PRIORITIZING INNOVATION

Building a culture and practice of continuous innovation is imperative for Canada's public service to meet the evolving needs of its citizens. Prioritizing Innovation—Interview Series features conversations with start-up founders and leaders, investors, and industry experts who will explore the meaning of innovation, identify processes and structures that can accelerate it, showcase best practices, and help spur new ideas for use across government.

Innovation starts with the creativity and ingenuity of people—specifically, people who are properly prepared to apply their brainpower in search of new solutions. The series of Prioritizing Innovation begins with an inspirational discussion with entrepreneur and inventor of e-commerce—Senator Deacon led a conversation with Nick Ogden, founder of WorldPay, Cashflows, ClearBank and RTGS.Global. Our guest shared his thoughts on Britain's use of fintech in the COVID-19 response and the ways in which the Canadian industry can catch up; establishing the first new clearing bank in the UK in 250 years; the importance of RTGS.Global, advice for Canada going forward, and the consequences of inaction in this sector.

Senator Colin Deacon chats with Jim Cowles, former CEO of the 23,000 employee division of Citibank. Central to the discussion was the tremendous global opportunity before our banks once they start embracing open banking (consumer directed finance).

In the interview, Senator Colin Deacon sits down to chat with Mahima Poddar, Senior Vice-President Digital Banking and Strategy at Equitable Bank. Hear them discuss digital banking and identity, value creation for consumers, and the realities of the current regulatory environment in Canada.

In this segment of Prioritizing Innovation, Senator Colin Deacon and Paytm Labs CEO Harinder Takhar discuss digital payments, credit card fraud, and a shared vision for the future of the Canadian financial sector. Paytm Labs is a Toronto based, Indian-owned, fintech offering payment technology services in Japan.

Serial entrepreneur, Co-Founder and President of Clearbanc, and everyone's favourite Dragon, Michele Romanow, chats with Senator Colin Deacon about fin-tech, Clearbanc, and the regulatory barriers standing in the way of fintech growth in Canada.

This time, Prioritizing Innovation features discussions between Keren Moynihan, CEO of Boss Insights and Senator Colin Deacon concerning the growth and vision of Boss Insights, regulatory barriers in the Canadian financial sector, and the importance of data accessibility and consumer-directed finance. Boss Insights is a Canadian fintech focused on scaling technology and digitizes lending to grow relationships between banks and their business clients.

In this installment of Prioritizing Innovation, Senator Colin Deacon chats with Moka Founder and CEO, Phil Barrar. Moka is a Canadian-based and global-reaching fintech aiming to make a saving, investing, and meeting your financial goals easier. In the full interview on Senator Deacon's YouTube channel, the two discuss financial literacy and independence, how Moka is helping Canadians take control of their finances, and regulatory barriers in Canada and across the globe.

In this iteration of Prioritizing Innovation, Senator Deacon speaks with Neo Financial Co-Founder and CEO Andrew Chau. In this full interview, hear them discuss the value Neo Financial can bring to small businesses and consumers, financial innovation, and the role government can play in supporting the financial sector in lieu of the Minister of Finance's restarting of open banking consultations in Canada.

Prioritizing Innovation's latest iteration brings us a discussion between Senator Colin Deacon and Michael Katchen, CEO of Wealthsimple. Hear the two speak about strategic priorities in investing, the power and value Wealthsimple brings to consumers, regulatory barriers, and what an open banking framework could look like in the Canadian context.