Canada's Big Six Banks Not Scheduled for Real-Time Rail Phase 1
What happened
Real-Time Rail (RTR), an instant payment infrastructure managed by Payments Canada, is slated to go live in the fourth quarter of 2026. According to four sources within the FinTech ecosystem, none of Canada’s Big Six banks are currently scheduled to participate in the first phase of RTR. These banks settle the vast majority of payments across the country.
From betakit.com
Why it matters
The exclusion of the largest banks from the new payment rail raises questions about the system's utility, given that these institutions handle most national payments. If the banks are not onboarded to RTR, institutions may be required to use existing payment rails to move funds for customers.
From betakit.com
Who's involved
- Bank of MontrealMajor Canadian financial institution
- Royal Bank of CanadaMajor Canadian financial institution
- Toronto-Dominion BankMajor Canadian financial institution
- Canadian Imperial Bank of CommerceMajor Canadian financial institution
- ScotiabankMajor Canadian financial institution
Keep exploring
The entities involved
-
Bank of Montreal
Canadian investment bank
- Jefferies Financial Group is covering the Canadian banking industry, while Darryl White discusses AI impacts at BMO, concurrent with Bank of Canada job market estimates.
- BMO launched a new ETF focused on Latin American equities, providing an index for regional exposure and beginning trading on the TSX.
-
Royal Bank of Canada
financial institution in Canada
- Financial institutions made various moves on June 18, 2026, including TD Cowen lowering its price objective, Citigroup raising its target, and Royal Bank of Canada increasing its target price. Separately, Man Group reduced its stock holdings.
- Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in the iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF on June 30, 2026.
-
Toronto-Dominion Bank
banking and financial services corporation
-
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
Canadian banking institution
Related events
- Six leading Canadian banks are planning and launching a digital Canadian dollar and pursuing tokenized deposit systems.
- Bank of Montreal led a credit facility syndication involving Royal Bank of Canada, National Bank of Canada, and Scotiabank.
- RBC launched a new travel platform offering services to Canadian consumers.
- BMO Bank plans to triple its financial centers in San Diego and became the official bank for the Los Angeles Lakers.