'Big Six' Canadian banks join global push for commercial bank deposit tokenization

Six of Canada's largest banks are exploring a Canadian-dollar tokenized deposit system designed to move money faster between financial institutions and eventually connect with other digital asset initiatives, TD Bank announced Tuesday.

Bank of Montreal, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, National Bank of Canada, Royal Bank of Canada, Scotiabank and TD Bank Group form the joint venture, whose first phase focuses on moving tokenized deposits across participating banks. The joint statement said more banks could join the project later.

“The first phase of the project aims to move tokenized deposits efficiently across Canadian financial institutions with a longer-term goal to connect with other emerging digital assets initiatives,” they said.

The participating banks are collectively known as Canada’s Big Six: the dominant group in the country’s banking system, with operations spanning consumer banking, commercial lending, capital markets and wealth management.

The banks said the project aims to offer faster, more efficient and programmable payments to Canadian customers while preserving financial stability and regulatory oversight.