expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.  We caution readers not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements in this press release as a number of factors could cause actual future results, conditions, actions or events to differ materially from the targets, outlooks, expectations, goals, estimates or intentions expressed in the forward-looking statements.

These factors include, but are not limited to: the timing of receipt of the final consent from FSRA, the timing of completion of the merger and the risk that the consent may not be received and the merger may not be completed. We caution that the foregoing list is not exhaustive of all possible factors, as other factors could adversely affect our results.

When relying on our forward-looking statements to make decisions with respect to Torstar and its securities, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. Torstar does not intend, and disclaims any obligation to, update any forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, or whether as a result of new information or otherwise, except as may be required by law.

For more information, please see the discussion of risks affecting Torstar and its businesses in Torstar's  2018 Management's Discussion & Analysis, which has been filed on www.sedar.com and is available on Torstar's corporate website www.torstar.com.

Torstar's news releases are available on the Internet at www.torstar.com.

SOURCE Torstar Corporation