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ARTICLE · 01 MARCH 2026

Fintech Patents: New Eligibility Guidance In Canada

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Banks, fintech companies and payment processors who engage in R&D and file patents regarding computer-implemented inventions will want to take note of the Federal Court's Dusome v. Canada (Attorney General)...

CanadaIntellectual Property
Ahmed Elmallah
Ahmed Elmallah
Roseann Caldwell
Roseann Caldwell
Stephen D. Burns
Stephen D. Burns
Benjamin Reingold
Benjamin Reingold
J. Sébastien Gittens
J. Sébastien Gittens
Matthew Flynn
Matthew Flynn
Simon Grant
Simon Grant
Kees De Ridder
Kees De Ridder
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Banks, fintech companies and payment processors who engage in R&D and file patents regarding computer-implemented inventions will want to take note of the Federal Court's Dusome v. Canada (Attorney General) (Dusome)1 decision, and the Canadian Intellectual Property Office's (CIPO) subsequently-issued guidance (the Guidance). 

Although Dusome involved a poker card wagering game, its reasoning applies broadly to computer-implemented inventions, including financial-related computer technology.

In this Part 1, we briefly examine how CIPO is now approaching computer-implemented inventions post-Dusome, and how this applies to financial-tech innovation.

In Part 2, we draw on our survey of Canadian Patent Appeal Board (PAB) decisions to highlight patterns in what is likely patentable for financial technologies.

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