CFFiM - Canadian Forum For Financial Markets

06/10/2026

🎙️Podcast: A Binding Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investment (OBSI)? – Lessons From the UK. Listen here: https://cffim-fcmfi.ca/podcast/a-binding-ombudsman-for-banking-services-and-investment-obsi-lessons-from-the-uk/

The UK government has announced what it describes as the most significant overhaul of the UK’s Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) since its creation.

The reforms go well beyond process. They raise broader questions about the role of an ombudsman service and its impact on market competitiveness.

The UK experience offers important lessons for Canadian policymakers, particularly the Canadian Securities Administrators, as it considers whether the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments should be granted binding authority.

This discussion examines the drivers behind the UK government’s reforms to the FOS framework, and the implications for regulation, investor protection, and the market.

The UK government has announced what it describes as the most significant overhaul of the UK’s Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) since its creation.

06/09/2026

The Canadian Securities Administrators are proposing to ‘clarify’ reporting requirements for single-issuer ETFs, American Depositary Receipts, Canadian Depositary Receipts and structured notes by alleviating an available exemption to address ‘a potential reporting gap’.

No evidence of the gap has been provided.

It is important to show the public the scale and nature of the problem.

If the evidence supports reform, the public can engage constructively on targeted solutions.

If the evidence is absent, the proposal should be reconsidered.

See CFFiM analysis here:https://cffim-fcmfi.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/CFFiM-Insider-Reporting-1.pdf

06/04/2026

The federal government’s Spring Economic Update 2026 projects persistent deficits, rising from $36.3 billion in 2024-25, to $65.3 billion in 2026-27, before declining to $53.2 billion by 2030-31, with no path to balance.

Federal debt is projected to rise from $1.27 trillion to $1.63 trillion over the same period, while the debt-to-GDP ratio increases from 40.7% to 41.6%.

Public debt charges rise from $54.0 billion in 2025-26 to $80.9 billion in 2030-31, diverting resources from tax relief and productivity-enhancing investment. Prior to the pandemic (2019-20), debt-to-GDP was 31.2%, and public debt charges were $24.4 billion.

The government has introduced two new fiscal anchors to address fiscal pressures:

1. Balancing day-to-day operating spending with revenues by 2028-29; and
2. Maintaining a declining deficit-to-GDP ratio.

However, as the Office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer has noted, these targets can be met while debt-to-GDP rises due to non-operating borrowing, raising sustainability concerns.

In its pre-budget submission to the House of Commons Finance Committee, the Canadian Forum for Financial Markets recommended that the federal government re-establish the debt-to-GDP ratio as the fiscal anchor, with a clear medium-term path back to pre-pandemic level.

06/03/2026

The Bank of Canada has highlighted research indicating that concentration in Canada’s banking sector—where the six largest banks hold roughly 93% of banking assets—can weigh on productivity. The Competition Bureau has called for “new players to shake things up” in banking.

In its pre-budget submission to the House of Commons Finance Committee, the Canadian Forum for Financial Markets recommended that the federal government:

- Conduct a public review of banking regulations to eliminate outdated or duplicative requirements, reducing regulatory costs and supporting innovation and competition without compromising financial stability.
- Amend the Bank Act and legislative mandates of key federal financial oversight bodies—including OSFI, FCAC, and the Competition Bureau—to explicitly include competition as a core statutory objective.
- Designate a Technical Standards Body by Q3, 2026, similar to the U.K’s Open Banking Implementation Entity, to accelerate open banking. This independent body would develop and maintain national API and data standards, oversee conformance and certification, publish a delivery roadmap, coordinate industry implementation, and advance toward payments initiation.

Together, these recommendations aim to foster a more competitive, innovative, and efficient financial sector—one that delivers lower prices, better service, and greater choice for Canadian consumers and businesses.

06/02/2026

🎙️Podcast: Breaking Up Should Not Be Hard to Do: The Value of Corporate Spinoffs https://cffim-fcmfi.ca/podcast/breaking-up-should-not-be-hard-to-do-the-value-of-corporate-spinoffs/

Corporate spin-offs—known in Canada as “butterflies”—are a powerful corporate restructuring mechanism.

By creating independent businesses with focused management teams, spin-offs can enhance competition, operational efficiency, and strategic agility.

Freed from the constraints of a large, diversified parent company, spun-off entities can often adapt more quickly to changing market conditions and customer demands.

Spin-offs also improve valuation transparency by allowing investors to assess each business on its own merits, increasing pressure on management to improve performance, pricing, and innovation.

They can also attract investors seeking exposure to specific market niches or industries, potentially broadening access to capital for both the parent company and the newly independent entity.

