The federal budget unveiled Tuesday proposes several reviews and reforms targeting the ways Canadians bank — and how many fees they face — in an effort to modernize the banking system.
Among the proposals are a review of ATM and Interac fees, prohibiting account transfer fees, cutting the amount of time banks hold cheques for, and regulating the use of “stablecoins” — a type of cryptocurrency backed by an established currency.
Here are some of the changes the Liberals are promising.
Reviewing ATM, Interac fees
The budget says the government will launch a review next year of the fees charged by banks and other federally regulated financial institutions, including Interac e-transfer fees and ATM fees.
“We will use every tool and agency at our disposal to address any unjustified fees and pain points for Canadians,” the document says.
The federal government will publish draft regulations by spring 2026 to prohibit investment and registered account transfer fees, which the budget says cost Canadians an average of $150 per account.
“The government will also require the timely transfer of these accounts and clear presentation of information on the process and lack of fees,” the budget says.
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The Liberals also intend to “explore” improved transparency of cross-border bank transfer fees, including foreign exchange costs for banks, to crack down on unexpected added costs for Canadians sending money abroad.
The budget also says Ottawa will work with banks on ways to simplify the process of switching primary chequing accounts to other Canadian financial institutions.
The Liberals say they will introduce legislation to regulate the issuance of fiat-backed stablecoins in Canada.
Fiat-backed stablecoins are a type of cryptocurrency whose value is linked to a specific amount of a traditional currency, such as the Canadian or U.S. dollar.
The legislation will also include amendments to the Retail Payment Activities Act that will allow payment service providers to use prescribed stablecoins for transactions.
The budget proposes amendments to the Bank Act that will raise the amount of immediately available funds from deposited cheques from $100 to $150.
It will also remove delays often added to accessing cheque funds that are deposited electronically or by ATM compared to in-person deposits.
New regulations will apply the change to trust and loan companies as well as banks.
Budget 2025 provides new updates to the implantation of Canada’s national open banking infrastructure, Real-Time-Rail, which is set to launch next year.
The system is meant to streamline and accelerate business transactions like payroll and expense reimbursements, down payments for a car, and other transactions by allowing money to move instantly between accounts.
The budget says the government intends to legislate additional “write access” for consumers to direct banking actions by mid-2027 once the Real-Time-Rail system is in widespread use.
None of the opposition parties brought up the banking changes while commenting on the budget Tuesday, but generally expressed varying levels of concern over whether the budget goes far enough to help Canadians with affordability.
“Our party wanted an affordable budget for an affordable life,” Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said in the House of Commons.
“On behalf of all the Canadians who can no longer afford to eat, heat or house themselves because of Liberal inflation, we Conservatives cannot support this costly Liberal budget.”
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