Index
February 2024
After two years of hard work, we would like to announce that the Capstone Stewardship Extension Fund is now open. We certainly recognize that this has taken much longer than any of us would have expected, and we are ever so grateful for your patience.
Although the fund has been launched, the work is not finished. We now begin the process of meeting with each of our existing clients to work through the process of transitioning your RDA account here at CSS. This will also take some time as we have hundreds of clients who all are entitled to a meeting to discuss their options.
There are several options available to you as a client;
- You can transfer your RDA balance to the new fund (subject to some restrictions). This will allow you to continue to support the excellent Kingdom work as you did with the Revocable Deposit Agreement here at CSS.
- You can donate some or all of the balance to a Donor Advised Fund. A number of our clients have indicated that a portion or all of the funds they have invested in the RDA program is to be eventually distributed to charity.
- You may redeem the funds from your RDA account (all early redemption charges are waived)
Although the new fund will take over the portfolio currently supporting the RDA program, this will be done in stages. This ensures continued support for the RDA program until the program ceases when the last clients transfer out.
We will be in touch with each and every client in the coming months as we work our way through all the accounts. We will prioritize anyone who would like to add to their account since you have been waiting patiently to do that for some time now. Although we do have a list of clients who have indicated they wish to add to their account, if you are in that category, please let us know by responding to this email so we don’t miss anyone.
For more information, please see Frequently Asked Questions below.
A PDF version of this announcement can found here: February 2024 News Release
January 2024
As we communicated in December, we have agreed on the final version of the setup documents, and they are now signed. Since that has been completed, the disclosure documents can now be finalized and filed with the regulator. We are very close to completing these items, and so we will most likely be starting our work to visit and transition all our existing clients starting in the month of February.
We recognize that this has taken much longer than any of us would have expected, but the final product was worth the wait!
This communication is to assure you that we are still working hard to get to the finish line, and we will connect with you once the launch occurs. I would also like to continue to assure you that no changes have been made or will be made to your account without your express permission.
For more information, please see Frequently Asked Questions below.
A PDF version of this announcement can found here: January 2024 News Release
December 2023
We apologize for the delay in sending this update and we covet your continued patience. Over the past 6-8 weeks, we had a number of minor items crop up that required some attention. Since we expected the documents would be done at any moment, we delayed an update anticipating that the next update would be the announcement that the fund had been launched. Having said all of that, happily, these items have all been addressed. We have now received and agreed on the final version, so we expect the final documents to be signed very soon. Once that has been completed, the fund needs to be registered with the regulator, and then we can proceed.
We are very pleased with the current structure of this new fund, and we are eager to provide all our account holders with the information once the fund has been cleared for sale.
This communication is to assure you that we are still working hard to get to the finish line, and we will connect with you once the launch occurs. I would also like to continue to assure you that no changes have been made or will be made to your account without your express permission.
There is a great deal of information about our RDA restructuring efforts in partnership with Capstone Asset Management on our website. This partnership is built around a shared missional commitment to Christian ministry. For further background on this change, please see the interview video on our website at CSservices.ca.
Although the same mission and ministry will continue within the new fund, there will be a structural change for account holders of the CSS Revocable Deposit. We are, however, excited about how these developments have the potential to expand the original CSS mission. The RDA program is designed so Christians can make their capital available for mortgages to churches, Christian schools, and other Christian charities. This allows Christians to support worthy projects broadly across the Christian community, and, within the new fund, this mission will continue on an expanded foundation.
For more information, please see Frequently Asked Questions below.
A PDF version of this announcement can found here: December 2023 News Release
September 2023
It has been some time since our last communication regarding the RDA program, all the while thinking that ‘any day now’ the new fund would launch. Over the last few weeks, a major issue presented itself; happily, this has now been resolved. Unfortunately, this issue has resulted in a further delay in our expected launch date. We are still expecting a few weeks to amend the offering documents to incorporate the resolution of the above issue and some additional time to register the fund. Notwithstanding any further delays, we hope to launch in about 4 weeks.
This communication is to assure you that we are still working hard to get to the finish line, and we look forward to connecting with you once the launch occurs regarding your Revocable Deposit Account at Christian Stewardship Services. I would also like to continue to assure you that no changes will happen to your account without your express permission.
