Canadians’ access to cash in 2023 Staff Analytical Note 2025-13 Heng Chen, Hongyu Xiao, Daneal O’Habib, Stephen Wild This study updates our measure of Canadians' access to cash through automated banking machines and financial institution branches. We find that in 2023 overall access to cash remains stable, while rural Canadians continue having less access. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes Research Topic(s): Bank notes, Financial services, Regional economic developments JEL Code(s): J, J1, J15, O, O1, R, R5, R51
Low Response Rate from Merchants? Sample and Ask Consumers! An Application of Indirect Sampling Under a Consumer-Merchant Bipartite Network Technical Report No. 126 Heng Chen, Joy Wu Under the consumer-merchant bipartite network, we apply the indirect sampling approach to estimate merchant payment acceptance through a consumer payment diary. Content Type(s): Staff research, Technical reports Research Topic(s): Bank notes, Econometric and statistical methods JEL Code(s): C, C8, C80, C83, E, E5
Canadian Bitcoin Ownership in 2023: Key Takeaways Staff Discussion Paper 2025-4 Daniela Balutel, Marie-Hélène Felt, Doina Rusu The Bitcoin Omnibus Survey is an important tool for monitoring Canadians’ awareness and ownership of bitcoin and other cryptoassets over time. In this paper, we present data highlights from the 2023 survey. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Research Topic(s): Bank notes, Digital currencies and fintech, Econometric and statistical methods JEL Code(s): C, C8, C81, E, E4, O, O5, O51
Tech Reluctance: Fostering Empathy for Canadians Facing Challenges with Digital Systems Staff Discussion Paper 2025-2 Sebastian Hernandez, Helena Wang, Badr Omrane, Vera Roberts, David Pereyra We find that individuals who require help performing banking tasks or who are reluctant to adopt technology avoid digital payment systems they expect to lack usability. Addressing these issues through standard accessibility practices, live assistance and thoughtful interface design can enhance user interaction and trust. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Research Topic(s): Accessibility, Bank notes, Central bank research, Digital currencies and fintech, Digitalization, Financial services JEL Code(s): A, A1, A14, C, C9, C90, D, D8, D83, O, O3, O33, Y, Y8, Y80
CBDC in the Market for Payments at the Point of Sale: Equilibrium Impact and Incumbent Responses Staff Working Paper 2024-52 Walter Engert, Oleksandr Shcherbakov, André Stenzel We simulate introducing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) and consider consumer adoption, merchant acceptance and usage at the point of sale. Modest adoption frictions significantly inhibit CBDC market penetration along all three dimensions. Incumbent responses to restore pre-CBDC market shares are moderate to small and further reduce the impact of a CBDC. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Research Topic(s): Bank notes, Digital currencies and fintech, Econometric and statistical methods, Financial services JEL Code(s): C, C5, C51, D, D1, D12, E, E4, E42, L, L1, L14, L5, L52
The impact of a central bank digital currency on payments at the point of sale Staff Analytical Note 2024-27 Walter Engert, Oleksandr Shcherbakov, André Stenzel We simulate the impact of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) on consumer adoption, merchant acceptance and use of different payment methods. Modest frictions that deter consumer adoption of a CBDC inhibit its market penetration. Minor pricing responses by financial institutions and payment service providers further reduce the impact of a CBDC. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes Research Topic(s): Bank notes, Digital currencies and fintech, Econometric and statistical methods, Financial services JEL Code(s): C, C5, C51, D, D1, D12, E, E4, E42, L, L1, L14, L5, L52
How do Canadians perceive access to cash? Staff Analytical Note 2024-24 Heng Chen, Daneal O’Habib, Hongyu Xiao This paper introduces a subjective measure of cash accessibility in Canada, complementing existing distance-based metrics developed by Chen, O’Habib and Xiao (2023). Analyzing data from the 2023 Methods-of-Payment Survey, this study explores how Canadians perceive their ease of accessing cash from automated banking machines (ABMs) and financial institution branches. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff analytical notes Research Topic(s): Bank notes, Financial services, Regional economic developments JEL Code(s): J, J1, J15, O, O1, R, R5, R51
The Consumer Value Proposition for a Hypothetical Digital Canadian Dollar Staff Discussion Paper 2024-16 Martine Warren, Bill Laur, Ted Garanzotis, Sebastian Hernandez We explore the consumer value proposition of a hypothetical Digital Canadian Dollar, adoption considerations and the users who would benefit most from this potential new payment method. We employ a design-thinking consultation methodology, allowing participants to interact with research prototypes of increasing complexity to reveal user preferences, constraints and adoption influences. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Research Topic(s): Accessibility, Bank notes, Central bank research, Digital currencies and fintech JEL Code(s): C, C9, D, D1, D12, E, E4, E42, E5, E58, O, O3, O33
Digital Payments: A Framework for Inclusive Design Staff Discussion Paper 2024-15 Sebastian Hernandez, Alexandra Sutton-Lalani, John Miedema, Virginie Cobigo, Fatoumata Bah, Munazza Tahir, Danika Lévesque, Badr Omrane We propose a framework for designing cognitively accessible payment and banking interfaces through design guidelines, testing and proposed measures to optimize system learnability and user workload. We include, as a case study, the results of testing this framework with users with cognitive disabilities, using a prototype system for voice payments. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff discussion papers Research Topic(s): Accessibility, Bank notes, Central bank research, Digital currencies and fintech, Digitalization, Financial services
Untapped Potential: Mobile Device Ownership and Mobile Payments in Canada Staff Working Paper 2024-25 Marie-Hélène Felt, Angelika Welte, Katrina Talavera We present a two-stage model of mobile phone and mobile payment usage that controls for selectivity. This reveals unobserved factors that work against having a mobile phone and toward mobile paying. Therefore, people who are unable to acquire or choose not to own a mobile device might have unmet payment needs. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Research Topic(s): Bank notes, Digital currencies and fintech, Econometric and statistical methods JEL Code(s): C, C3, C39, D, D1, D12, E, E4, E42