Financial advertising in Canada is primarily regulated by the
federal, provincial and territorial governments, which have enacted
advertising laws of general and more specific application.
The Competition
Act is the main federal advertising law of general
application, while some of the provisions of the
Credit Business Practices Regulations and
the
Cost of Borrowing (Banks) Regulations under
the Bank
Act1 govern the sector-specific
advertising of financial products and services. Financial
advertising in the provinces and territories is typically governed
by their respective consumer protection legislation.
In addition to federal, provincial and territorial legislation,
financial advertising is also governed by codes of conduct. Ad Standards -
Canada, a self-regulatory organization, oversees the Canadian Code
of Advertising Standards, which is an advertising code of
general application, while the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada
(FCAC) is responsible for