I've held many roles in my 14-year tenure at TD. But if there's one theme that underpins the work I've been most passionate about in my time at the Bank, it's inclusion.
In my previous role as Senior Vice President, Sustainability & Corporate Citizenship, my team led the introduction of the TD Pathways to Economic Inclusion, the Bank's social framework that aims to improve employment, financial, and housing access across Canada.
Now, as Senior Vice President, Everyday Savings & Investing, I lead the team that strives to help our Canadian customers understand how to best manage their money — and that includes those customers who are new to Canada.
New Canadians face many challenges, from language barriers to making sense of different cultural norms. It's no surprise that many are looking for help when it comes to understanding the Canadian banking and financial system, while looking to build a financial future for themselves and their family.
And according to new research from Edelman Data & Intelligence on behalf of TD, 55% of newcomers (or those who arrived in Canada within the past 10 years) polled say they've found it difficult to manage their finances since arriving here.
Many of those polled lack understanding of Canada's financial system — something that's particularly evident in the gap between newcomers and those who've lived here for at least a decade.
Just over 50% of newcomers polled say they have little to no understanding about how to invest money in Canada, compared to 35% of the general population. At the same time, nearly 40% report little to no understanding of the Canadian banking system, compared to just a quarter of the general population.
At TD, we believe that Canada's economic strength depends on the success of all its people. When newcomers feel financially secure, save, invest their money, plan for home ownership and start new businesses, they drive our economy forward and create opportunities for all Canadians. But if many newcomers don't understand how Canada's banks and financial system work, they can't reach their full potential.
How can we bridge the knowledge gap and help newcomers better understand?
TD has supported newcomers building new lives in Canada for more than a century. Today, newcomers make up more than half of our new customers. At TD, we continue to work to set newcomers up for success by giving them the knowledge they need to thrive on a personal financial level and fully participate in the Canadian financial system by banking with TD.
Here's what TD is doing to help.
We meet customers where they are
Inclusion begins with communication. How can we help our customers if we don't speak the same language? Literally.
In branches across Canada, we have frontline colleagues who can serve customers in more than 80 languages. For instance, one Moncton-based Customer Experience Manager, Missbaye Ali, can support TD customers (including newcomers, refugees and international students) in English, French, Yoruba, and Lingala.
Customers that call Easyline can receive service in as many as 200 languages, and our ATMs offer seven languages: English, French, Punjabi, Portuguese, Italian, Simplified and Traditional Chinese.
When it comes to financial literacy, we offer materials in more than 10 languages across in-person and digital channels. These materials, like our "just arrived in Canada" webpage, can help newcomers begin to understand banking in Canada and find the banking products they may need.
Along with striving to help reduce language barriers, we offer products directed to newcomers which may help them lay a strong financial foundation. These include the TD New to Canada Banking Package, the TD International Student Banking Package, and the TD International Student GIC Program, all of which help newcomers establish credit in Canada.
Supporting financial literacy
According to the survey, 76% of newcomers polled fear making a financial mistake — 68% of those in the general Canadian population fear the same. To help boost financial literacy, we're proud to be the founding supporter of Money Matters, a free introductory financial literacy program by ABC Life Literacy Canada built for adult learners, newcomers, Indigenous Peoples, and people with diverse abilities.
We've also worked with CanadaVisa, a leading source of information about immigrating to Canada. We work with the CanadaVisa team to provide financial literacy resources, which are available in multiple languages around topics, such as how to build good credit and what to know before buying a home.
Just recently, we launched a new, dedicated hub on our website filled with articles and explainers about banking in Canada as well as specific TD products, from bank accounts to mortgages.
Serve as a launchpad
Half of all newcomers polled are interested in starting their own business, our survey data reveals. Yet, 62% say they are not well informed about the financial products available to support business owners.
TD has robust Small Business Banking services to support business owners throughout their entrepreneurial journeys.
The Bank also offers donations and grants to non-profit organizations focused on entrepreneurship through the TD Ready Commitment, the Bank’s corporate citizenship platform.
One such organization is Futurpreneur, a national, bilingual non-profit organization dedicated to helping Canadians start new businesses. The Bank’s relationship with Futurpreneur dates back to 2010 and in 2024, the organization received a $1 million TD Ready Challenge grant to launch its Women in Entrepreneurship Initiative. This program aims to empower women entrepreneurs through networking events, a peer-to-peer community, and capacity building workshops.
This is a new addition to Futurpreneurs existing initiatives, which include loan financing, mentorship, and business resources.
At TD we are committed to bridging the financial knowledge gap by helping newcomers access credible financial education, tools, and resources.
At the Bank, we want to ensure new Canadians have the tools they need to be successful, and TD is proud to play a positive role in ensuring that new Canadians receive the financial services and advice that they need for themselves, for their families, and for Canada.
About the TD Survey