The antitrust watchdog said it will observe as Interac shifts wholesale pricing for its e-transfer payments service to a flat fee of four to eight cents per transaction. Currently, the payments company charges financial institutions between six and 43 cents based on the volume of e-transfers they process, which means smaller institutions pay more for the same service than their larger competitors, which get a discount for buying in quantity. (The Logic)

Talking point: Interac e-transfer is a widely used payment system that lets Canadians send, receive and request money electronically. The Competition Bureau opened an investigation into its e-transfer pricing after two Conservative MPs revealed Interac’s internal volume-based model at a parliamentary committee hearing in October 2024. The new flat-fee model will “help level the playing field” among small and large financial institutions and encourage innovation, the Competition Bureau said in a release.