Bill C-29 and Canada’s Proposed Financial Crimes Agency: What You Need to Know

Bill C-29 would establish Canada’s first dedicated Financial Crimes Agency. Introduced on April 27, 2026, Bill C-29: An Act to establish the Financial Crimes Agency and to make consequential amendments to certain Acts and regulations (“Bill C-29”), sets out the proposed structure, mandate, and powers of the new agency.

The Financial Crimes Agency is intended to play a major role in addressing concerns that Canada is lagging in financial crime enforcement. Bill C-29 sets out a robust scope and design for the new Agency.

Its success will depend on the federal government’s long-term commitment to developing the expertise needed to overcome challenges associated with investigating and prosecuting financial crime effectively and fairly. The Department of Justice’s recent announcement of $352.7 million over five years signals that the current government is serious about improving financial crime enforcement.

If the Bill becomes law, the Agency would be a separate, specialized organization with its own mandate and its own police force, operating alongside Canada’s existing network of federal and provincial investigative and law enforcement agencies.

Its focus would be on “financial crime,” broadly defined, and once established, it would have discretion to determine its own priorities within this wide-ranging mandate. On these sturdy legislative bones, strong enforcement muscle could be developed, if there is sustained dedication of sufficient resources beyond the next five years.    

The establishment of the new Agency, through Bill C-29, comes after years of consultation and planning, which is detailed in our previous post. 

What is the Financial Crimes Agency and what will it investigate?

Bill C-29 confirms that the proposed Act would establish “a specialized federal law enforcement agency with the capability and expertise necessary” to:

• “investigate serious and complex financial crimes”;
• “contribute to the recovery of proceeds of crime”; and
• “participate in international efforts to counter crimes of a financial nature”.

Bill C-29 includes a broad definition of “financial crime” falling within the mandate of the new agency. To qualify, an offence must relate to “financial assets” (including “digital assets”) or to “financial services or markets.”

The definition expressly includes but is not limited to:

• laundering, trafficking or possession of proceeds of crime offences;
• offences that adversely affects the security or integrity of Canada’s economy or financial system or of any financial market in Canada;
• offences from which proceeds of crime are obtained or derived; and
• offences under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act.‍

The Commissioner of the Financial Crimes Agency would have the power to set criteria for determining which matters the Agency should investigate with the aim of focusing its efforts on “serious and complex financial crimes.”

What investigative powers would the Financial Crimes Agency have?

The Act authorizes the Commissioner, who will be appointed under the Act by the Governor in Council, to investigate financial crime. An investigation may be commenced by the Commissioner on its own initiative or at the request of, or in collaboration with, any foreign or domestic law enforcement agency or public body with the authority to investigate.

The Commissioner would also exercise similar control and management of the Agency as a police force commissioner, such as the RCMP.

Bill C-29 effectively allows the Commissioner to create a police force. Officers would be capable of making arrests and seeking judicial authorizations under the Criminal Code, such as for search warrants, digital assets warrants, and other investigative techniques.

How would financial crimes be prosecuted under Bill C-29?

Bill C-29 makes the Attorney General of Canada (“AGC”) responsible for prosecuting offences investigated by the Agency.

Although provinces could still concurrently prosecute overlapping offences which are not investigated by the Agency, the Bill gives the AGC a “fiat” power to assume responsibility for a prosecution by barring provincial prosecutors from carrying a case.

In deciding to issue a fiat, the AGC “may” but is not required to take into account the national interest of the offence or whether it was committed in more than one province or transnationally. Bill C-29 does not exclude other factors that may be considered, but the focus appears to be on cases that may have national implications.

Key takeaways

1. Opportunity for increased enforcement action: The introduction of the proposed Agency through legislation signals Canada’s commitment to targeting fraud and increasing its financial crime enforcement capabilities, which has been lagging internationally, according to commentators such as Transparency International. Whether implementation matches vision will depend on commitment to developing expertise over many years, since the investigation and prosecution of financial crime is complex.   
2. The scope of “financial crime” enforcement by the new Agency is potentially broad: Bill C-29 makes clear that the Financial Crimes Agency could tackle a wide range of offences. Once established, the Agency will decide its own priorities. 
3. Enhanced cooperation between domestic and international law enforcement expected: While forces and regulators in Canada collaborate, greater coordination domestically and internationally should be expected, if the new Agency takes up its mandate with meaningful energy.  
4. Financial institutions, digital asset providers, retailers, and telecommunications providers likely affected: The new Agency is part of the federal government’s broader anti-fraud strategy that will have greater impact on certain sectors. In particular, banking, telecommunications, and data service providers are most likely to be impacted, as discussed in our post on Canada’s Anti-Fraud Strategy.
   The federal government recently published proposed changes to Regulations under the Bank Act focusing on combatting consumer-targeted fraud, which we examined in our analysis on Proposed Amendments to the Financial Consumer Protection Framework. Notwithstanding that many organizations are dedicating more resources to trying to detect and prevent financial crime, there will be increased inquiry and scrutiny going forward, as the anti-fraud strategy is implemented. 

For questions about Bill C-29, Canada’s proposed Financial Crimes Agency, and how these developments may affect you or your organization, McCarthy Tétrault’s White Collar Defence and Investigations Group can provide strategic advice on addressing associated criminal and regulatory risks.