CLA Governance & Policy Committees

Full leadership team:  www.canadianlenders.org/leadership/

President

Gary Schwartz

Members

Neil Wechsler – OnDeck Canada
Jason Mullins – goeasy
Kip Daechsel – Dentons
Michael Burke – Blakes

Chair

Michael Burke – Blakes

Committee Details

Committee is responsible to setting and monitoring CLA membership values and standards.

Please go to the membership page to apply for membership.

Chair

Michael Wendland – Refresh Financial
Jess Weiser – Equifax

Members

  • Sabrina Anzini – goeasy
  • Nathan Slee – Progressa
  • Bonny Murray – Blakes
  • Colin Grosskurth – PayBright
  • Melissa Soper – LendDirect
  • Sandro Muzzo – OnDeck Canada
  • Dominique Samson – Flinks
  • Lloyd Evetts – Inverite Verification
  • Andrew Bowgen – Simply Group

Policy Milestones 

  • Enhanced monthly regulatory calendar (Blakes)
  • Ontario HCC Consultation, Response to Federal Budget

Committee Details

CLA’s Advocacy and Regulatory Principles Through advocacy with all levels of government and with other trade associations in the marketplace, the Canadian Lenders Association’s Advocacy and Regulatory Committee supports the following principles:

  • We support transparency throughout the Canadian marketplace and will support changes to legislative and regulatory frameworks that encourage and enhance transparency for borrowers.
  • We advocate for balanced regulatory frameworks that meet the needs of borrowers, as well as provide stable, strong and consistent environments for businesses of all sizes to successfully operate in Canada by minimizing the administrative and compliance costs for lenders.
  • We support an open marketplace – one which encourages innovation, the use of technology and healthy competition to advance the needs of borrowers and provide products and services to meet 21st century needs.

We support an open marketplace – one which encourages innovation, the use of technology and healthy competition to advance the needs of borrowers and provide products and services to meet 21st century needs. Members of the CLA Advocacy and Regulatory Committee agree to build these key messages into messaging shared with government and other decision makers to promote a cohesive and united approach to major regulatory issues in the Canadian marketplace that impact or may impact – whether directly or indirectly – the business operations of CLA members.

Lead

Dean Velentzas
Lily Cook

Committee Details

Our Tools and Services Committee is responsible for partnerships that drive incremental value for our lenders. The Canadian Lenders Association is committed to publish world-class research and thought leadership on key topics impacting fintech lending. The CLA’s white papers provide thoughtful analysis and insights into trends and opportunities across the sector. Our research and thought leadership offers key insights into the fintech ecosystem. With the acceleration of digitization, including automation and APIs, BaaS (banking-as-a-service) and Open Banking, credit has become more accessible to underserviced and digital-forward borrowers. The CLA’s white papers provide a dynamic look at the financial services to support the growing needs of Canadian consumers. The Canadian Lenders Association represents technology and innovative business models that continue to be adopted by mainstream financial institutions and herald The Future of Lending ™ in Canada.

The Canadian Lenders Association is committed to sharing ideas nationally to help educate borrowers and share best practices with lenders. We run fortnightly The Future of Lending ™ webinars, discussions and fireside chats. These ideas are shared via Linkedin to reach a wide social audience.  We host private dinners for our members as well as workshops and the largest lending event in Canada: the annual Lenders Summit. All content is filmed, recorded and available to the public. Please subscribe to our Newsletter and President’s Blog. Go to Lenders Events to  learn about all upcoming events.

All content is available online – our community has no paywalls.

Committee Initiatives:

Roundtable: Fintech Auto

  • CIBC, Canada Drives, Axis Financial, Auto Capital Canada, Eden Park Financial, AutoLoans, BMO, RBC, Carma, LendCare, Rifco, RentUgo – Data partner: TU

Task Force: Consumer BNPL 

  • Sezzle, Afterpay, Klarna, Affirm, Uplift, Quadpay, Humm, Flexiti, LendCare, Fix4, Gotoloans, FuturePay, Ripple, BMO, RBC – Data partner: RFi 

Resource:

  • Market Entry Checklist (Cassels)
  • Whitepapers: RTR (VISA), BNPL

 

Chair

Andrea Fiederer – goeasy

Members

  • Clinton Hosannah – LM Credit
  • Melanie Bufo – OnDeck
  • Philipp Postrehovsky – goeasy
  • Rich Elliott – Marble Financial
  • Jacob Watson – Simply Group

Committee Details

Our Communications & Media Committee is responsible for steering events, promoting borrower advocacy, and our lending thought leadership.

The Canadian Lenders Association is committed to sharing ideas nationally to help educate borrowers and share best practices with lenders. We host private dinners for our members as well as workshops and an annual Summit. All content is filmed and available to the public. Our community has no paywalls.