We are also pleased to report that our rate of return is improving steadily, posting the last two months a little above 5%.
There is a great deal of information about our RDA restructuring efforts in partnership with Capstone Asset Management on our website. This partnership is built around a shared missional commitment to Christian ministry. For further background on this change, please see the interview video on our website at CSservices.ca.
Although the same mission and ministry will continue within the new fund, there will be a structural change for account holders of the CSS Revocable Deposit. We are, however, excited about how these developments have the potential to expand the original CSS mission. The RDA program is designed so Christians can make their capital available for mortgages to churches and other Christian schools and charities. This allows Christians to support worthy projects broadly across the Christian community, and within the new fund, this mission will continue on an expanded foundation.
For more information, please see Frequently Asked Questions below.
A PDF version of this announcement can found here: September 2023 News Release
June 2023
While somewhat delayed from our earlier estimate, we look forward to connecting with you in the coming weeks regarding your Revocable Deposit Account at Christian Stewardship Services to explain upcoming changes and to help you consider your options. No changes will happen to your account without your express permission.
As we have previously communicated, CSS is restructuring the pool in partnership with Capstone Asset Management (Capstone), a registered Portfolio Manager, Exempt Market Dealer, and Investment Fund Manager in British Columbia. The partnership is built around a shared missional commitment to Christian ministry. For further background on this change, please see our video on our website at CSservices.ca.
Although the same mission and ministry will continue within the new fund, there will be a change for depositors to the CSS Revocable Deposit program. The restructuring process will involve a closing of the current Revocable Deposit accounts, and all depositors will be provided the opportunity to transfer their account balance to the new Capstone structure starting July 31, 2023. As part of the transition, the field staff have registered as Exempt Market Dealing Representatives to be able to support our clients through this transition.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, we are excited about how these developments have the potential to expand the original CSS mission. The deposit/mortgage program was designed so Christians could make their capital available for God’s work and the mortgages to churches and Christian schools/charities connected those funds to worthy projects broadly across the Christian community. That mission will continue now on an expanded foundation. Looking ahead, we see an opportunity to partner with other groups/denominational extension funds that fund Christian charity mortgages and together set up tools to equip the next generation of Christian ministry in Canada!
For more information, please see Frequently Asked Questions below.
A PDF version of this announcement can found here: June 2023 News Release
May 2023
3 Minute Highlight Video
Highlights of an interview with Rob Vandebelt (primary broker at CSS) and Glenn Murray (President and CEO of Capstone Asset Management) regarding the changes with the Revocable Deposit agreement.
16 Minute Full Interview
Entire discussion with Rob Vandebelt (primary broker at CSS) and Glenn Murray (President and CEO of Capstone Asset Management) regarding the changes with the Revocable Deposit agreement.
March 2023
Moving Forward
Since 1976, Christian Stewardship Services (CSS) has provided planned giving and estate planning services for supporters of our charity partners and has arranged mortgage financing for Christian churches, charities, and schools across Canada. The capital for mortgage funding has come from deposits into our Revocable Deposit Agreement (RDA) program.
As we have communicated over the past year, most recently in January 2023, the regulations governing deposits and mortgages for charities like CSS have been changing. Specifically, the scope of securities regulation and the definition of a security has broadened to include all deposit‐taking activities,
including charitable activities. In tracking these developments, we realized that CSS will soon find itself forced into a less‐than‐ideal compliance solution, and so we began to proactively chart a course toward a solution that would be optimal for CSS and our depositors and mortgagors.
CSS has spent the past year vetting and reviewing various options, including discussions with other Christian lenders as to how they are addressing the OSC regulatory changes. As this solution took shape, we were delighted to find it opening up surprising new opportunities. In particular the establishment of
a new fund that will facilitate the continued provision of “missional mortgages” to the Christian community. The new fund offering will allow for participation by our existing clients as well as a broad range of other Kingdom‐minded groups and investors, multiplying the impact well beyond what we had originally envisioned. We have already identified one partner organization, and we fully expect other Christian groups may be interested as well. By partnering with us in this endeavor, it makes it possible for them to also become compliant with government regulators, and thus be able to continue their work in their own community.
