Moves Towards Regulatory Modernization -

The rapidly evolving nature of banking — and the financial services sector in general — has seen Canada’s Department of Finance make several moves towards modernization. What will this look like? With the outcomes of several consultations due over the next few months, we can expect to see a clearer picture develop during 2017.

The broad sweep of last August’s consultation document Supporting a Strong and Growing Economy: Positioning Canada’s Financial Sector for the Future encompassed everything from the safety of the sector to how it meets the financial needs of consumers and effectively contributes to economic growth. While it was low on detail, the consultation document put forward a starting point for change. It is expected that fintech investment and collaboration will be included as part of this change; the current technology provisions of the Bank Act have been the same since 2001, years before the iPhone even existed, and are massively outdated. Participants in the consultation process will be watching with interest when the policy paper is published this year, with changes expected to be finalized in 2019.