Open Banking Expo Canada 2026 has opened with a clear focus on execution, as senior industry leaders, regulators and policymakers gathered in Toronto to discuss what Canada’s “build year” means in practice for consumer-driven banking.
With legislation now passed, the conversation has shifted from policy design to implementation, oversight and industry readiness.
In her Opening Keynote on the Main Stage, Saba Shariff, senior vice president, chief strategy, product and innovation officer at Symcor, said that with legislation having passed, now the focus turns to execution and the importance of getting this right.
Shariff was followed on stage by Ron Morrow, executive director of payments, supervision and oversight at the Bank of Canada, who discussed how the central bank intends to work with the industry on delivering Open Banking and the timeline for doing so. He outlined the importance of global learnings, referencing developments in jurisdictions such as the UK and Australia, and addressed how supervisory expectations will evolve as the framework takes shape.
Morrow also spoke about the Bank of Canada’s preparations for the regulation of fiat-backed stablecoins, signalling the need for Canada to keep pace with international developments in digital assets while maintaining financial system stability.
The morning programme concluded with a Main Stage debate featuring speakers from CIBC, Flinks, Scotiabank, GFT Technologies, the Canadian Bankers Association and Financial Data Exchange. Panellists examined the practical challenges of delivering Open Banking at scale, including readiness gaps, ecosystem coordination and the intersection with Real-Time Rail and payment initiation.
The day will close with a keynote from Jeanne Pratt, Acting Commissioner of Competition at the Competition Bureau, who will speak on driving competition in Canada’s financial sector through Open Banking and data portability, underscoring the broader economic implications of effective implementation.