Ottawa plans to move bank AML oversight from FinTRAC to OSFI in Budget 2026
Ottawa plans to transfer oversight of banks' anti-money-laundering efforts from FinTRAC to the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, or OSFI, according to Budget 2026.
The budget describes the change as a way to bolster supervision and compliance among the largest financial institutions. It notes the objective is to enhance the anti-money-laundering and anti-terrorist-financing supervision and compliance within that group of institutions.
OSFI would undertake supervisory examinations to verify governance, regulatory compliance management, and oversight of culture risks. The shift reflects a broader aim to align supervision with prudential oversight for the financial sector.
FinTRAC currently supervises compliance with the PCMLTFA, while OSFI's mandate covers prudential risk that could affect financial stability. The planned reallocation would move that AML/ATF supervisory role to OSFI, changing the balance between the two agencies within the regime.
The plan follows a global review of Canada's financial-crime regime conducted by the Financial Action Task Force, with its outcome published earlier this year. The government has said the change is intended to strengthen Canada's response to money laundering and terrorist financing in line with international standards.
OSFI and FinTRAC already collaborate on risk assessment and information sharing. OSFI's guidance notes that the two agencies can share compliance-related information to assess risks arising from money laundering or terrorist financing, including matters that touch on governance, regulation, and institutional integrity.
The regime's framework assigns the Department of Finance as policy lead for AML/ATF issues and as the secretariat for regime initiatives. This structure underscores how the proposed shift would fit within the broader policy and supervisory architecture.
Canada's AML/ATF regime strategy for 2023-2026 describes mechanisms for cooperation across agencies and identifies areas where data exchanges and joint analyses improve oversight. While the plan is framed in Budget 2026 terms, the strategy highlights ongoing collaboration among OSFI, FinTRAC, and other parts of the system.
A broader takeaway is that the proposed change would centralize supervisory authority for AML/ATF within the federal banking regulator, potentially changing how large banks coordinate compliance programs and governance practices. The government has not provided a timetable or full scope for the transition in the available materials.
The policy intent is to reflect evolving international standards and the results of recent global reviews of Canada's regime.
