That's an extremely important question, because what's at stake is the stability of the financial sector. We are limited in Canada; the fact that there might be slightly fewer players in banking contributes significantly to stability. Though the aim now is to open up the banking system, it shouldn't be done at the expense of the system's security and stability.
I have to admit that we too were very surprised by the choice of this agency. There's been talk of an open banking system or open financial services for years now. But no one has ever thought that these supervisory powers would be entrusted to a federal consumer agency that has never managed data and has no expertise in that area. It has told us that it would develop this expertise, but just imagine the complexity of the issue, the rigour required, and the attendant exposure to risks? We have serious doubts about this decision.
The major problem is that it sends out a peculiar signal given that consumer protection is, of course, an area of provincial jurisdiction.
So the problem we are facing is twofold: on the one hand expertise needs to be developed, and on the other, federal-provincial harmonization needs to be established in a consistent manner in order to get all the parties to buy in.