The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions has rolled out a Streamlined Approvals Framework for targeted new entrants looking to launch new federally regulated financial institutions.
Eligible entities include provincial credit unions looking to continue as a federal credit union and entities with technologically innovative or emerging banking models, such as fintechs or crypto-asset custodians, that are aiming to incorporate or continue as a bank or federally regulated trust and loan company.
The framework consists of a three-phase process: early readiness assessment, ministerial approval, and operations commencement. It outlines eligibility requirements, necessary information from applications, and how to progress through the phases.
According to the OSFI, it is backed by defined timelines and a risk-based evaluation. The office is also introducing a public dashboard that makes applicable status visible throughout the process.
The early readiness assessment is a structured, time-bound pre-application pathway determining an applicant’s positioning for the streamlined pathway. The OSFI reviews all new‑entrant applications against legislated and regulatory threshold criteria.
The process facilitates early entry for applicants where risks can be mitigated at entry with regulatory or supervisory tools without needing extended pre-licensing remediation. Approved applications will be subject to OSFI’s oversight as they build and scale.
The framework also focuses on credible exit planning for orderly wind-up for non-viable business models.
The Streamlined Approvals Framework is aligned with wider federal policy direction and Budget 2025 measures simplifying the process by which credit unions enter the federal system. The framework’s modernization is aligned with dynamic financial services and product offerings while maintaining OSFI’s prudential supervision and the public’s confidence in the financial system.
The OSFI said this framework reflects financial service providers’ diversity and backs a regulatory environment accommodating innovation and changing business models.
“We aim to create a smoother, more accessible pathway for credible new entrants navigating the federal process, without lowering our standards. That means being clearer about what we expect, more transparent about the process, and more risk-based in how we assess applications,” said Peter Routledge, financial institutions superintendent, in a statement.
The OSFI will formally advise applicants found unsuitable for the framework and point them to the existing guides and approvals process.
Last month, the OSFI named Josée Turcotte its deputy superintendent.