Bank Act

Marginal note:Use of name

• 983 (1) Except to the extent permitted by the regulations, every person who uses the name of a bank or of a bank holding company in a prospectus, offering memorandum, takeover bid circular, advertisement for a transaction related to securities or in any other document in connection with a transaction related to securities is guilty of an offence.

• Marginal note:Unauthorized name

  (2) Subject to the regulations and subsections (4) to (5.1), (6) and (12), every entity, other than a bank, that acquires, adopts or retains a name that includes the word “bank”, “banker” or “banking”, either alone or in combination with other words, to indicate or describe a business in Canada or any part of a business in Canada, without being authorized to do so by this Act or any other Act of Parliament, is guilty of an offence.

• Marginal note:Unauthorized use of word “bank”, “banker” or “banking”

  (2.1) Subject to the regulations and subsections (4) to (5.1), (6) and (12), every person, other than a bank, who uses the word “bank”, “banker” or “banking” to indicate or describe a business in Canada or any part of a business in Canada, without being authorized to do so by this Act or any other Act of Parliament, is guilty of an offence.

• Marginal note:Unauthorized use of name or identifying mark of bank or foreign bank

  (2.2) Subject to the regulations and subsections (4), (5), (5.2), (5.3) and (10) to (12), every person who uses the name or any identifying mark of a bank or a foreign bank to indicate or describe a business in Canada or any part of a business in Canada, without being authorized to do so by this Act or any other Act of Parliament, is guilty of an offence.

• Marginal note:Unauthorized statements regarding association with a bank, etc.

  (2.3) Subject to the regulations and subsections (4), (5.2) and (12), every person is guilty of an offence who, without being authorized to do so by this Act or any other Act of Parliament, makes any statement that a business is connected, associated or affiliated with a bank or a foreign bank.

• Marginal note:Unauthorized use of name or identifying mark of a bank holding company

  (3) Subject to the regulations and subsections (7) to (9.1) and (12), every entity that acquires, adopts or retains the name of a bank holding company and every person who uses the name or any identifying mark of a bank holding company to indicate or describe a business in Canada or any part of a business in Canada, without being authorized to do so by this Act or any other Act of Parliament, is guilty of an offence.

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (4) No person commits an offence under any of subsections (2) to (2.3) if the activity referred to in that subsection is done

  • (a) in a description of the corporate relationship between a bank and an entity controlled by the bank;

  • (b) subject to the regulations, in a description of a corporate relationship between a bank and an entity affiliated with the bank;

  • (b.1) in a description of the corporate relationship between a bank holding company and an entity controlled by the bank holding company;

  • (b.2) and (b.3) [Repealed, 2007, c. 6, s. 129]

  • (c) in an advertisement in Canada by or on behalf of a foreign bank in respect of its facilities outside Canada;

  • (d) in the identification of representative offices of a foreign bank in Canada;

  • (e) in relation to the business in Canada of an authorized foreign bank;

  • (f) in a description of the corporate relationship between a bank or a bank holding company and a foreign bank that controls the bank or the bank holding company;

  • (f.1) in a description of the corporate relationship between a bank or a bank holding company and an entity that is associated with a foreign bank and that controls the bank or the bank holding company;

  • (g) subject to the regulations, in a description of the corporate relationship between a non-bank affiliate of a foreign bank, within the meaning of subsection 507(1), and a foreign bank that controls the non-bank affiliate, if the non-bank affiliate is not a bank holding company or an entity that is controlled by a bank holding company;

  • (h) subject to the regulations, in a description of the corporate relationship between a non-bank affiliate of a foreign bank, within the meaning of subsection 507(1), and an entity that is associated with a foreign bank that controls the non-bank affiliate, if

    • (i) the non-bank affiliate is not a bank holding company or an entity that is controlled by a bank holding company, and

    • (ii) the entity is not a bank, a bank holding company, a foreign bank or an entity controlled by a bank or a bank holding company;

  • (i) in the identification of a body corporate that was a non-bank affiliate of a foreign bank within the meaning of subsection 303(1) of the Bank Act, being chapter B-1 of the Revised Statutes of Canada, 1985, at any time before June 1, 1981;

  • (j) in the identification of a Canadian financial institution that

    • (i) was controlled by a bank that was a subsidiary of a foreign bank before June 15, 1997 but that has ceased to be so controlled,

    • (ii) is controlled by a foreign bank that, before June 15, 1997, controlled the subsidiary, and

    • (iii) used, before June 15, 1997, the word “bank”, “banker” or “banking” to identify itself; or

  • (k) in the identification of a bank holding company.

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (5) No subsidiary of a bank commits an offence by reason only that it uses the name of the bank of which it is a subsidiary in its corporate name or a name under which it carries on business or by reason only that it uses any identifying mark of that bank in carrying on its business.

