The financial services sector would be a vital component of the Canadian economy if measured according to its output and employment alone. It is more than that, however, because the efficiency and effectiveness of the financial sector is critical to economy-wide performance. The financial sector constitutes the infrastructure of commerce; financial intermediation is also the mechanism that facilitates risk-sharing and risk mitigation, as well as regional and intertemporal exchange of financial assets and obligations. These factors warrant special attention to the policy influences on the financial sector’s performance.
The C.D. Howe Institute’s Financial Services Research Initiative is a multi-year program organized by the Institute to report and advise on financial sector policy. Its unique work program addresses the economic environment within which financial intermediation takes place, the regulatory environment, and the future of financial intermediation. The Initiative is informed by regular meetings of experts in the sector, policymakers and supporters engaged in the financial services sector, including financial intermediaries, securities market participants and their regulators, among others. The Initiative publishes research by prominent scholars from academia, associations, and the private and public sectors.
Chair
![](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2024-04/Maureen%20Jensen_2024.png.jpg?itok=deKl3jBu)
Maureen Jensen
Senior Fellow![Peter Levitt](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2023-08/Peter%20Levitt_2023.png.jpg?itok=Ln-5AlX2)
Peter Levitt
Corporate and Philanthropic DirectorMembers
![Raza Hasan](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2023-09/Raza%20Hasan.png.jpg?itok=-kQHk3FQ)
Raza Hasan
Special Advisor, Group Risk Management, RBC![Philip Howell](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2023-09/Howell_Phil.png.jpg?itok=AS_3Fecb)
Philip Howell
Senior Fellow![Graheme Johnson](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2023-10/Graheme%20Johnson.png.jpg?itok=NKfGJ5ec)
Grahame Johnson
Assistant Deputy Minister, Financial Sector Policy Branch, Department of Finance Canada![](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2024-04/Donna%20Kinoshita_2024.png.jpg?itok=CG0k1iXc)
Donna Kinoshita
Chief Payments Officer, Payments Canada![](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2024-02/Thorsten_2024.png.jpg?itok=B1mROg4F)
Thorsten Koeppl
Fellow-In-Residence![Paul Kovacs](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2023-10/Paul%20Kovacs.png.jpg?itok=sAqipwXR)
Paul Kovacs
Executive Director, Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction; President & CEO, Property and Casualty Insurance Compensation Corporation![](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2023-09/Nicholas%20Le%20Pan.png.jpg?itok=_y-_nhPB)
Nicholas Le Pan
Senior Fellow![David Longworth](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2023-09/Longworth_David.png.jpg?itok=AFrXCaZm)
David Longworth
Research Fellow![](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2023-09/Winsor%20Macdonell.png.jpg?itok=KKWpT7lJ)
Winsor MacDonell
Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary, Sagen MI Canada![Monica Masciantonio](/sites/default/files/styles/staff_280x280/public/2023-09/Monica%20Masciantonio.png.jpg?itok=iDrvMXbO)