In testimony to a committee studying financial fraud and scams in Canada, the Canadian Bankers Association called for a federal anti-fraud strategy built on coordinated action across financial services, telecommunications and digital platforms, and backed the government's planned Finance Crimes Agency as the national operational lead against complex financial crime. The association said stronger cross-sector information sharing, clearer roles across government and law enforcement, and retention of the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre as the main hub for fraud reporting and intelligence aggregation are key to reducing fraud harm and updating Canada's anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing regime. The CBA said it convened the Canadian Anti-Scam Coalition about two years ago with around 50 public and private sector partners, including regulators, banks, telecom providers, law enforcement and digital platforms. The coalition is working on a national taxonomy, a fraud detection pilot and the Stand Against Scams campaign. In support of a National Anti-Fraud Strategy, the association cited Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre analysis that more than 85% of fraud dollar losses can be traced to telecom or digital channels, and argued for voluntary, conditional information sharing with governance and privacy safeguards. It also pointed to international work through the International Banking Federation, including a fraud task force and support for the Interpol Call to Action, which has been endorsed by 37 member states including Canada, and a Global Public-Private Partnership Framework.
Canadian Bankers Association2026-06-04
Canadian Bankers Association urges national cross-sector anti-fraud strategy and backs Finance Crimes Agency lead role
The Canadian Bankers Association, in testimony to a parliamentary committee on financial fraud and scams, called for a coordinated federal anti-fraud strategy across financial services, telecommunications and digital platforms, and backed the planned Finance Crimes Agency as the national lead against complex financial crime. It urged stronger cross-sector information sharing with governance and privacy safeguards, clearer roles for government and law enforcement, and retention of the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre as the central hub for fraud reporting and intelligence. The association highlighted its Canadian Anti-Scam Coalition and alignment with international efforts through the International Banking Federation and Interpol’s Call to Action.