Any compliant solution requires a partnership with an organization in the securities industry, and again in that respect, God has been so good! Our decision to move forward with Capstone was not done without vigorous due diligence and Board involvement, and to say we are excited to be partnering with
Capstone Asset Management would be an understatement. Capstone stands out in the investment industry with its Christian worldview and its focus on overtly missional Funds. In the coming weeks, we will release a short video, available through our website, to provide an overview of the new program
and introduce Capstone.
We are excited about the future, and we are so thankful for your patience as we work towards implementing this solution to expand what we can accomplish together, for the glory of our great God.
For more information, please see Frequently Asked Questions below.
A PDF version of this announcement can found here: March 23 News Release
December 2022
Update on CSS response to Regulatory Changes Affecting our Revocable Deposit Program
Christian Stewardship Services (CSS) was founded in 1976 to ‘Make Giving Easier’ and to encourage Kingdom investments. Accordingly, for the past 46 years we have provided planned giving and estate planning services for supporters of our charity partners and have arranged mortgage financing for Christian charities.
As we communicated in January and again in November of this year, the regulations governing the activities of charities like CSS have been changing. Specifically, regulatory oversight now applies to all charities in Canada that take deposits and issue mortgages. As a result, in 2020 CSS registered with the Financial Services Regulatory Authority as a Mortgage Broker. Since then, we have been conducting a detailed review of our RDA program in the context of broadening securities legislation in Canada. During this transition period, we have also temporarily suspended the acceptance of new RDA deposits from individuals and businesses, signaling our cooperative intent to the Regulator. While the review process has taken longer than originally expected, we are hopeful that the changes necessary to meet the new requirements will be in place by the middle of 2023.
What will this mean for new and existing investors in the RDA program? We see two very positive outcomes. The first is the assurance investors will have that their savings are with an organization that meets very stringent requirements as laid down by provincial securities commissions. While CSS has, throughout its 46-year history, maintained an impeccable record of care and due diligence in relation to industry-standard processes and requirements, investors will be further assured by this industry standard approval of our structure and processes.
The second positive outcome, one that we did not foresee at the outset, is the possibility of developing a national, multi-denominational fund, supported by donors from many faith communities, and supporting Kingdom-impacting charities across our land. CSS has earned a reputation within the Christian community as a lender with a heart. For over 45 years CSS has operated our mortgage lending with the humility of knowing that these were not our funds, and our community trusted us to use them for maximum Kingdom impact. We have funded hundreds of Churches, Christian Schools and other charities to further their work within their community, and by God’s grace, CSS has never in our history had a loss within our mortgage portfolio. To be able to expand this work, we are currently negotiating with another organization of a similar size to pool resources and partner in this grand mission. We could call it RDA 2.0, accomplishing all that the original RDA did and more, with greater cooperation between communities, reduced cost and duplication of effort, and, ultimately, greater Kingdom impact.
In the end, while the process is taking longer than expected, we are excited about the future. We are so thankful for your patience as we work towards the best solution to expand what we can accomplish together, for the glory of our great God.
For more information, please see Frequently Asked Questions below.
A PDF version of this announcement can found here: December 2022 News Release
November 9, 2022
Christian Stewardship Services Review of RDA Program Continues.
At the beginning of 2022, Christian Stewardship Services (CSS) informed depositors to our Revocable Deposit Program that CSS was conducting a detailed review of our RDA program operations in the
context of changing securities legislation in Canada and needed to suspend new deposits to our RDA program during that time.
We ask for your continued patience during this process as suspension of new deposits to our RDA program will likely be extended well into 2023 as we complete due diligence in a complex process. We are encouraged by the progress although it has taken longer than we would have anticipated. We would like to repeat that this suspension only affects the Revocable Deposit Agreement accounts with CSS, all of our other charitable work continues without interruption.
A lot of effort and work from our board, staff and external partners have gone into this process thus far. While there is still a lot to do, we are pleased to advise that significant progress has recently been made and we hope soon to give a more concrete update on a solution which will provide the best options for our depositors, while also providing maximum kingdom impact through charitable gifts, and our mortgage program.
Throughout our 45 year history, CSS has maintained an impeccable record of industry standard processes for all our activities. Our aim has always been to ensure that our business practices meet all the current applicable regulations and industry guidelines which apply to our business.
