Wealth One Bank of Canada

Wealth One Bank of Canada
Company typePrivate Schedule I bank
IndustryFinance
Founded2016; 8 years ago (2016)
FounderShenglin Xian
Headquarters18 King Street East,
Toronto, Ontario
,
Canada
Key people
Paul Leonard
(CEO and president)
ServicesBanking, lending
Websitewww.wealthonebankofcanada.com Edit this at Wikidata

Wealth One Bank of Canada (stylized as WealthONE) is a Canadian federally chartered digital Schedule I bank, founded in 2016, to serve the Chinese Canadian community. The bank has been subject to regulatory and legal scrutiny due to national security concerns around its principal shareholders.

History

Wealth One Bank of Canada was founded by seven key investors. Shenglin Xian attracted other investors, including Yuansheng Ou Yang and Mao Hua Chen, who became directors of the bank.[1] With one other key investor, they raised $50 million as an initial funding for the bank.[2] The investors believed that there was a business opportunity to create a Canadian financial institution that was able to offer services to Chinese Canadians by understanding their culture, traditions and being able to speak their language.[3] The company began working in the early 2010s towards gaining a charter through what its CEO and president at the time, Charles Lambert, described as a "long application process".[4]

On July 22, 2015, WealthONE received its tentative letters patent from Canada's Minister of Finance.[2] The bank was officially chartered federally in 2016 as a Schedule I bank under the Bank Act.[1][3] As such, it is regulated by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI)[3] and is a member of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation, a Crown corporation which insures all deposits into its member banks.[5]

In November 2016, The Globe and Mail published an article claiming that the bank's website included inaccurate profiles of its key investors and that its founder previously faced allegations of mishandling client insurance claims.[6] WealthONE responded in letter stating that "like every other Schedule 1 bank in Canada, Wealth One Bank had to go through an exacting and rigorous process under the Bank Act and OSFI... We're very proud of the fact that [WealthONE] met those stringent standards."[7]

The bank's head office is location in the heart of downtown Toronto Ontario's Financial District. It first began providing mortgages and loans, and soon after began accepting deposits in July 2016.[1] It hopes to attract new immigrant customers who "may have a solid net worth, just not the kind of proof of income or credit ratings that [other] domestic lenders may prefer."[8] The bank's customer-facing staff are of Chinese descent and able to interact with customers in English, Cantonese and Mandarin.[3]

In October 2020, Paul Leonard was appointed as the new chief executive officer and president of the bank. Leonard first joined WealthONE as CFO in 2018. As CEO, he reported that the bank has about 700 borrowers, 7,000 deposit accounts, and $375 million in total assets as of November 2020.[8]

In February 2023, The Globe and Mail reported that the bank's three principal shareholders had been under investigation by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) since 2021 and, later, by the Department of Finance Canada.[9][10] In September 2024, Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland filed documents in federal court stating that three principal shareholders of WealthONE were vulnerable to coercion by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and may have engaged in money laundering as part of the CCP's influence operations in Canada.[11]

References

  1. ^ a b c Alexander, Doug (September 6, 2016). "Newest Canadian Bank Aims to Woo Country's Chinese Families". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on March 20, 2022. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Fife, Robert; Chase, Steven (November 24, 2016). "The murky beginnings of a new Canadian bank". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d Hernandez, Jon (September 17, 2016). "New national bank targeting Chinese Canadian customers". CBC News. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  4. ^ Fumano, Dan (September 9, 2016). "New bank targets Chinese-Canadians". Vancouver Sun. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  5. ^ Carrick, Rob (November 9, 2017). "For the aggressive saver, better interest rates are there for the taking". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on December 21, 2017. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  6. ^ Fife, Robert; Chase, Steven (November 24, 2016). "The murky beginnings of a new Canadian bank". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on June 23, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  7. ^ "Dear Editor: Your article on November 24, 2016" (PDF). Wealth One Bank of Canada. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 9, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  8. ^ a b Zochodne, Geoff (November 20, 2020). "Upstart bank Wealth One aiming for profitability amid trying times for Canada and China". Financial Post. Archived from the original on March 9, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  9. ^ Fife, Robert; Chase, Steven (February 23, 2023). "Chrystia Freeland rings national security alarm about founders of Canadian bank with suspected ties to China". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  10. ^ Fife, Robert; Chase, Steven (September 2, 2023). "Freeland imposes extraordinary measures to force out founding investors of Wealth One Bank with alleged ties to China". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  11. ^ Fife, Robert; Chase, Steven (September 6, 2024). "Ottawa ties Wealth One founders to possible Chinese interference". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.