Top financial innovations of the last 25 years

1. 1999: The Canada Revenue Agency—then called the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency—introduced Netfile, enabling Canadians to file their tax returns electronically. In its first year, only 530 Canadians filed using this service. But in 2023, nearly 10.5 million Canadians used Netfile for their 2022 tax return.

2. 1999: Kanetix became Canada’s first comparison site for personal finance products, with an initial focus on insurance quotes. It acquired Rates.ca in 2015, and later took on the name Ratesdotca. Kanetix paved the way for comparison sites like Ratehub.ca, which launched in 2010 and whose parent company, Ratehub Inc., acquired MoneySense in 2019. 

3. 2000: Shoppers Drug Mart, Canada’s largest pharmacy chain, officially launched its Shoppers Optimum loyalty program. Six million Canadians signed up within the first year. Loblaw, which acquired Shoppers Drug Mart in 2013, merged its PC Plus points and Shoppers Optimum in 2018—creating PC Optimum, one of the largest loyalty programs in the country. 

4. 2000: Canada became the first country with a bond exchange-traded fund (ETF), building on another Canadian first: the launch of the world’s first exchange-traded, index-linked product—the Toronto 35 Index Participation Units (TIPs)—in 1990. TIPs became a blueprint for the modern ETF and evolved into what is known today as the iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index ETF. 

5. 2001: HomeEquity Bank expanded its Canadian Home Income Plan (CHIP) reverse mortgage to Ontario and Alberta. The CHIP reverse mortgage was first offered in Vancouver in 1986, and it became available across Canada in the following years. Today, HomeEquity Bank and Equitable Bank are the only two Canadian financial institutions offering a reverse mortgage, which allows home owners aged 55-plus to access the equity in their homes. 

6. 2003: Interac introduced electronic fund transfers (Interac e-Transfers), enabling Canadians to send and receive money through email and mobile numbers. This helped make Canada a leader in electronic money transfers before the widespread adoption of other peer-to-peer methods, according to Interac. 

7. 2005: Online retail marketplace Amazon launched Amazon Prime membership for U.S. customers, offering free and unlimited two-day shipping at a cost of USD$79 per year. Canadians would have to wait until 2013 for access to Amazon Prime, at the same annual cost in Canadian dollars. Since the launch, Amazon Prime has transformed customer expectations of online delivery and inspired other companies to adopt subscription-based services. 

8. 2007: Banks, major credit card companies and Interac introduced chip technology for debit and credit cards. They issued plastic cards with embedded microchips that contained encrypted data. This new feature increased security and helped reduce fraud at payment terminals and automated teller machines (ATMs), and it’s ubiquitous today.

9. 2007: Airbnb was born. It was one of the first digital platforms to support the modern gig and side-hustle economy. Thanks to Airbnb, any property owner could rent out their space, and vacationers and short-term renters found a competitive alternative to hotels. In recent years, Airbnb has become controversial, with some critics saying that it has contributed to the housing crisis in major cities. Today, Airbnb listings are available in more than 220 countries and regions. 

10. 2007: Netflix, which started out as a DVD mail subscription company in 1998, launched its streaming service. The company’s business model and price tag of USD$9 per month ($7.99 per month in Canada when it landed here in 2010) disrupted the traditional cable television and movie business, setting the stage for major companies like Disney, Apple, Amazon and HBO to later start their own streaming services. 

11. 2008: The Canadian government introduced the registered disability savings plan (RDSP), a long-term savings plan designed to help people with disabilities and their families save for the future. 

12. 2009: An anonymous computer programmer (or group of programmers—no one knows for sure) called “Satoshi Nakamoto” invented bitcoin, the world’s first cryptocurrency. The digital currency’s underlying blockchain technology spurred innovation across many industries and underpinned the creation of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Another bitcoin-related first? In 2021, Canada became the first country to launch bitcoin ETFs—the U.S. caught up in early 2024.

13. 2009: The federal government introduced the tax-free savings account (TFSA), giving Canadians a new tax-advantaged registered account for saving and investing. The account had an initial contribution limit of $5,000. TFSA contribution room changes annually; as of Jan. 1, 2024, someone born in 1991 or earlier has a maximum lifetime contribution limit of $95,000. (Check your contribution room with our TFSA calculator.)

