Canada’s payment infrastructure is getting a long-overdue renovation, and KPMG Canada is making the case that the country needs to get its own house in order before opening the door to international digital payment networks.

The consulting firm is recommending that Canada develop sovereign digital infrastructure as a prerequisite for connecting to global digital systems.

Nearly every bank in Canada is already on board

According to KPMG’s 2025-2026 surveys, between 93% and 94% of Canadian financial institutions are either planning or have already begun implementing modernization programs.

Over 60% of Canadian business leaders polled by KPMG said that immediate modernization of digital infrastructure and open banking capabilities is critical for maintaining national competitiveness.

The centerpiece of this national upgrade is the Real-Time Rail initiative, commonly known as RTR. Managed by Payments Canada, the RTR is scheduled for a phased rollout starting in Q4 2026, with full participant access anticipated by 2027. The system promises 24/7 irrevocable and data-rich transactions.

Why sovereignty matters in payments

Canada’s historical reliance on legacy systems like Interac has served the country well enough for everyday transactions, but those systems weren’t designed for the speed and data richness that modern commerce demands.

KPMG’s analysis indicates that payments modernization could cost individual organizations millions of dollars on average.

The tokenization angle

KPMG has been strategically positioning itself around the potential of tokenization and stablecoins, suggesting that today’s infrastructure investments could eventually serve as the foundation for integrating digital assets into Canada’s financial ecosystem.

What this means for investors

The near-universal adoption of modernization programs among Canadian financial institutions creates a clear demand signal for fintech companies and payment processing technology providers.

The Q4 2026 timeline gives investors roughly 18 months to identify which companies are winning implementation contracts and which technologies are being adopted as industry standards.

Over 60% of business leaders flagging open banking as critical means there’s appetite for the API-driven, data-sharing frameworks that underpin modern financial services.

The risk, as with any large-scale infrastructure project, is execution. The RTR has already gone through multiple timeline revisions before landing on its current Q4 2026 target.