Canadian Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC)

Overview

CDIC is a Canadian Federal Government Crown corporation created in 1967 by an act of Parliament.

CDIC was established to provide savers with additional protection for their deposits placed with member financial institutions in the event the financial institution goes into bankruptcy.

Since 1967, 43 Canadian financial institutions have failed with the most recent failure occurring in 1996 (Security Home Mortgage Corporation).

For a list of the institutions that have failed click on the following link:  www.cdic.failures

If you currently own or are considering an investment in GICs, you should take a few moments to visit the CDIC website at the following link: https://www.cdic.ca/

CDIC has also prepared a quick reference FAQ section, which is quite useful.

 

Below are few common questions and answers copied directly from the CDIC website:

CDIC — Who We Are and What We Do

The Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) is a federal Crown corporation created by Parliament in 1967 to protect your deposits made with member financial institutions in case of their failure. CDIC is not a bank. CDIC is not a private insurance company.

CDIC helps keep Canada’s financial system strong. We work for Canadians—by insuring their savings in case a bank or other CDIC member institution fails.

You don’t need to sign up for our insurance.

CDIC deposit insurance is automatic – for eligible deposits in Canadian dollars at its member institutions.

You don’t pay for our insurance.

CDIC member institutions fund deposit insurance through premiums paid on the insured deposits that they hold.

Are YOUR savings insured?

It’s important to know banks and other financial institutions in Canada can fail. It does not happen often, but it has happened and it could happen again. If your financial institution is a CDIC member and it fails and your savings are eligible for CDIC coverage, you will get up to $100,000 of your savings back. If your savings are NOT covered, you might lose them.

Your savings are covered if your bank (or the institution you bank with) is a member of CDIC. CDIC only insures savings if they are at one of their member institutions and if the accounts or financial products you have are insured by CDIC. They only insure certain types of savings. It’s easy to find out… Find out if YOUR savings are insured by CDIC.

At a glance: What’s Covered, What’s Not Covered

This CDIC Website link will show which financial accounts and products are covered by CDIC, and which are not covered.  For more details, click on any of the links at the bottom of this page.

For more detail about accounts and products covered by CDIC, click on any of the following:

How Does CDIC Calculate Insurance?

While financial institutions in Canada do not often fail, it is possible. It is useful for consumers to know how CDIC deposit insurance works, including how CDIC calculates the amounts to be paid to depositors following a failure.