The Big 5 Banks in Canada

What Are the Big Five Banks?

The Big Five Banks is a term utilized in Canada to depict the five biggest banks: Royal Bank, The Bank of Montreal, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, The Bank of Nova Scotia, and Toronto-Dominion Bank.

Sometimes, the term "Big Six Banks" is utilized, with the 6th bank alluding to the National Bank of Canada. As of Jan 2021, the Big Six Banks and Desjardins Group are the biggest banks in Canada, in terms of total assets. The Five Big Banks hold more than $100 billion in assets, and they are completely situated in Toronto.

1. Royal Bank of Canada

The Royal Bank of Canada is the biggest of the Big Five with respect to net revenue (C$11.4 billion out of 2020) and capitalization (C$132.5 billion of every 2020). The Royal Bank of Canada has north of 17 million clients worldwide, throughout 86,000 full-time employees and more than 1,300 branches. Established in 1864 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, the bank financed the wood and timber industries. It was known as the Merchants Bank of Halifax.

2. Toronto-Dominion Bank

The second-biggest bank in Canada, the Toronto-Dominion Bank has the most assets, which are valued at C$1.7 trillion as of January 2021. This bank has over 9.6 million clients worldwide, 25,000 employees and north of 1,100 branches. The bank was the consequence of a consolidation of the Bank of Toronto and the Dominion Bank in 1955.

3. Bank of Nova Scotia

The Bank of Nova Scotia, or Scotiabank, is the next biggest bank in Canada with assets valued at C$1.1 trillion at year end 2020, the revenue of C$31 billion out of 2020 and capitalization of C$67 billion. The bank has north of 11 million customers in Canada, 10 million customers outside of Canada, 92,000 full-time employees, and more than 900 branches in Canada. This bank offers to trade on both the New York and Toronto Stock Exchanges.

Established in Halifax in 1832, Nova Scotia bank moved its headquarters to Toronto in 1900 to further develop the transoceanic trade industry.

4. Bank of Montreal

The Bank of Montreal is the fourth biggest Canadian bank with C$949 billion worth of assets and revenue of C$25 billion at year end 2020. The bank has north of 8 million clients in Canada and just about 900 branches. The bank has north of 42,000 employees worldwide as of Q2 of 2021. All through emergencies like World War I, the Great Depression, World War II, and the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, the Bank has reliably met profit installments.

5. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce

The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce has C$770 billion in assets, the revenue of C$18.7 billion for 2020, and capitalization of C$44 billion. The bank has north of 11 million clients worldwide, 1,100 branches in Canada and throughout 44,000 full-time employees worldwide. The bank was shaped in 1961 when the Canadian Bank of Commerce and the Imperial Bank of Canada merged.