Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
How Competition Powers Canada’s Economic Growth
Competition Policy | Oct 7, 2025
Boswell links competition to prosperity, while Minister Joly says Government is 'Hawkish on Competition'
On October 1, 2025, the Competition Bureau hosted Canada's Competition Summit 2025, bringing together policymakers, regulators and business leaders to confront Canada's achilles heels being productivity, affordability, consumer choice, and global competitiveness. Minister of Industry, Mélanie Joly, delivered opening remarks and basically said that the Canadian government was 'hawkish on competition'.
In his keynote, host and Commissioner Matthew Boswell delivered the point. Canada cannot rebuild productivity or affordability without making competition a central part of its economic policy, positioning competition as a practical growth strategy. For financial engineers and innovators, it means that competition is at the foundation of Canada's economic recovery, and must open access to markets, data, and capital, in ways that directly affect business growth.
“If we want an economy that delivers innovation, productivity, and resilience, then competition must be at the heart of our policy agenda,”
Read the full transcript called, 'Canada's evolving economy: the need for more competition'.
Competition as Canada’s Growth Engine
1. Productivity and Innovation
Canada’s labour productivity has grown by a mere 0.2% a year since 2018, while U.S. nonfarm business productivity has risen by roughly 1.3% to 1.5% annually. Compounded annually, the gap is widening at a quicker pace, providing evidence that stronger economic growth is urgently needed to close the gap.
Boswell reminded the audience that the competition bureau commissioned an independent study to quantify how reducing regulatory barriers could unlock growth, wages, and business creation. Mathew Boswell, Commissioner Competition Bureau on the study:
By way of a teaser, I can tell you that the estimates are very significant and underscore the immense opportunity for Canada to tackle government-imposed barriers to competition across our economy. We expect the findings to be published later this year, so stay tuned.
The findings are expected to be published later this year, and could give policymakers further proof of the need to remove barriers that slow innovation and benefit incumbents, in an uneven playing field. For fintechs, these barriers are visible every day in duplicated licensing requirements, inconsistent provincial frameworks, and fragmented oversight that slows expansion and increases cost without improving consumer outcomes.
Governments should reduce regulatory friction and duplication by harmonizing compliance requirements across provinces and sectors that are critical to economic growth, such as digital finance, payments, and alternative lending. Canada also needs competition policy that explicitly measures innovation outcomes and not just compliance costs, so industry and the public can see whether new regulations lower barriers to entry or protect incumbents.
See: Will Competition Reforms Boost Fintech? Inside the Fight
Canada would also benefit from a nationally coordinated regulatory sandbox network. Instead of isolated pilots, Canada should build an integrated environment where regulators share data and recognize approvals across jurisdictions. This would create a single, transparent pathway for startups to test and scale safely, while maintaining consumer protection and market integrity.
Productivity growth starts with competition clarity. When innovators can enter markets and expand without navigating numerous regulatory silos, the entire economy benefits.
2. Affordability and Consumer Choice
“Airfares go down by 9 percent on average when one new competitor flies on a route between two cities.”
Boswell is referring to the Competition Bureau’s airline market study which shows how even one new entrant can reduce average fares by 9% and improve service quality. The lesson is applicable beyond airlines. When digital lenders, payment innovators, and fintech startups are allowed to compete, consumers benefit through lower fees, more choice, and better technology.
Yet in Canada’s financial sector, limited competition still lets incumbents set the rules. New entrants face data access restrictions, inconsistent provincial rules and licensing, and integration barriers that slow innovation and keep prices higher than they should be.
The federal government should accelerate the implementation of open banking (also see: consumer-driven banking) to allow consumers to safely share their financial data with accredited fintechs. By doing so, new providers could compete on price, quality, and service rather than being blocked by closed data systems.
See: Consumer Data Right Reset Supports Growth and Competition
NCFA also urges regulators to make affordability an explicit performance metric within competition policy. Publishing regular, transparent indicators on how policy changes affect consumer prices, switching costs, and product diversity would keep competition reform accountable to real outcomes.
It's not only about lowering costs but also about empowering consumers and improving financial inclusion. When Canadians can easily access and move their data, compare products easily among various provider options, and switch providers safely, competition will become the best affordability policy we have.
3. Canada’s Global Competitiveness
“Shielding domestic firms from competition doesn’t make them stronger, it makes them complacent.”
Boswell’s warning is at the heart of Canada’s competitiveness problem. Protecting large firms makes them less efficient and less prepared to grow abroad. Real competition at home builds stronger companies that are better prepared to win in global markets.
Canada’s financial and regulatory systems can still make scaling difficult. Startups that perform well in one province often face new approval processes, unique reporting rules, and extra compliance costs in another. These structural barriers fragment the market and slow growth.
Fintechs also face limited or indirect access to core national systems like Payments Canada infrastructure (Update: Expanding access), Interac's participation framework, and lending and credit infrastructure for SMEs. Without fair access, new entrants struggle to compete with incumbents that control these systems.
See: CMA Lessons on Competition and Growth for Canada
Canada should treat domestic competition as a foundation for global growth (it's the 'farm team' of the big leagues). Federal and provincial regulators must align financial and digital rules to create a single, scalable market that enables firms to expand efficiently across Canada.
Open access to payment and credit systems must be prioritized. Broader participation in Payments Canada, fair data sharing under consumer-driven banking, and greater access and transparency to credit bureau data would improve competition across the financial system.
NCFA supports a national competitiveness review linking regulatory reform to measurable outcomes such as new business creation, export growth, and investment in digital finance. Understanding how competition policy directly affects economic growth will help Canada build firms that can compete first domestically, and then globally from a position of strength.
Call to Action
“Together, we can build a more affordable, productive and resilient economy.”
The Competition Bureau made clear that competition policy is economic policy. Put differently, Boswell's keynote confirmed that affordability, innovation, and productivity depend on how Canada regulates market entry and rewards performance.
See: Innovative Approaches to Smarter Regulation
Now it is time to act!! Canada needs to turn research into measurable reforms that empower innovators, consumers, and SMEs with lower costs, faster innovation, and stronger globally competitive firms. A competitive economy is not just an economic choice; it is a national growth strategy and at the core of Canada's future.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create aa vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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