14. 2010: An Uber was hailed for the first time. This happened in San Francisco, a year after the ridesharing app’s official launch. When Uber came to Canada in 2012, it disrupted the taxi and transportation industries with easy ride booking and low fares. Over time, Uber and similar apps have become a major force in the Canadian gig economy—and stirred up controversy over workers’ low wages and employment status. While initially a ride cost a fraction of a taxi fare, now they are arguably similar.

15. 2010: CIBC became the first of the Big Six banks to offer a mobile banking app in Canada. By 2021, 65% of Canadians reported using mobile app-based banking, and 33% of financial transactions were completed on a mobile phone, according to the Canadian Bankers Association. 

16. 2010: Budgeting app Mint appeared in app stores in Canada. Providing users with an overview of their finances through multiple linked accounts, credit monitoring and other features, Mint became one of the most downloaded personal finance apps in North America. Intuit, which acquired Mint in 2009, shuttered the app in January 2024 and encouraged users to switch to Credit Karma, a similar service it bought in 2020.

17. 2011: Google released Google Wallet in the U.S., three years before Apple Pay even popped up on our iPhones. Over the next decade, Google tested many versions of the app—and even launched a second one, named Google Pay (which was intended to replace Google Wallet). In February 2024, the company said it would end Google Pay in the U.S.—and replace it with Google Wallet. In its current iteration, Google Wallet serves as a comprehensive digital wallet that can store payment and loyalty cards, transit and event tickets, proof of COVID vaccination and even digital car keys.  

18. 2014: Scotiabank renamed ING Direct Canada, which it acquired two years earlier, as Tangerine. ING Direct was Canada’s first branchless bank and one of the first institutions to offer a no-fee high-interest savings account (HISA). Today, under its new name, Canada’s first online-only bank continues to offer favourable rates and low fees. 

19. 2014: ShareOwner Investments was the first robo-advisor to operate in Canada—by a matter of months. At the start, the portfolio management platform allowed Canadian investors to pick one of five model portfolios or to create their own from a list of around 50 ETFs. Over the next few years, robo-advisors gained popularity among investors, as more startups cropped up, Wealthsimple acquired ShareOwner Investments, and BMO became the first major Canadian bank with its own robo service, SmartFolio. 

20. 2015: Following devastating floods in Alberta, home insurance providers Aviva Canada, The Co-operators, RSA Canada and 13 others offered overland flood insurance, which never existed before. Previously, insurers generally only offered sewer backup coverage, which protects against another type of water damage.  

21. 2016: BMO was the first bank to offer biometric identification for corporate credit card users. With this technology, customers could complete online payments with a “selfie” or fingerprint check. On the mobile banking side, a new version of the Tangerine app incorporated biometric technologies like EyeVerify (for eyeprint ID technology) and VocalPassword (for voice authentication). 

22. 2017: Toronto-based PayBright was the first company to offer a buy now, pay later option to Canadians. The service, offered at online check-outs, allows shoppers to pay for routine purchases—everything from clothing and makeup to flights—through installments. Many similar companies now operate in Canada, including Affirm (which acquired PayBright in 2021), Sezzle and Afterpay. Some large banks have also created installment payment products and credit card features, including CIBC (with Pace It) and Scotiabank (with SelectPay). 

23. 2019: RBC made NOMI Budgets available through the RBC mobile banking app. NOMI Budgets, which the bank described as the first of its kind in Canada, uses artificial intelligence (AI) to proactively analyze a customer’s spending history, make budget recommendations and send timely updates. 

24. 2022: OpenAI released ChatGPT, a generative AI chatbot. Within two months, it had an estimated 100 million monthly active users, making it the fastest-growing consumer application in history. The new tech has myriad potential applications in finance, including performance measurement and forecasting, data analytics, customer service, and real-time calculations and advice. 

25. 2023: The Canadian government launched a new registered account, the first home savings account (FHSA), which offers up to $40,000 in tax-free contribution room to save for a home down payment. Questrade was the only financial institution ready to offer the account on its official launch date in April, but many more providers (including all the big banks) now have FHSAs, and more than 300,000 Canadians opened an FHSA before the end of 2023.

Read more articles for MoneySense’s 25th anniversary:

• 25 timeless personal finance tips from MoneySense

About Justin Dallaire

Justin Dallaire is the senior editor at MoneySense.ca. He was previously an editor at Strategy magazine and has a master’s degree in journalism from Toronto Metropolitan University.

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