This summer we heard that CSA had engaged advisors with the intent of finding a buyer for the TIC (Testing, Inspection & Certification) business. After some consideration CSA chose to sell the TIC business to Kiwa Group allowing CSA to focus on Standards activities.
Kiwa Group is privately held by SVH Family of Companies (a family owned, Dutch company) that does business internationally.
The deal is that Kiwa will pay CSA $2.1B which will be placed under the management of CSA Continuity Corp. CSA Continuity Corp is a new legal entity that will have its own board of directors separate from CSA. They will be responsible for investing and managing the funds to support CSA’s long-term sustainability. Standards will continue to self-fund operations through the sale of Standards and services, with CSA Continuity Corp funding their continued operation as required.
On October 8th, the CSA Board of Directors announced that the association’s members had voted overwhelmingly to sell the TIC business to Kiwa. The sale is subject to some regulatory approvals, and it is expected that the transaction will close at the end of November.
We don’t know the transition plan or what this means for staff or office locations.
When we heard of the pending decision to sell, we reached out to our Human Resources contacts to clarify the impact on retirees. We knew our pensions were secured by law. In addition, in those cases where pensions are paid out through an annuity such as with iA Financial Group, the annuity has sole responsibility.
But there was concern about our benefits. We have been reassured that our retiree benefits remain unchanged and will continue to be held by Canadian Standards Association.
Your CSA Retiree’s Club’s Executive team will continue to work with CSA to communicate information on the sale and any impact to retirees as it becomes available.
