Fintechs can now join Interac e-Transfer. Here is how the door opened.

A door that used to be closed

For most of its history, only regulated financial institutions could use Interac e-Transfer. This usually meant banks and credit unions. Wealthsimple was the first fintech participant to join, but only in 2023. It qualified as an investment dealer and money services business before the new federal framework was in place.

This has changed. A new type of company may apply to become an Interac e-Transfer participant.

What changed in September 2025

Two dates are important. Supervision under the Retail Payment Activities Act began on September 8, 2025. The Bank of Canada now supervises retail payment service providers, or PSPs. Since that date, new PSPs must register before they perform any retail payment activities.

Interac announced on September 16, 2025, that it was increasing access to e-Transfer. This announcement was updated on December 3, 2025. Under the new rules, a company can apply for participant status if it meets 2 conditions at once. It must be a payment service provider registered with the Bank of Canada under the RPAA. It must also be a money services business registered with FINTRAC. Both registrations are required. One is not enough.

To apply, send an email to newapplicants@interac.ca.

Two ways to connect

Interac identifies 2 types of participant. A Direct Exchange Participant links to the network directly. An Indirect Exchange Participant connects via a Connection Service Provider, or CSP. Every Indirect Exchange Participant must name a CSP, and Interac must authorize that CSP.

Today, there are 5 authorized CSPs:

Two obligations apply regardless of the chosen path. All participants must establish settlement arrangements. Indirect participants may also face extra fees from their CSP in addition to standard Interac e-Transfer fees.

• Central 1
• Desjardins
• Peoples Trust Company
• Digital Commerce Bank
• Prairie Payments Joint Venture

The fintechs that walked through first

Three companies prove the door exists and that multiple keys are available.

One gap still exists. No small PSP has publicly finished the indirect route through a CSP under the PSP plus MSB category.

1. Wealthsimple joined in 2023, before the RPAA was in place. It met the requirements of an investment dealer and a FINTRAC-registered money services business.
2. Neo Financial became a participant on April 8, 2026. It was the first pure-play fintech to join under the RPAA framework as an RPAA-registered PSP.
3. Shakepay joined as a participant on July 16, 2026. It qualified as a CIRO-regulated investment dealer and a FINTRAC-registered money services business, rather than through the PSP category.

The honest caveats

Being eligible means you have the right to apply, but it does not guarantee you can join. Interac decides on approvals at its own discretion. Interac needs secure connection abilities along with compliance controls and risk management. No acceptance criteria are published.

The public timeline is lengthy. Reviewing an application takes about 3 to 6 months. After that, connecting to the network can take up to 18 months.

Pricing is not public. Interac states that there are onboarding fees, monthly fees, and transaction fees, but they do not publish any amounts. CSP fees are added to these; those are also commercial and unpublished.

The specific actions of an indirect participant are not published. Interac only describes direct and indirect participants as exchanging e-Transfer transactions. Public information does not specify feature-level details like send, receive, Request Money, or Autodeposit.

Every participant, whether direct or indirect, must set up their own settlement arrangements. This requires having a relationship with a settlement institution.

Payments Canada opened a door too

Payments Canada also saw a related change. Amendments to the Canadian Payments Act came into force on September 29, 2025. These changes extended membership eligibility at Payments Canada to payment service providers registered with the RPAA. A PSP applicant must provide evidence of its RPAA registration.

Wise, Float, KOHO, Paramount Commerce and Brim Financial were the first PSP members admitted in January 2026. Neo Financial joined later in 2026. Membership is not free. Payments Canada common services dues are a flat $49,544 per member for 2026. This amount is the same for every member regardless of size.

Membership in Payments Canada is not the same as participating in Interac e-Transfer. Each requires a separate application, a different gatekeeper, and its own set of requirements.