This report summarizes the main themes, ideas and discussion points that emerged from the fourth national conference on financial literacy, which was hosted by the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) in Vancouver, B.C. on November 6 and 7, 2014. The conference brought together the top issues...
In June 2005, Social and Enterprise Development Innovations (SEDI), the Policy Research Initiative (PRI), and the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) organized Canadians and Their Money: A National Symposium on Financial Capability. The conference stemmed from an initial examination by SEDI...
This brief is the joint submission of the Canadian Literacy and Learning Network (CLLN), Momentum Calgary, SEED Winnipeg, Social and Enterprise Development Innovations (SEDI), and St. Christopher House in Toronto – five non-profit organizations working to strengthen the financial inclusion and...
In this video presentation Rob Levy from the Center for Financial Services Innovation (CFSI) examines the role of financial institutions in building consumer financial health. This presentation was given at the Prosper Canada Policy Research Symposium on March 9, 2018. Read the slide deck that...
SEDI has prepared this report at the request of the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) to assess the current state of the production and delivery of financial capability services and products in Canada. This final report presents our main findings and conclusions based on the quantitative...
Payday loans are an expensive way for consumers to borrow money. The use of these short-term, high-cost loans has more than doubled in Canada recently to four percent of Canadian households. The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) has been tasked with raising public awareness about the costs...
On September 9 and 10, 2008, Reaching Higher: Canadian Conference on Financial Literacy was held in Montréal to highlight the effectiveness of current Canadian financial literacy efforts and to examine international strategies. The hosts of the conference were the Financial Consumer Agency of...
To assess the current state of financial health in America and to glean insights that can inform cross-sector efforts to improve consumer outcomes, CFSI designed and commissioned a nationally representative survey focused on consumers’ financial behaviours, attitudes, and preferences. This report...
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the CFPB) looked at the information sources consumers are exposed to when they make financial decisions. Empowering consumers to make the financial decisions that will help them meet their own life goals is a critical part of the mission of the CFPB. To...
In order to support and guide efforts to improve the effectiveness and quality of financial education, the CFPB is taking up this challenge to provide stronger evidence of what works to improve financial decision making and financial well-being, while ensuring the appropriate research protections...
Mobile payments (m-payments) are an important aspect of mobile banking, which is a form of retail financial services that is growing rapidly around the world. Canadian consumers are increasingly migrating away from branch-based banking towards online and mobile banking. Research suggests that the...
All banks, and trust, loan and insurance companies and retail associations that are federally regulated (or that are incorporated at the federal level) must have a complaint-handling process in place for individuals and small businesses. This process details how a customer may make a complaint, and...
Firms and representatives in the financial services industry occasionally encounter situations where a client’s vulnerability causes the client to make decisions that are contrary to his or her financial interests, needs or objectives or that leave him or her exposed to potential financial...
The purpose of this report is to provide policy makers, supervisory agencies, researchers, industry stakeholders and the general public with a systematic analysis and broad understanding of the trends related to the banking fees levied on consumers’ deposit accounts in Canada. The principal...
We can educate consumers and provide access to financial products and services. But how do we help consumers use their knowledge and tools to improve their financial behaviour and become financially healthy? With six stories and thirteen project profiles, Designing for Financial Health, leverages...
Financial literacy has been proposed widely as an effective approach to preparing people to manage their finances. This paper proposes an alternative concept, financial capability. Financial capability includes both the ability to act (knowledge, skills, confidence, and motivation) and the...
This webinar, "High cost lending in Canada: Risks, regulations, and alternatives," is about why high cost lending products are concerning, especially for financially vulnerable Canadians. Speakers discuss what is driving the use of these products, what kind of regulations are involved, and what...
This handout is from Module 9 of the Financial Literacy Facilitator Resources. Examples of how to deal with consumer problems. To view full Financial Literacy Facilitator Resources, click...
In 2014, FCAC sponsored the Canadian Financial Capability Survey (the CFCS 2014), a national survey of consumers that was conducted by Statistics Canada, to shed light on Canadians’ self-reported knowledge, abilities and behaviours related to a range of financial issues. The survey results...
This short guide explains the process of getting debt management help from a credit counselling agency. Credit counselling agencies provide a range of services for people in financial difficulty. One of the most common services they offer is help with finding the best strategy to pay off your debt...
This is the resources handout for Module 9: Consumerism, from the Prosper Canada Financial Literacy Facilitator Resources. To view full Financial Literacy Facilitator Resources, click...
This is a guide on cheque hold periods when banking in Canada. When you receive a cheque, you may consider two things before deciding where to cash it: When can you get your money? How much will it cost you to cash the cheque? Although cheque cashing services may make money available immediately,...
For financial educators and others who help people with decision-making, there is evidence that providing financial rules of thumb to consumers can work better than more detailed and complex financial education in some situations. To further explore the potential of rules of thumb for financial...
Aboriginal individuals, entrepreneurs and communities have been affected by financial literacy challenges in many of the same ways that lower-income people and remote populations in Canada have. However, there is the additional weight of specific cultural and structural barriers and the additional...
Financial exclusion is a matter of growing concern in Canada considering the decline in the number of mainstream bank branches in some inner-cities and the concurrent rise in the number of fringe banks. This study reports on results from a survey of residents from Winnipeg’s North End, a...