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Legislation
The CPA operates in a
very well defined environment; pursuant to our legislative mandate,
the defined public policy objectives and under the careful oversight
of the Minister of Finance and the Governor of the Bank of Canada.
Our membership
includes the Bank of Canada, all chartered banks, trust and loan
companies, centrals, cooperative
credit associations and others.
Parliament has given us a very
specific mandate:
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To establish and
operate national clearing and settlement systems;
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To facilitate
the interaction of our systems with others;
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And to
facilitate the development of new payment methods and
technologies.
Parliament further set out a clear
public policy mandate; that the CPA promote the efficiency, safety
and soundness of its systems taking into account the interests of
users of the system.
Consultation
While our first mandate “to
establish and operate the systems” is critical to the functioning of
the Canadian economy; the CPA’s facilitation role is equally as
important for the smooth operation of the payments system and its
evolution.
In support of our core mandate, and
in the development of new rules or
policies for the Payments system, we rely heavily on the input
provided by specialized committees composed of members and
stakeholders alike.
The CPA fosters and promotes close relationships with
all the stakeholders of the payments system.
The CPA's
Stakeholder Advisory Council has been in existence since 1996,
and was enshrined in legislation in 2001. The Council is composed
of 18 stakeholder representatives including retailers, large and
small corporate entities, Provincial and federal governments,
payment service providers and consumer groups.
Given the breadth of knowledge on this
Council and the diversity of its composition, members of this
Council provide valuable input on proposed initiatives.
In addition to user group membership on SAC, the CPA
seeks representation on key working groups/task forces that have
been assembled to consider specific exchange, clearing and
settlement issues. Further, the CPA meets with and receives input
from key consumer groups during the development of rules that may
impact consumers (e.g. the Consumers Association of Canada,
Consumers Council of Canada, L’Union des consommateurs, Option
Consommateurs, and the Public Interest Advocacy Centre).
Innovation
The payments landscape continues to
change quickly. In this regard, the CPA will continue to respond to
innovation in the payments industry, and play a leadership role in
providing a safe and efficient clearing and settlement system to
meet the current and future needs of Canadians.
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