Canada’s #1 Fintech Conference.

2026 Canadian Finance Summit

May 28th, 2026 | The Quay, Toronto, Ontario

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About This Event

The 2026 Canadian Finance Summit is Canada’s largest and most significant financial services conference, serving as the country’s premier FinTech event. Hosted by Finance Events, this annual gathering focuses on the Canadian financial services ecosystem, including payments, lending, capital markets, and banking. The event targets C-Suite and senior executives driving financial strategy. Attendees include leaders from major Canadian banks, credit unions, FinTech/InsurTech firms, and capital markets. It is the essential forum for over 800 professionals seeking to forge partnerships and gain competitive intelligence in Canadian finance. See last year’s sold out event.

Canadian Finance Summit is partnered with Toronto Tech Week. TTW is a citywide celebration of the people building what’s next. From May 25–29, 2026, founders, investors, and builders come together for hundreds of community-led events across Toronto, connecting tens of thousands of people around Canadian tech.

Past Speakers

Scott Wood CEO

Stephen Smith Chairperson

Amit Sadhu SVP Risk

Gayle Ramsay SVP Data & Analytics

Daniel Eberhard CEO

Chadwick Westlake CEO

Patrick Ens CEO

Dan Park CEO

Michael Garrity Chairperson

Michael McGhee SVP & Head, TD Auto Finance

Jason Mullins Former CEO

John Kontos SVP & Head Auto Finance

Draft Agenda

8:00am - 6:00 pm

8:00 - 8:50

Registration and Breakfast

Networking begins. Download the Finance Events Mobile App to setup meetings in the Networking Hall throughout the day. Numbers in the app correspond with numbers on the tables.

9:00 - 9:30 Wealth

Canada’s Next Decade of Investing

Rewiring Canadian Finance: Canada’s investing landscape is being reshaped by higher-for-longer rates, new product wrappers, and AI-driven personalization. In this fireside, Som Seif will share what innovations actually matter (vs. hype), how Canadian portfolios evolve over the next decade, and the tradeoffs between broader access, transparency, and risk.

Som Seif
Founder & CEO

Purpose Unlimited
Keynote

9:30 - 10:00 AI

Automation With Consequence

Where AI Is Actually Delivering ROI: Artificial intelligence is replacing manual layers across servicing, disputes, underwriting, compliance review, and fraud operations. The hype cycle has passed. The economics remain. This panel examines where AI is reducing cost and risk, where it is failing, and what it takes to move from pilot to production.

Kristin Milchanowski
Chief AI and Quantum Officer

BMO
Gum Fa Ng
Vice President

Symcor

10:00 - 10:30

Morning Break

10:30 - 11:00 Banking

Partnership Behind the Product

How Fintech Programs Get Off the Ground: Behind every successful card, lending, deposit or payments program is a complex partnership between fintechs, banks and infrastructure providers. This session explores how products actually get launched and scaled, from sponsorship and compliance to operations, economics and long-term program management.

Pamela Draper
President

Digital Commerce Bank

11:00 - 11:30 Banking

The Analytics to Execution Gap

Turning Analytics into Action: Financial institutions have invested heavily in data, analytics, and AI, yet turning those insights into timely, relevant customer action remains a significant hurdle. This session explores the gap between technical capability and real-world execution across personalization, acquisition, and engagement. Our panelists will discuss how leading organizations are overcoming constraints in technology, compliance, and operating models to move beyond the hype and deliver meaningful customer experiences.

Johnathan Bant
Managing Director

Naehas
Michaela Garfield
VP, Growth

President’s Choice Financial

11:30 - 12:00 Lending

Going Beyond the Score

Rewriting the Rules of Credit: The traditional bureau score was built for a thinner-data economy. Today’s lenders deploy cash-flow analytics, alternative data, AI-assisted underwriting, and consortium intelligence. Speed has increased. So have losses in unexpected tiers. This panel examines how to expand access without underwriting illusion and how collections and recoveries are evolving in parallel.

Kevin Chan
CPO

TransUnion
Colin Smith
VP, Risk & Decision Science

Wealthsimple

12:00 - 1:00

Network Lunch

Sponsored by Securian Canada

1:00 - 1:30 Banking

Next-Gen Digital Banking

Fireside Chat: In this fireside chat, Tangerine’s CEO will share her perspective on the future of banking. The conversation will cover changing customer expectations, where innovation is reshaping the industry, and how banks can balance speed, simplicity, and trust in the years ahead.

Terri-lee Weeks
President & CEO

Tangerine
Keynote

1:30 - 2:00 Payment

The Machines Learn to Steal

Fraud in the Age of Generative AI: Deepfake voices, synthetic identities, and automated social engineering are industrialising fraud. At the same time, AI-driven defence promises detection at machine speed. This session explores the AI-versus-AI arms race for financial security.

Jose Israel Castro
Senior Manager

Facephi

2:00 - 2:30 AI

Why AI Hasn’t Managed Your Money Yet

AI is everywhere… except in retail wealth: Consumers trust AI for search, writing, and service, but most still rely on familiar models for investing and advice. This panel explores what’s really slowing adoption – accountability, regulation, data and integration, and the bar for proving better outcomes – and what “responsible” AI in portfolio management could look like next.

Salim Naran
President, Growth Portfolio

Questrade
Braden Dennis
CEO

Fiscal AI

2:30 - 3:00

Afternoon Schmooze

3:00 - 3:30 Banking

Banking, Disguised

Embedded Finance and the Fight for Distribution: Financial services increasingly appear inside platforms that are not banks. Embedded lending, cards, and payments promise scale, but margins compress and ownership blurs. Who owns the customer? Who carries the risk? And does embedded finance create distribution leverage or channel conflict?

Derek Szeto
CEO

Walnut
Scott Elliot
CEO

Slate
Simon Bourgeois
CEO

Nmbr

3:30 - 4:00

EQ Finance Awards

The CLA is proud to present the 2026 EQ Bank Finance Awards: Executives and thought leaders who think outside the box to develop and foster innovative concepts and strategies that help advance lending and finance in Canada. Nominate close on April 26th. Nominate candidates here: https://www.canadianlenders.org/awards/

EQ Bank
Sponsored by EQ Bank

4:00 - 6:00

Can I Buy You a Drink?

Cocktail reception & networking: Hunt down that last meeting, close your final deal, and then grab a drink to catchup with old colleagues and new!

Details

Date

May 28th, 2026

Time

8:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Venue

The Quay, 100 Queens Quay E 3rd Floor, Toronto, Ontario

Limited Seats

From CAD 550.00