High interest rates and elevated inflation since the US Federal Reserve’s aggressive monetary tightening campaign have translated to more missed payments and rising debt levels. Moreover, last year’s average FICO credit score declined for the first time in a decade, as outstanding credit card balances transitioning to delinquencies have continued to increase since 2022. A … Read more
Quebec provincial police have arrested five more people with crimes tied to a massive data breach at Desjardins, including the former bank employee originally suspected of being behind the leak. Four of them, three men and one woman, were arrested early Thursday morning, hours after Laval police announced arrests of their own tied to the … Read more
Mortgage debt grew at its slowest pace in 23 years in February, amid high borrowing costs and reservations related to the Bank of Canada’s key interest rate — but the slowdown likely won’t last, according to Canada’s housing agency. Canadian mortgage debt totalled $2.16 trillion that month, up 3.4 per cent from the same period last year — a historically low … Read more
Canada’s banking regulator says real estate secured lending and mortgages are among the top risks the country’s financial system is facing, as higher interest rates pressure borrowers. In its annual risk outlook, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions )OSFI) said as homeowners renew their mortgages, they could potentially face a payment shock due to … Read more
Federal efforts to bring “open banking” to Canada are being welcomed by players in the industry — but there’s also criticism that, after years of waiting, any changes may not come fast enough to encourage innovation or allow smaller financial players compete with larger institutions. Open banking lets consumers or business customers share personal and financial information between approved banks and other … Read more
A senior Bank of Canada official says the need to improve productivity has reached an emergency level as the economy faces a future where inflation may be more of a threat than in the past few decades. In a speech, senior deputy governor Carolyn Rogers says an economy with low productivity can only grow so … Read more
Michelle Jeraline says she’s so stressed out by the pressure to sell customers products at TD Bank, it’s affected her health. The TD employee says she’s usually not acting in the best interest of her clients — she’s trying to sell them products that will help her meet sales targets and keep her from being … Read more
New Delhi: BlackSoil NBFC, the flagship arm of alternative credit platform BlackSoil Group, on Monday raised equity of Rs 100 crore from its existing Indian investors and family offices through a rights issue. The equity infusion will improve credit profile and increase borrowing capabilities, BlackSoil said in a statement. BlackSoil’s portfolio includes investments in growth … Read more
Consumers in Ontario and British Columbia increasingly missed payments on mortgages and credit cards in the fourth quarter of 2023, Equifax Canada said. The fourth quarter saw a continuation of what’s been happening for a while now as the impacts of higher interest rates and inflation continue to weigh on consumers, said Rebecca Oakes, vice-president … Read more
A main organizer of the “Freedom Convoy” is suing the federal government for using the Emergencies Act to freeze his bank accounts, arguing it breached his Charter rights to protest COVID-19 mandates. Chris Barber, who owns a trucking company in southwestern Saskatchewan, filed last week a statement of claim in Court of King’s Bench in … Read more
