Article Summary: At the 2025 Canada Fintech Forum, leaders spotlighted AI in fraud prevention, consumer credit alternatives, and real-time payments. With stablecoins and Canada’s upcoming Real-Time Rail, success hinges on bank-fintech collaboration, smart regulation, and transparent communication.
The Canada Fintech Forum gathered leaders from banking, fintech, and technology to examine how new tools and regulatory shifts are changing the financial landscape. As part of our ongoing work supporting the Canadian payments and fintech ecosystem, The Fletcher Group attended to connect with clients, meet emerging innovators and deepen our understanding of the market forces shaping the industry. With team members based across North America, the conference offered an opportunity to see first-hand how Canadian financial institutions and fintechs are advancing innovation through collaboration and regulation.
Across two days in the heart of downtown Montreal, sessions explored artificial intelligence, consumer finance, cross-border payments and the growing push for bank-fintech collaboration. A few key themes emerged for financial leaders navigating the next era of innovation in North America. We summarized them below.
AI in financial services
Artificial intelligence was a recurring theme. In fraud prevention, panelists noted how bots now drive both attack strategies and defensive measures. Behavioral biometrics and real-time analytics are becoming essential tools, but institutions stressed collaboration and information-sharing matter as much as technology itself.
A second discussion focused on the rise of AI agents in financial workflows. While fully autonomous systems are rare, semi-autonomous tools are increasingly used in customer service and back-office functions. Adoption remains gradual due to regulatory concerns and cultural readiness. Speakers agreed that progress comes from small pilots in lower-risk areas, combined with staff education and governance frameworks that evolve alongside technology.
Consumer credit and everyday banking
From fraud and automation, the conversation shifted to the financial pressures facing consumers. Affirm’s COO Michael Linford highlighted his company’s Canadian growth and its effort to design products that avoid the pitfalls of revolving credit, such as late-fee revenue models. His remarks pointed to an emerging demand for alternatives that better align with consumer interests.
KOHO’s CEO Daniel Eberhard added Canadian households face structural barriers, from rising debt to housing affordability. He positioned challenger banks as part of the solution, using technology to lower costs and broaden access. For him, trust stems not from legacy or scale but from consistently delivering value in products and services.
Shifts in payments infrastructure
Payments infrastructure was another focal point. Stablecoins were presented as a way to enable faster, cheaper international transfers. With transaction volumes already approaching half of Visa’s annual totals, their scale is significant, but panelists warned that Canada’s lack of a defined framework could limit domestic adoption.
The pending rollout of Canada’s Real-Time Rail (RTR) system was described as a turning point. RTR will bring instant settlement and richer transaction data, improving reconciliation and liquidity management for businesses. At the same time, irrevocable transfers heighten the need for fraud controls and coordinated readiness across the ecosystem.
Cross-border sessions emphasized the same theme of balance. Banks continue to provide trust, networks and compliance expertise, while fintechs deliver speed and customer-focused interfaces. Together, partnerships are easing friction through tools like embedded treasury management and digital KYC, though inconsistent regulations remain a major obstacle.
Platformization and collaboration
The Forum closed with a plenary on “platformization.” Banks are increasingly re-positioning themselves as technology platforms that integrate fintech partners. Panelists agreed that customers expect unified experiences, not siloed services, and that partnerships are shifting from trial efforts to core strategy. Ellen Linardi, Chief Product & Technology Officer of Synctera, emphasized meeting rising customer expectations depends on banks and fintechs acting as partners rather than competitors.
Implications for payments leaders
It’s clear technology, regulation and consumer expectations are advancing together. AI adoption, real-time payments and stablecoins each bring opportunities, but they also demand governance and clarity in execution.
The opportunity for communications leaders is to translate these shifts into narratives that reinforce trust and transparency. The discussions in Montreal showed that while technology sets the pace, credibility comes from how effectively institutions explain their choices to customers, partners and regulators.
Interested in learning how to apply this insight? Reach out today.