In this episode we explain in practical terms how spin-offs work in Canada and the U.S., why they matter for competition and capital markets, and what policy and tax design can do to ensure that breaking up isn’t hard to do.

Corporate spin-offs—known in Canada as “butterflies”—are a powerful corporate restructuring mechanism. By creating independent businesses with focused

05/29/2026

Canada’s retirement savings framework has not kept pace with demographic and market realities.

The mandatory RRSP-to-RRIF conversion at age 71 — along with mandatory minimum withdrawals — were designed decades ago when life expectancy was significantly shorter. As Canadians live longer, the risk of outliving retirement savings increases, strengthening the case for greater flexibility to manage withdrawals and maximize tax efficiency.

The 18% contribution limit, also set in 1992, is outdated. It disadvantages Canadians with RRSPs and defined contribution pension plans (common in the private sector) relative to those with defined benefit pension plans (more prevalent in the public sector). Increasing the limit would improve equity across pension arrangements.

At the same time, registered plans generally do not provide access to private equity and venture capital funds, limiting Canadians’ ability to participate in high-growth investment opportunities that are often available to high-net-worth investors and family offices.
In its pre-budget submission to the House of Commons Finance Committee, the Canadian Forum for Financial Markets (CFFiM) recommended that the federal government:

- Gradually raise the RRSP-to-RRIF conversion age from 71 to 74.
- Gradually reduce, and ultimately eliminate, mandatory RRIF withdrawal rates.
- Gradually increase the defined contribution pension plan and RRSP contribution limit to 30% of earned income.
- Expand qualified investments in registered savings plans to include private capital funds.

05/28/2026

Wealth Professional Canada: The Canadian Forum for Financial Markets (CFFiM) filed an 18-point pre-budget submission with the House of Commons Finance Committee on May 22, calling for cuts to corporate and personal income taxes, a banking sector shakeup, and long-overdue reforms to retirement savings rules.

https://www.wealthprofessional.ca/news/industry-news/canada-has-lost-its-corporate-tax-edge-over-the-us-finance-group-warns/392565

Finance group urges tax cuts, banking overhaul ahead of federal budget

05/28/2026

Broadening access to flow-through shares could help mobilize private capital for both Canada’s mining sector and innovation economy.

Mining projects face long timelines and high risk, contributing to funding gaps, particularly at the exploration stage. Flow-through shares help bridge this gap by allowing exploration companies to renounce eligible Canadian Exploration Expenses (CEE) to investors. However, CCE generally excludes preliminary economic assessments, pre-feasibility studies, and feasibility studies, often required for regulatory approvals, investment decisions, and financing.

The Liberal Party’s 2025 platform proposed extending flow-through shares to innovation-focused startups in sectors such as AI, quantum computing, biotechnology, and advanced manufacturing by allowing eligible R&D expenses to flow through to investors.

In its pre-budget submission to the House of Commons Finance Committee, the Canadian Forum for Financial Markets (CFFiM) recommended that the federal government:

- Expand the mining flow-through share regime to include preliminary economic, pre-feasibility, and feasibility studies as eligible Canadian Exploration Expenses.
- Extend flow-through share eligibility to qualifying R&D expenditures in innovative sectors and integration with the SR&ED tax incentive program.

&D

05/27/2026

As Canada looks to improve productivity and competitiveness, tax reform remains central to the conversation.

Canada relies more heavily on personal and corporate income taxes — and less on value-added taxes — than the OECD average. Tax composition matters for economic growth.

Corporate income taxes are considered the most harmful for growth because they discourage capital investment and productivity, followed by personal income taxes, which reduce incentives to work, save, invest, and pursue entrepreneurial activity. By comparison, value-added taxes such as the GST/HST affect work, saving, and investment decisions less.

In its pre-budget submission to the House of Commons Finance Committee, the Canadian Forum for Financial Markets Priorities (CFFiM) recommended that the federal government:

- Rebalance the tax mix toward consumption taxes.
- Reduce the federal corporate income tax rate from 15% to 13% over two years beginning in 2027.
- Compress the five federal income tax brackets into three by reducing the second-lowest personal income tax rate (20.5%) to 14% over six years starting in 2027; reducing the fourth bracket rate (29%) to 26%; and lowering the top rate (33%) to 29%.
- Increase the GST by 1 percentage point in both 2027 and 2028, restoring it to its original 7% rate.

05/27/2026

Mutual fund dealers, advisors and fund managers have a year and a half to comply with the Canada Revenue Agency's enforcement of GST/HST on mutual fund trailing commissions. “The anticipated additional time is appreciated by many,” said Laura Paglia, CFFiM President & CEO.

Dealers currently registered for sales tax should be "extremely careful" about claiming ITCs, tax expert says