Tips to keep your credit card safe
Your credit card can help you make purchases quickly without needing to have cash on hand. Follow these tips by the Ontario Securities Commission to use your credit card safely.
Cyber security & fraud prevention learning guide
Banks take fraud very seriously and have highly sophisticated security systems and teams of experts to protect you from financial fraud. As a banking customer, there are also simple steps you can take to recognize cyber crime and protect your personal information and your money. Educating yourself, your family and your employees about cyber safety can seem overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be that complicated and the CBA has developed a learning path to help.
Advancing equity: the power and promise of credit building
Credit is an essential ingredient for economic security and mobility. Without a high credit score and affordable, available capital, it is nearly impossible to get by financially, let alone get ahead. Our economic system, and the American Dream it is supposed to feed, is based on the belief that anyone has access to credit and can build economic security, wealth, and intergenerational transfer. This brief will analyze what is not working within our credit system and identify what philanthropy can do to reimagine a system that builds economic security and mobility for everyone, especially people of color and immigrants. An equitable credit system would create pathways to narrow the racial wealth gap instead of continuing to widen it. Solutions include nonprofit organizations and community A webinar is also available and you can view the webinar slides here.
development financial institutions (CDFIs) delivering financial products that are designed for the people who have been most excluded from the credit system, seeding their journey toward economic security, as well as systemic changes to make economic security and mobility more fairly attainable.
Thriving or surviving study 2022
The Thriving or Surviving study uncovers the kitchen table issues that confront Canadians daily, revealing how the country is coping with concerns such as debt, savings, emergency funds and financial literacy.
Consumer debt and household vulnerability among low and moderate- income households in Canada
Household debt levels in Canada have been rising since the 1990s, which poses increasing risks for Canada’s economy and Canadians’ financial health. However, the debt ‘picture’ for an average low- or moderate-income household is likely to be quite different from higher income households, both in terms of amount of debt and type of debt they take on. Join Alex Bucik and Vivian Odu, from Prosper Canada in this one-hour webinar where theywe will present findings from recent Prosper Canada’s recent research on consumer debt in Canada, Roadblock to Recovery: Consumer debt of low- and moderate-income Canadians in the time of COVID-19. Alex and Vivian will explore what types of debt are more common in low- or moderate-income households, and some of the drivers of this debt load. This webinar is intended to equip financial educators and frontline practitioners supporting low-income clients, with recent knowledge on the types of debt Canadians living on low income may be dealing with, and things to know about the pitfalls of different types of debt. Click 'Get it' below to access the video link, and scroll down to access handouts, slides, and video timestamps for this webinar.
Handouts, slides, and time-stamps
Read the presentation slides for this webinar.
Handouts for this webinar:
Report: Roadblock to recovery: Consumer debt of low- and moderate-income Canadian households in the time of COVID-19 (Prosper Canada)
Survey results: Canadians with incomes under $40K bearing the financial brunt of COVID-19 (Leger and Prosper Canada)
Time-stamps for the video recording:
4:42 – Agenda and introductions
7:52 – Audience polls
10:55 – Researching consumer debt (Speaker: Alex Bucik)
18:55 – How much does debt cost? (Speaker: Alex Bucik)
23:17 – How do different kinds of debt work? (Speaker: Alex Bucik)
29:17 – What are people using their credit for? (Speaker: Vivian Odu)
40:49 – What help is available to Canadian borrowers? (Speaker: Alex Bucik)
45:22 – Q&A
The Early Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Credit Applications
This report documents the early effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on credit applications, which are among the very first credit market measures to change in credit report data in response to changes in economic activity. Using the Bureau’s Consumer Credit Panel, how applications for auto loans, mortgages, credit cards, and other loans changed week-by-week during the month of March, compared to the same time in previous years was studied.
Report on Income and Canadian Financial Consumer Complaints
This report explores the financial services complaint experiences of Canadians at various income levels who used the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI)’s service. The national, not-for-profit organization collected demographic and case data for almost 1,000 closed cases resolved between 2017 to 2019 to create the report. These cases were grouped into three categories: Key findings include:
Consumer Insights on Managing Spending
The CFPB conducted research on consumer challenges in tracking spending and keeping to a budget. The research found that consumers aspire to manage their spending but for many reasons, many consumers spend more than intended and sometimes have\ difficulty in staying within their budgets. In addition, we found that although most people would like to use budgets and plans, they often don’t use them to guide spending decisions in the moment. Budgeting and tracking spending are often considered to be overwhelming or too much of a hassle, and even those consumers who have a budget generally do not benchmark their spending to their budget frequently or regularly.
Credit Card Payment Calculator
This tool from the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada will help you compare different payment options to pay off your credit card balance. statement. If you can't, you can still reduce the amount of interest you will have to pay. The credit card payment calculator compares 3 different payment options to pay off your credit card balance.
Your Money Seniors
Your Money Seniors is a financial literacy program for seniors. Modelled on the CBA’s highly successful Your Money Students program, this seminar program is offered in French and English, free of charge, to seniors’ groups across the country. Your Money Seniors is presented by bankers in the community volunteering their time and expertise and covers how seniors can: Update January 10, 2023: Year in review
Handout 6-3: The cost of credit
This handout is from Module 6 of the Financial Literacy facilitator curriculum. The cost of credit for different payment methods.
Handout 6-2: Credit card features
This handout is from Module 6 of the Financial Literacy Facilitator Resources. The features of credit cards and what they mean. To view full Financial Literacy Facilitator Resources, click here.
Handout 6-1: Types of credit
This handout is from Module 6 of the Financial Literacy Facilitator Resources. The different types of credit and their lending conditions. To view full Financial Literacy Facilitator Resources, click here.
Helpful shortcuts for credit card use: Ideas for financial educators
To test out the impact of rules of thumb in helping consumers decrease their credit card debt, the CFPB
commissioned a rigorous study of two financial rules of thumb on consumers with revolving credit card debt. We created two new guidelines aimed at aiding consumers to decrease their revolving credit card debt: Don’t swipe the small stuff – Use cash when it’s under $20; Credit keeps charging – It adds approximately 20% to the total.
Protecting Your Credit Report: How to Correct Errors and Check for Fraud
Your credit report is important for your financial health. It can help you get approved for credit cards and other loans. It can also affect your ability to rent housing or get hired for a job.
Protect your credit report by checking carefully for errors and signs of identity theft. You have the right to dispute any information in your credit report that you believe is wrong. You can ask the credit reporting agencies to correct errors. It’s free.