Canada and EU draft plan to link next-generation payment systems

Canada and the European Union intend to connect next-generation payment systems so businesses and households can move money across the Atlantic faster and more cheaply, according to a draft joint statement prepared for a Canada–EU summit in Montreal later this month, The Globe and Mail reported.

The Sept. 21 draft, viewed by the newspaper and branded an “Alliance for the Future,” says the sides will “work toward connecting next-generation payment systems to facilitate faster, lower-cost and more seamless cross-border transactions.” It does not name specific rails, though the phrase usually points to real-time clearing upgrades. The Prime Minister’s Office declined to comment on the leaked text. Prime Minister Mark Carney told the European Parliament on Sept. 17 that Canada and Europe should secure “strategic autonomy” in areas including payments, citing U.S. unpredictability under President Donald Trump — including 2025 sanctions that left Winnipeg-born ICC judge Kimberly Prost unable to use most credit cards or major consumer platforms.

The same draft maps a wider economic package: completion of a Digital Trade Agreement; a European Investment Bank deal to ease European capital into Canadian critical minerals; competition-watchdog co-operation; talks on Canadian participation in the Galileo satellite program and Erasmus+; a long-term LNG export feasibility study; joint purchase of 50 De Havilland water bombers from 2030; and study of new subsea cables linking Europe, Canada and Asia. BMO chief economist Douglas Porter told the Globe linking payments with Europe is a defensive “shield” if existing systems come under duress; Canadian Shield Institute’s Vass Bednar urged stronger public positioning on alternative payment infrastructure.

For Canadian banks, exporters and households, the communiqué — if finalized — would frame payments as infrastructure sovereignty rather than a back-office upgrade, tying cross-border money movement to Ottawa’s broader Europe-first trade bet.

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Sources: The Globe and Mail.