TORONTO, Canada–Canada’s small businesses are saying they are happier with the financial services they receive from credit unions than they are from the country’s five largest banks, according to a new survey from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. But the credit union score declined from earlier surveys.
The organization group asked small businesses to rate, on a scale of zero to 10, how their financial institutions performed in a range of categories, including financing, fees, account management and service quality.
“Credit unions, which were assessed as a group, had topped the list when the survey was last conducted in 2019 and maintained top spot in 2022, with an overall score of 5.9,” Yahoo Business reported. “They also ranked highest in the ‘banking fees’ and ‘account manager’ categories. Desjardins Group rose to second place from seventh in 2019, while National Bank of Canada jumped one spot to third.”
Royal Bank of Canada was ranked fourth, followed by Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and bank of Nova Scotia.
A Disconnect
Corinne Pohlmann, CFIB’s executive vice-president of advocacy with the group, told Yahoo Business there was a disconnect between the banking services offered by large banks and the needs of small businesses.
“While big banks hold most of the small business market share, they’re not serving their small business clients as well as credit unions do,” she told the publication. “Banking fees remain a major cost constraint, many small businesses find it hard to contact someone at the bank directly, and they feel like their unique banking needs are not being taken seriously.”
One Point of Concern
For credit unions, the report noted there is one point of concern. CUs’ overall top score of 5.9 was down from the 6.19 recorded by credit unions in 2019.
“It’s still concerning that the top overall score decreased and comes in below six when the highest possible score is 10,” CFIB senior policy analyst Michelle Auger said in a released statement.
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