The Bankwatch

Canada introduced their 2012 budget today.  There is an interesting reference to banking, copied here in totality.  There must be some reason for this.  It references external confusion about bank governance.  If anyone can contribute please chime in.

Budget 2012 Clarifying Federal Jurisdiction Over Banking

The Government will introduce a preamble into the Bank Act to clarify the intent that all banking activities throughout Canada be governed exclusively by the same high-quality federal standards that have served Canadians so well.

Canadians benefit from one of the best-regulated banking sectors in the world. Canada’s banking regulatory framework rests on stringent prudential rules that ensure that our banking sector remains safe and sound and on consumer protection rules that stress consumer choice and transparent disclosure. These rules are enforced consistently by federal regulatory agencies including the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions and the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada. The Government will introduce a preamble into the Bank Act to clarify the intent that all banking activities throughout Canada be governed exclusively by the same high quality federal standards that have served Canadians so well, and to avoid the creation of local and potentially inconsistent rules that threaten the uniform application of the federal banking regulatory framework.

Budget document