# Big Six banks explore Canadian-dollar tokenized deposits

> BMO, CIBC, National Bank, RBC, Scotiabank and TD jointly study CAD digital money, starting with ledger-recorded deposits that remain legal bank deposits.

- Desk: TIC Staff
- Published: 2026-09-22
- Section: Markets
- Canonical: https://trueinflation.ca/article/big-six-banks-cad-tokenized-deposits

Canada’s six largest banks are jointly exploring Canadian-dollar digital money, starting with tokenized deposits — traditional deposits recorded on a distributed ledger that, legally, depositors can treat like cash in a bank account.

Bank of Montreal, CIBC, National Bank, Royal Bank, Scotiabank and TD say the first phase aims to move those tokens efficiently between Canadian financial institutions. The pitch is faster, programmable payments without giving up safety, stability or regulatory oversight as digital money races ahead abroad.

Tokenized deposits are not a new legal product. OSFI clarified this month that the underlying technology does not change the legal nature of a deposit: banks still own the cyber, third-party and operational risk, and must engage supervisors before launching novel products.

Longer term, the group wants to connect with other digital-asset initiatives and bring in more deposit-taking institutions. For households and firms, the test is whether bank-issued CAD tokens cut settlement friction — and keep Canada’s payments stack competitive — without quietly reintroducing run or custody risks under a new wrapper.

Source: Big Six banks / OSFI­