From: Eloise DuncanTo: Policymakers and Financial InstitutionsDate: October 28, 2025Re: Renters Becoming More Financially Vulnerable: Emerging Implications Changes in the household financial resilience of Canadians nationally, measured through the Financial Resilience Institute’s Financial Resilience Index Model and published reports, highlight the increasing financial vulnerability of renters compared to mortgage-holders over the past two years: a […]
Published in Financial Post. As Canadians focus on the harmful economic effects of tariffs, taxes and trade, a quieter drag on our productivity hides in plain sight: how we regulate financial services. Regulation has expanded all across the financial sector. Rules are obviously necessary. They protect consumers, ensure stability and build trust. But rules accumulate, forming a dense regulatory […]
October 16, 2025 – Canada’s weak growth, low investment and lagging innovation point to the need for a more modern regulatory philosophy that balances both protection and progress, according to a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Pruning the Rulebook: Canada’s Financial Regulatory Scorecard, Year Two,” Gherardo Caracciolo’s updated findings revealed similar results […]
In the second year of our regulatory scorecard paper, results continue to show the need for a more balanced approach to financial oversight, one that explicitly incorporates innovation and competition alongside traditional stability and consumer protection goals. Newly issued and updated regulatory documents did not change previous results. The imbalance reflects the mandates of Canadian […]
October 7, 2025 – With about one in three now turning to online influencers for investment decisions, fragmented regulation and rising costs may be pricing Canadians out of direct access to personal financial advisors, according to a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Regulatory Reset: A Policy Roadmap for Expanding Financial Advice to […]
Reduced access to financial advice is closely linked to lower participation in tax-advantaged savings and investment programs. This is largely due to limited financial literacy and behavioural inertia – barriers that financial advisors are uniquely positioned to help Canadians overcome. Limited financial participation at the individual household level has broader economic consequences: lower household financial […]
September 25, 2025 – Rising geopolitical tensions may make it more challenging for Canadian authorities to repatriate foreign assets of financial institutions that have large international operations if any of them were ever to fail in the future, according to a new report by the C.D. Howe Institute. The report warns of this growing risk, […]
by Mark Zelmer Rising geopolitical tensions may make it more challenging to facilitate an orderly recovery or resolution of internationally active Canadian financial institutions in the event they encounter distress. Foreign authorities are likely to continue to prevent the repatriation of surplus assets from their jurisdictions in times of stress until their own creditors have […]
September 11, 2025 – The C.D. Howe Institute’s Monetary Policy Council (MPC) calls for the Bank of Canada to cut its target for the overnight rate, its benchmark policy interest rate, to 2.50 percent at its next announcement on September 17th. The MPC further calls for the Bank to cut the target to 2.25 percent at its […]
From: Harvey NaglieTo: Ontario financial regulators Date: August 5, 2025Re: From Dashboards to Decisions: Why Ontario Should Lead on Financial Complaint Reform A recent C.D. Howe Institute Commentary advocated the development of a national pension dashboard – one that would allow Canadians to track and plan for retirement more effectively. That same logic – greater transparency, smarter […]
From: Harvey NaglieTo: Banking observersDate: July 29, 2025Re: Canada Can’t Afford to Wait for Open Banking Canada is at risk of becoming the last G7 nation to implement open banking. The federal government has announced a launch target of early 2026. While this commitment is welcome, the timeline is far too slow – and the […]
From: Mark ZelmerTo: Financial system watchersDate: July 28, 2025Re: There’s a Cost to More Generous Deposit Insurance Limits As Canada adjusts to a more hostile geopolitical environment, it is important that the safety net that underpins our financial system remains fit for purpose. Deposit insurance is an important part of that net. Because of the […]
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From: Eloise DuncanTo: Policymakers and Financial InstitutionsDate: October 28, 2025Re: Renters Becoming More Financially Vulnerable: Emerging Implications Changes in the household financial resilience of Canadians nationally, measured through the Financial Resilience Institute’s Financial Resilience Index Model and published reports, highlight the increasing financial vulnerability of renters compared to mortgage-holders over the past two years: a […] 
Published in Financial Post. As Canadians focus on the harmful economic effects of tariffs, taxes and trade, a quieter drag on our productivity hides in plain sight: how we regulate financial services. Regulation has expanded all across the financial sector. Rules are obviously necessary. They protect consumers, ensure stability and build trust. But rules accumulate, forming a dense regulatory […] 
October 16, 2025 – Canada’s weak growth, low investment and lagging innovation point to the need for a more modern regulatory philosophy that balances both protection and progress, according to a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Pruning the Rulebook: Canada’s Financial Regulatory Scorecard, Year Two,” Gherardo Caracciolo’s updated findings revealed similar results […] 
In the second year of our regulatory scorecard paper, results continue to show the need for a more balanced approach to financial oversight, one that explicitly incorporates innovation and competition alongside traditional stability and consumer protection goals. Newly issued and updated regulatory documents did not change previous results. The imbalance reflects the mandates of Canadian […] 
by Mark Zelmer Rising geopolitical tensions may make it more challenging to facilitate an orderly recovery or resolution of internationally active Canadian financial institutions in the event they encounter distress. Foreign authorities are likely to continue to prevent the repatriation of surplus assets from their jurisdictions in times of stress until their own creditors have […] 
September 11, 2025 – The C.D. Howe Institute’s Monetary Policy Council (MPC) calls for the Bank of Canada to cut its target for the overnight rate, its benchmark policy interest rate, to 2.50 percent at its next announcement on September 17th. The MPC further calls for the Bank to cut the target to 2.25 percent at its […] 
From: Harvey NaglieTo: Ontario financial regulators Date: August 5, 2025Re: From Dashboards to Decisions: Why Ontario Should Lead on Financial Complaint Reform A recent C.D. Howe Institute Commentary advocated the development of a national pension dashboard – one that would allow Canadians to track and plan for retirement more effectively. That same logic – greater transparency, smarter […] 
From: Harvey NaglieTo: Banking observersDate: July 29, 2025Re: Canada Can’t Afford to Wait for Open Banking Canada is at risk of becoming the last G7 nation to implement open banking. The federal government has announced a launch target of early 2026. While this commitment is welcome, the timeline is far too slow – and the […] 
From: Mark ZelmerTo: Financial system watchersDate: July 28, 2025Re: There’s a Cost to More Generous Deposit Insurance Limits As Canada adjusts to a more hostile geopolitical environment, it is important that the safety net that underpins our financial system remains fit for purpose. Deposit insurance is an important part of that net. Because of the […]