Consultation on Strengthening Competition in the Financial Sector

Current Status: Closed

On December 21, 2023, the Department of Finance launched a consultation on potential measures that could strengthen competition in Canada’s stable and secure financial sector. To protect Canadian consumers, this consultation focused on ensuring consumers’ access to a broad range of affordable, innovative, and consumer-focused services that meet their banking needs. Specifically, questions focused on:

• What existing barriers do Canadian consumers face in accessing banking services?
• How could the current acquisition or merger process for banks be enhanced to support greater competition, including by smaller, innovative competitors?
• What measures to encourage competition could also support jobs in the Canadian financial sector?

The consultation closed on March 1, 2024, and built on the Department of Finance’s previous consultation on the federally regulated financial institutions statutes, as part of the financial sector legislative review.

Thank you to everyone who participated.

Next Steps

Your feedback will be reviewed by the Department of Finance to help inform ongoing work on the legislative review. While these formal consultations have concluded, Canadians are welcome to share their ideas and comments with the Department of Finance at any time.

Related links

Consultation on Upholding the Integrity of Canada’s Financial Sector