Inside FDATA's 2026 Global Open Finance Summit

CPPO attended FDATA's 2026 Global Open Finance Summit in Toronto on September 17, where leaders from government, banking and fintech got into the mechanics of how Canada's open finance framework will take shape.

The Bank of Canada and Finance Canada spoke directly to the operational rollout of the consumer-driven banking framework, including how participants will be accredited and overseen. Accountability carried into the sessions that followed. Panels on fraud liability, security standards and consumer-permissioned data sharing examined how liability should be allocated when something goes wrong and what that allocation means for the customer experience.

Agentic AI added a newer layer to the same discussion. An AI agent making purchases on a consumer's behalf raises questions of consent and authorization, and speakers from financial institutions, fintechs, policymakers and technology providers compared how they are approaching AI-enabled financial actions. They also discussed the safeguards agentic systems need to earn trust and how open finance frameworks can evolve to support innovation while maintaining accountability.

Sessions on real-time payments, open banking and digital wallets looked at how the movement of money is changing as Canada shifts toward a more connected, consumer-driven data future. Interoperability and cross-border coordination came up repeatedly, and so did competition.

CPPO supports the advancement of consumer-driven banking as a framework to drive more competition and choice in digital financial services. It's essential for a thriving and stable financial system, giving Canadian consumers the flexibility and autonomy to pursue banking options that meet their unique needs.

Open-loop prepaid products already do this work. In the absence of consumer-driven banking, open-loop prepaid products offer a ready solution, already advancing Canada's competition objectives and the underlying principles of consumer-driven banking.

CPPO will be following these discussions closely and looking for opportunities to bring prepaid-specific considerations into the conversation as these frameworks develop.