Uncovering the use of haircuts in the Canadian repo market Staff analytical paper 2026-39 Sadia Anum, Jabir Sandhu, Adrian Walton We show that haircuts are rarely used in the Canadian dealer-to-client repo market and their usage did not increase materially during past stress events. Usage is concentrated among wealth managers and some foreign official institutions, likely reflecting regulatory or internal requirements. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): G, G0, G01, G1, G18, G2, G23, G28 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Market structure, Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Financial stability and systemic risk, Financial system regulation and oversight
Tracking Heterogeneous Spending Patterns with Credit Card Microdata Staff analytical paper 2026-38 Jia Qi Xiao, Jackson Reid, Joey Daniels We present a measure of account-level credit card spending constructed using credit bureau microdata, capturing monthly spending for approximately 80% of adults in Canada. Our measure offers higher frequency than other publicly available consumption metrics, and can be disaggregated by age, geographic location and credit history. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): C, C5, C55, C8, C81, D, D1, D14, E, E2, E21, E3, E32, G, G5, G51 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial stability and systemic risk, Financial system regulation and oversight, Household and business credit, Monetary policy, Real economy and forecasting
Non-bank financial intermediation: Canada’s submission to the 2025 global monitoring report Staff analytical paper 2026-37 Thomas Thorn, Sylvia Xie We share insights about non-bank financial intermediation in Canada in 2024. These data were collected as part of the Bank of Canada’s contribution to the Financial Stability Board’s Global Monitoring Report on Non-Bank Financial Intermediation. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): G, G2, G21, G22, G23 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Market structure, Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Financial stability and systemic risk
Private credit in Canada Sparks at Bank article Wendy Chan, Cameron MacDonald, Geneviève Vallée Private credit—business loans made by non-bank lenders—has expanded rapidly worldwide, but for Canadian businesses, it remains a stable and relatively limited source of funding. Canadian asset managers, however, are actively participating in private credit globally, creating exposures that could matter for financial stability in Canada. Content Type(s): Staff research, Sparks at Bank article Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Household and business credit
From Stress to Strategy: How Banks Balance the Scales Staff working paper 2026-26 Ruben Hipp, Javier Ojea Ferreiro This paper develops a stress-testing framework in which banks strategically adjust their balance sheets in response to regulatory constraints and market conditions. Applied to Canada’s largest banks, it quantifies the effects of macroprudential policies on lending and identifies systemic vulnerabilities through reverse stress testing. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): C, C6, C63, C7, C73, G, G2, G21, G3, G32, H, H1, H12 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Financial stability and systemic risk, Models and tools, Economic models
The Boundaries of Bank Funding: The Case of Canadian Cash ETFs Staff analytical paper 2026-32 Jean-Sébastien Fontaine, Vincent Meh, Jayden Plener The rise and transformation of Canadian cash ETFs highlight that banking liquidity regulation affects more than bank resilience. By changing the relative attractiveness of deposits and securities, it can shape where asset managers allocate their cash across the financial system. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): E, E4, E44, G, G1, G11, G18, G2, G23, G28 Research Theme(s): Financial markets and funds management, Funds management, Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation
How Indigenous-owned firms finance their operations Sparks at Bank article James Fudurich, Calista Cheung, Farrukh Suvankulov, Selam Abraham Businesses that can’t easily access credit experience slower growth. Indigenous-owned firms are less likely than other firms in Canada to use conventional lending products—like loans or lines of credit from banks. We look at why Indigenous-owned businesses may face barriers to accessing credit. Content Type(s): Staff research, Sparks at Bank article Research Theme(s): Financial system, Household and business credit, Monetary policy, Monetary policy framework and transmission
The trade-offs between different designs of tokenized systems Sparks at Bank article Sriram Darbha, Rakesh Arora As interest in tokenization grows, so too does the focus on the design of tokenized systems. Different approaches—such as centralized or decentralized systems—could achieve similar outcomes. But the choice of design involves consequential trade-offs that shape how the entire ecosystem evolves. Content Type(s): Staff research, Sparks at Bank article Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial stability and systemic risk, Money and payments, Digital assets and fintech, Payment and financial market infrastructures
The Impact of Potential Retail Central Bank Digital Currency on the Canadian Financial System During a Severe Recession Staff analytical paper 2026-30 Sofia Priazhkina This policy note examines how a non-interest-bearing retail central bank digital currency (CBDC) could affect the financial stability of Canada’s systemically important banks during a severe recession. Stress test results show that the banks remain resilient, maintaining key regulatory ratios even under high CBDC demand. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical paper JEL Code(s): E, E4, E44, E5, E58, E6, E61, G, G0, G01, G2, G21, G28 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial stability and systemic risk, Models and tools, Economic models, Money and payments, Digital assets and fintech, Structural challenges, Digitalization and productivity
Banking Competition and Access to Cash and Retail Banking Services in Rural Canada Staff working paper 2026-19 Hongyu Xiao, Robert Petrunia, Sarah Lucky We study access to Canadian retail banking and cash services in rural, localized markets using the Bresnahan-Reiss entry threshold framework. We find that the first retail banking services branch entry requires about 500 residents in an average market, whereas the first cash services location requires about 80 residents. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers JEL Code(s): D, D1, D14, G, G2, G21, L, L1, L10, L13 Research Theme(s): Financial system, Financial institutions and intermediation, Financial system regulation and oversight, Money and payments, Cash and bank notes