CANADA – As Canada’s big banks release their quarterly financial results, new data from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) shows significant shifts in which banks Canada’s small- and medium-sized firms are using. While Royal Bank still has the largest share of small and medium business customers, the landscape is changing.
“Small business owners rely on their banking partners, but they also have very special banking needs,” said CFIB president Dan Kelly. “It’s interesting to see the evolution of SME market share over the years as these changes don’t happen by accident. Clearly, some banks have focused on small firms, while others may have pursued other types of clients.”
From 2000 to 2015, Royal Bank’s share has slipped by 2.7 points to 18.5 per cent, while Scotiabank has seen the biggest increase, jumping 6.7 points to 17.9 per cent. TD Canada Trust grew its market share by 4.4 points over that time, while credit unions grew their market share by 2.8 points.
CIBC has seen its market share decline by 3.5 points since 2000, the largest drop of all the banks studied. Bank of Montreal also saw a decline of 1.9 points.
Regional banks are well represented in their home provinces, with Desjardins holding 42.6 per cent of the total SME market in Quebec. ATB Financial holds the largest market share in Alberta at 19.7 per cent. Credit unions are heavily used in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, serving 39.2 per cent of SMEs in the two provinces, and are also tops in British Columbia at 23 per cent.
For more information, read CFIB’s Research Snapshot, SME Bank Market Share. In the coming months, CFIB will release additional data on how financial institutions service the SME market. This includes detailed ratings by micro, small and medium-sized firms of each financial institution.