Key Takeaways
- Canada’s Consumer‑Driven Banking (CDB) framework has moved beyond the “whether” debate and is now focused on practical design that serves national interests.
- Success hinges on a trust framework with clear standards, liability rules, and strong digital identity to ensure safety, competition, and consumer benefit.
- Delays in implementation expose consumers to status‑quo risks and hinder Canadian innovators from competing on a level playing field.
- Canada can learn from other jurisdictions that have already launched open‑banking systems, but must accelerate coordinated action among regulators, institutions, tech providers, and policymakers.
- The vision advocated by the late Andrew Moor—balancing innovation with safety, competition with stability—remains the guiding compass for the CDB effort.
Finishing Takes Leadership: Delivering Consumer‑Driven Banking with Urgency and Confidence
Dan Broten, senior vice president and head of EQ Bank, opened his Main Stage presentation at Open Banking Expo Canada on March 5 by declaring that the era of abstract policy discussion is over. He emphasized that the national conversation has shifted from questioning whether a consumer‑driven banking system should exist to determining how it must be designed to serve Canada’s unique economic and social landscape. According to Broten, the work now underway is the concrete construction of a new piece of national economic infrastructure, not merely theoretical exploration.
Building a Safer, More Competitive, Aligned System
Broten articulated the core challenge facing the ecosystem: to create a system that is fundamentally safer, more competitive, and more closely aligned with the interests of Canadian consumers. He argued that progress will only be meaningful if it strengthens confidence in how financial data is shared and used. This requires unambiguous rules around security, liability, and accountability—elements that together form the trust foundation necessary for widespread adoption.
Legislative Momentum Must Translate Into Tangible Outcomes
While noting that legislation is advancing and momentum is building across the stakeholder community, Broten cautioned that recent progress must now be turned into concrete results. He warned that each month of delay leaves consumers exposed to the risks inherent in the status quo and hampers Canadian innovators who struggle to compete on an even playing field. Ongoing issues around data‑sharing practices and fraud, he said, illustrate the cost of inertia.
An Economic Imperative as Much as a Regulatory One
Framing the push for Consumer‑Driven Banking as both an economic and regulatory imperative, Broten pointed to the experiences of other jurisdictions that have already moved forward with open‑banking initiatives. Their lessons, he stressed, are invaluable and should be integrated with disciplined speed. By adapting proven models to Canada’s specific context, the country can avoid reinventing the wheel while still tailoring the system to domestic needs.
Essential Components for Successful Delivery
In outlining the key ingredients for a successful rollout, Broten identified a strong trust framework as essential. This framework must be underpinned by consistent technical standards and clear liability structures that protect both consumers and participants. Simultaneously, enabling competition through data mobility will be critical; when consumers can easily move their financial data between providers, they gain access to better products and services.
Digital Identity as a Key Enabler
Broten highlighted digital identity as a pivotal enabler for Consumer‑Driven Banking. He argued that aligning CDB with stronger digital‑identity solutions creates the possibility of a more coherent, system‑wide defense against fraud and misuse. A trusted identity layer not only simplifies consent management but also reinforces the security perimeter, making it harder for malicious actors to exploit data‑sharing mechanisms.
Learning from Slower Progress to Gain a Strategic Advantage
Acknowledging that Canada’s progress has been slower than in some international markets, Broten suggested that this lag offers a strategic advantage: the opportunity to learn from existing frameworks and design a system uniquely suited to domestic needs. However, he warned that this advantage will only be realized if decision‑making accelerates. Procrastination risks squandering the benefit of hindsight and leaving Canada lagging behind global peers.
A Unified, Secure, Competition‑Friendly Ecosystem Requires Collaboration
Broten painted a larger vision: building a unified, secure, and competition‑friendly ecosystem that is greater than the sum of its parts. Achieving this, he said, demands genuine collaboration among regulators, financial institutions, technology providers, and policymakers. The effort must draw on expertise from across the ecosystem to ensure the resulting design is practical, secure, and scalable. Only through coordinated action can Canada deliver a Consumer‑Driven Banking system that truly serves the public good.
Remembering Andrew Moor: A Steward of Innovation and Safety
Broten began his presentation by recalling Andrew Moor, the late president and CEO of EQ Bank, who passed away suddenly in June 2025. He described Moor as “one of the most thoughtful stewards” in Canadian banking, noting Moor’s belief that innovation and safety—or soundness—are not opposing forces. Moor saw competition and stability as mutually reinforcing when properly structured and regarded the modernization of financial infrastructure as a generational task requiring vision, patience, and steadfast commitment to the public good.
Andrew Moor’s Enduring Compass for the CDB Effort
Quoting Moor directly, Broten emphasized that progress only matters if it strengthens the consumer banking experience or bolsters confidence in the system. This principle, he said, should serve as the compass guiding all stakeholders as they move from design to delivery. By honoring Moor’s legacy—balancing ambition with prudence—the Canadian banking sector can pursue a Consumer‑Driven Banking framework that is both innovative and trustworthy, ultimately delivering lasting benefits to consumers and the broader economy.