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The Compact Nature of the Canadian Banking Landscape is an Opportunity for FinTech
Derek Colfer
Head of Technology and Digital Innovation
Visa Canada
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FinTech: Canada is moving too slowly
Sue Britton
CEO & Founder
FinTech Growth Syndicate
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Collaboration, Not Competition, is the Future of Canada’s FinTech Industry
Jeff Hindle
Managing Director, Finance and Commerce
MaRS Discovery District
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Educating on Digital Disruption to Define and Invent our Future
Justin Tang
Co-President
Ivey FinTech
Canada has all the necessary ingredients to be a global FinTech powerhouse: a stable banking system, an educated and skilled workforce, and innovative startups. However, FinTech adoption in Canada is low among digitally active Canadians. Lukewarm government support, the lack of a national FinTech strategy and a recognizable Canadian FinTech champion also complicate the sector’s outlook. But the opportunity is definitely there for Canada to seize.
This Spotlight covers these issues and more to define what ingredients a sustainable path for the future of FinTech in Canada includes, and what must be done to support this key sector of the future economy.
Event Alignment: The Canadian FinTech 2.0 Summit
Presented by BDC’s IT Venture Fund in collaboration with MaRS Discovery District.
Key Takeaways & Calls to Action
- While Canada does have some FinTech assets, we are extremely behind in building our FinTech base and FinTech adoption, and this creates challenges in terms of reaching consumers with innovative FinTech products.
- It is easier for a FinTech company to reach a greater percentage of the Canadian market because of its landscape dominated by a few large incumbents.
- In order to support innovation, the Canadian government and private sector should prioritize buying from Canadian entrepreneurs.
- Educational institutions must integrate digital disruption and technical coding skills into their curricula for all majors.
About the Experts
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Derek Colfer is Head of Technology and Digital Innovation at Visa Canada, where he leads initiatives focused on advancing digital payment technologies and innovation strategy. He works on developing secure, scalable solutions that support the evolution of digital commerce and improve payment experiences for consumers and businesses.
Visa Canada is the Canadian division of Visa, a global payments technology company.
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It enables secure electronic payments and provides infrastructure for digital and card-based transactions across financial institutions, merchants, and consumers. -
Sue Britton is CEO and Founder of FinTech Growth Syndicate, where she leads initiatives that connect financial institutions with emerging fintech solutions. She focuses on fostering collaboration, driving innovation, and helping organizations navigate digital transformation through strategic partnerships across the financial services ecosystem.
FinTech Growth Syndicate is a network that connects financial institutions with fintech innovators.
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It facilitates partnerships, insights, and opportunities to accelerate innovation in financial services. -
Jeff Hindle is Managing Director, Finance and Commerce at MaRS Discovery District, where he leads initiatives supporting the growth and commercialization of innovative ventures. He works with startups, investors, and partners to strengthen financial strategy, scale operations, and accelerate the development of high-impact technology companies.
MaRS Discovery District is a Toronto-based innovation hub supporting startups and scale-ups across technology and science sectors.
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It provides funding, advisory services, and ecosystem connections to help ventures grow and commercialize globally. -
Justin Tang is Co-President of Ivey FinTech, where he helps lead student initiatives focused on financial technology education, industry engagement, and career development. He works with peers and partners to organize programming that explores innovation in finance, digital banking, and emerging financial technologies.
Ivey FinTech is a student-led organization at the Ivey Business School focused on financial technology.
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It provides educational programming, industry connections, and experiential learning opportunities in fintech.