To stay informed of the process and for further information including a number of Frequently Asked Questions, please visit https://csservices.ca/RDAreview/
January 12, 2022
Christian Stewardship Services conducting a detailed review of RDA Program.
Christian Stewardship Services (CSS) was founded in 1976 to ‘Make Giving Easier’ and to encourage Kingdom investments. Accordingly, for the past 45 years, we have provided planned giving, and estate planning services for supporters of our charity partners, and arranged mortgage financing to Christian ministries.
During that time, the rules governing the work that we do have changed, and so CSS has also adjusted in order to conform with regulatory requirements. In 2020, CSS registered with the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario as a Mortgage Broker, and now in 2022 we are conducting a detailed review of our RDA program operations in the context of applicable securities legislation in Canada. To that end, we have temporarily suspended accepting new deposits to our RDA program while the review is in progress.
Through the years, CSS has maintained an impeccable record of industry standard processes for all our planned giving, mortgage funding and deposit taking activities. Our aim is always to ensure that our business practices meet all the current applicable regulations and industry guidelines which apply to our business.
In prior years, the taking of deposits and lending of mortgages by a charity were exempt from oversight and regulation by the Securities Commission. This is no longer the case.
The Regulator’s move to increase industry oversight does not have anything to do with the operations at CSS specifically, and the regulators have not approached CSS directly with any concerns. Throughout our 46-year history, CSS has maintained an impeccable record of industry- standard processes for all our activities. Our aim has always been to ensure that our business practices not only meet all applicable regulations and industry guidelines but are also best-in-class.
The Regulator’s role is to protect investors. While it has historically not taken the same active role in relation to investors at a charity, this will be changing. This will be a good change for investors and provide them with an extra level of assurance that their savings are well-managed.
Individuals and businesses are temporarily suspended from making new deposits to an RDA deposit account. This suspension does not apply to deposits made by charities and non-profits.
Only the RDA deposit account is affected. There is no impact to Donor Advised Funds or any other type of account or charitable donation.
The process to implement an approved structure will continue into the fall of 2023. It is a complex process that has taken longer than we would have hoped, and we ask for your continued patience. We are encouraged by the progress made to date and will be in contact with all our account holders once the fund is launched.
The RDA will absolutely be available again in the not-too-distant future, offering a solid option for fixed-income depositors, while also maximizing Kingdom impact through charitable giving and the mortgage lending program.
While the structure of the RDA will change, from the depositors’ perspective it will remain a solid investment option and a way to support Kingdom causes.
The complexity of the changes required is greater than initially expected. Also, our analysis has expanded our understanding of what is possible. We envision a national, multi-denominational fund that will be available to lend to any Christian charity in Canada.
Changes to the regulatory landscape are not impacting returns. Rather, rising interest rates and concerns about inflation have affected returns in both bond and equity markets. On a positive note, the mortgage component of the RDA continues to generate stable returns and offset some of the market swings.
Under the new RDA structure, we expect that returns will be more predictable, avoiding the larger upswings and downswings that have been evident in the last couple of years in particular.
While the missional intent and focus of the program will not change, there will be some changes to its structure. As the transition progresses, staff will provide you with full details of the new Fund, explain the structural changes, and outline your options for moving forward.
During our discussions with other Christian lending organizations, it became clear that partnering in this endeavor provided many economies of scale. CSS, along with another similar-sized organization in the Christian lending world are founding members of this new fund, and have mutually decided to work with Capstone.
We fully expect this to be possible starting in the fall of 2023. One of our Staff will contact you individually by email or phone once the fund is launched to discuss your account and the possibility of adding funds.
In May of this year, we produced an interview video introducing Capstone, and explaining the new process. You can view it here – RDA Review – (Capstone intro)
Yes, it is very important to CSS and Capstone that the missional focus of the existing program, lending funds to Christian organizations and churches, be maintained. Although a percentage of the fund is reserved for liquidity purposes, the entire remaining balance is earmarked for mortgage lending.
Yes, you will still be able to share your interest with charities of your choice through CSS. As a matter of fact, the new fund held with Capstone will allow more flexibility in your decision to benefit charities.
No, there are no extra costs to you, and there will be no significant tax changes.