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (5.1) No person commits an offence under subsection (2) or (2.1) if the activity referred to in that subsection is in relation to a business that is not engaged in financial activities, unless the business is carried out by a prescribed entity.

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (5.2) No bank commits an offence under subsection (2.2) or (2.3) if it is affiliated with the bank or the foreign bank.

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (5.3) Subject to the regulations, no entity affiliated with a bank commits an offence by reason only that the entity uses the name of the bank in the entity’s corporate name or in a name under which the entity carries on business or by reason only that it uses any identifying mark of the bank in carrying on its business, if the entity does not use the word “bank”, “banker” or “banking” in its corporate name, in a name under which it carries on business or in any of its identifying marks.

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (6) No financial institution that was controlled by a bank on June 25, 1999 and that had a name that included the word “bank”, “banker” or “banking” on that day commits an offence by reason only that it uses that word in its corporate name or in a name under which it carries on business if the financial institution is a subsidiary of a bank holding company that controls the bank.

• (6.1) [Repealed, 2007, c. 6, s. 129]

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (7) No subsidiary of a bank holding company commits an offence by reason only that it uses the name of the bank holding company in the subsidiary’s corporate name or in a name under which it carries on business, or by reason only that it uses any identifying mark of the bank holding company in carrying on its business, so long as, if the subsidiary is not a bank or a subsidiary of a bank, it does not use the word “bank”, “banker” or “banking” in its corporate name, in a name under which it carries on business or in any of its identifying marks.

• (7.1) [Repealed, 2007, c. 6, s. 129]

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (8) Subject to the regulations, no entity affiliated with a bank holding company commits an offence by reason only that the entity uses the name of the bank holding company in the entity’s corporate name or in a name under which the entity carries on business or by reason only that it uses any identifying mark of the bank holding company in carrying on its business, if the entity does not use the word “bank”, “banker” or “banking” in its corporate name, in a name under which it carries on business or in any of its identifying marks.

• (8.1) [Repealed, 2007, c. 6, s. 129]

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (9) No subsidiary of a bank holding company commits an offence by reason only that it uses the name of the bank holding company in a description of its corporate relationship to the bank holding company.

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (9.1) Subject to the regulations, no entity affiliated with a bank holding company commits an offence by reason only that the entity uses the name of the bank holding company in a description of the entity’s corporate relationship with the bank holding company.

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (10) Subject to the regulations, no Canadian entity that is an entity associated with a foreign bank commits an offence by reason only that it uses the name of the foreign bank in its corporate name or in a name under which it carries on business, or by reason only that it uses any identifying mark of the foreign bank in carrying on its business, if

  • (a) it does not use the word “bank”, “banker” or “banking” in its corporate name, in a name under which it carries on business or in any of its identifying marks; and

  • (b) the foreign bank has consented to the use.

• (10.1) [Repealed, 2007, c. 6, s. 129]

• Marginal note:Permitted use

  (11) Subject to the regulations, no foreign bank that carries on a business or activity referred to in section 510.1, 522.05, 522.18 or 522.19, and no entity incorporated or formed by or under the laws of a country other than Canada that carries on a business or activity referred to in any of those provisions and that is an entity associated with a foreign bank, commits an offence by reason only that it uses its name or any of its identifying marks if it does not use the word “bank”, “banker” or “banking”.

• Marginal note:Permitted use — consent

  (12) No person commits an offence under any of subsections (2) to (3) if the activity referred to in that subsection has been approved by the Superintendent and is in accordance with any terms and conditions that the Superintendent may impose and, if the activity involves the use of the name or any identifying mark of a bank, a bank holding company or a foreign bank, the bank, bank holding company or foreign bank has consented to the use.

• Marginal note:Words “bank”, “banker” or “banking”

  (13) For the purposes of this section, the word “bank”, “banker” or “banking” includes

  • (a) any of those words in any language; and

  • (b) any word or words, in any language, that are equivalent to any of those words.

• Marginal note:Entity’s name

  (14) For the purposes of this section, other than subsection (1), an entity’s name includes

  • (a) a name that is substantially similar to the entity’s name; and

  • (b) the entity’s name in any language.

• Marginal note:Identifying marks

  (15) For the purposes of this section, an identifying mark of an entity includes

  • (a) any logogram, insignia or logo of the entity;

  • (b) the initials or any acronym of the entity; and

  • (c) any mark that is substantially similar to any identifying mark of the entity.

• Definition of foreign bank

  (16) In this section, foreign bank means a foreign bank to which Part XII applies.

• Marginal note:Entity associated with a foreign bank

  (17) For the purposes of this section, an entity is associated with a foreign bank if the entity is or is deemed to be associated with the foreign bank within the meaning of section 507 and is an entity to which Part XII applies.

• Marginal note:Regulations

  (18) The Governor in Council may make regulations for the purposes of subsections (1) to (3), paragraphs (4)(b), (g) and (h) and subsections (5.3), (8) and (9.1) to (11).