(29 November 2022 – Canada) Payment firms including Mastercard and Block are banding together with fintech companies to form the Fintechs Canada Association to press regulators on moving faster on rules that may boost competition in financial services.
The association is launching with more than 40 members including WealthSimple, Coinsmart and “fintech friendly” players such as Interac and Equifax.
Payments modernisation, open banking, the digitalisation of money, AML and terrorist financing laws are among the key areas that the new group will focus on.
Canada is in the midst of a major multi-year payments infrastructure overhaul and has also begun consulting on the establishment of a defined open banking framework.
“With new regulation needed, slow progress on innovation policy, and unbalanced representation in Ottawa, a unified voice for fintech in Canada has never been more important,” Fintechs Canada representatives commented in a press release.