← Embedded Finance Index 2026

Scotiabank

“Can a legacy Canadian Big Five bank become a North America-focused universal bank while opening its rails via APIs and outsourced partnerships?”

Founded1832
HQToronto, Ontario, Canada
FoundersWilliam Lawson (first President)
Latest roundPublicly traded (TSX: BNS, NYSE: BNS)
IndustryBank / National

The story

Scotiabank is Canada's third-largest bank by assets, founded in 1832 in Halifax. Historically known for its international footprint across Latin America and the Caribbean, the bank has been pruning underperforming international markets since 2023 under CEO Scott Thomson to refocus on North America. On the embedded finance side, Scotiabank is notable for outsourcing merchant acquiring to Chase Merchant Services and partnering exclusively with ZayZoon for earned wage access, while building out its own Scotia TranXact API platform for corporate clients.

Last 12 months

2026-09

Joined the other five of Canada's Big Six banks (RBC, TD, Scotiabank, BMO, CIBC, National Bank) in announcing a consortium — dubbed "Dominion Ledger" for this Index — to build a shared permissioned ledger for tokenized CAD deposits. Enables instant, 24/7 interbank movement with atomic (delivery-versus-payment) settlement, targeting institutional/corporate multi-bank cash positions first. Framed as competitive defense against USD stablecoins, informed by the Bank of Canada's Project Agorá tokenization research.

TD Bank Group Bmo Cibc National Bank of Canada

2026-09-01

Named as a founding member (one of 21 international financial institutions, alongside Bank of America, Capital One, Citi, Fidelity Investments, Goldman Sachs, PNC, TD Bank Group, Wells Fargo, WisdomTree, Banco Santander, Bbva, Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank, Lloyds, Rabobank, Ubs, Mufg, Sirius International Holding, Standard Bank and Crédit Agricole) of a new joint venture to issue a stablecoin — name not yet disclosed at announcement. Initial focus on a USD-denominated stablecoin, with EUR the priority for later expansion; targets wholesale, institutional and retail use cases including cross-border payments and digital-asset settlement. Go-to-market targeted for H1 2027.

Bank of America Capital One Citi Fidelity Investments Goldman Sachs PNC TD Bank Group Wells Fargo WisdomTree Banco Santander Bbva Commerzbank Deutsche Bank Lloyds Rabobank Ubs Mufg Sirius International Holding Standard Bank

Product timeline

1832

The Bank of Nova Scotia founded in Halifax as first chartered bank in Nova Scotia.· banking

1874

Opened Saint John, NB branch, beginning national expansion.· banking

2012

Acquired ING Direct Canada, later rebranded as Tangerine Bank.· acquisition

2024

Announced strategic partnership with Chase Merchant Services as preferred merchant acquirer.· banking

Acquisitions

ING Direct Canada (Tangerine)2012

Acquired Canadian direct bank, rebranded to Tangerine in 2014; now operates as digital banking subsidiary.

Regulated entities

regulatory licence held by Scotiabank

Licence types, jurisdictions and registered entities are in the Embedded Finance Index report.

Consortium memberships

Scotiabank is a named member of 2 industry alliances building shared payment/settlement infrastructure alongside these organizations — full details on /consortiums.

Global bank USD stablecoin consortiumForming · announced 2026-09-01 · targeting H1 2027 (USD token); additional G7 currencies, EUR prioritized, to follow

PNC Financial Services

UBS

Sirius International Holding

Standard Bank

Canada's Big Six tokenized-deposit networkForming · announced 2026-09-22 · targeting no date set; phase 1 limited to transfers between the 6 participating banks

Royal Bank of Canada

TD Bank Group

BMO

CIBC

National Bank of Canada

The stack

7 layers disclosed in Scotiabank’s embedded-finance stack

Payments / PSP

Chase Merchant ServicesScotiabank (self-operated)

Banking / BaaS

in the full report

Card issuing

in the full report

Card network

in the full report

Lending

in the full report

FX & payouts

in the full report

Treasury

in the full report

Accounting gap: minor

15 more providers across 6 layers, with confidence-scored evidence and source URLs, are in the Embedded Finance Index report.

Scotiabank — frequently asked

What bank does Scotiabank use?

Scotiabank discloses The Bank of Nova Scotia (in-house) as its banking provider, according to the Embedded Finance Index 2026.

Is Scotiabank a bank?

Scotiabank does not disclose a bank charter of its own; its banking services are provided through The Bank of Nova Scotia (in-house).

Who is Scotiabank's payment processor?

Scotiabank processes payments through Chase Merchant Services and Scotiabank (self-operated).

Who issues Scotiabank's cards?

Scotiabank's cards are issued through The Bank of Nova Scotia (in-house) on the Visa, Mastercard and American Express networks.

Who provides Scotiabank's lending?

Scotiabank's lending and capital products are provided by The Bank of Nova Scotia (in-house).

Who handles Scotiabank's FX and cross-border payouts?

Scotiabank uses The Bank of Nova Scotia (in-house) for FX and cross-border payouts.

What is Scotiabank's embedded finance stack?

The Embedded Finance Index 2026 maps 7 layers in Scotiabank's stack: Payments / PSP (Chase Merchant Services and Scotiabank (self-operated)); Banking / BaaS (The Bank of Nova Scotia (in-house)); Card issuing (The Bank of Nova Scotia (in-house)); Card network (Visa, Mastercard and American Express); Lending (The Bank of Nova Scotia (in-house), Credit Line for business, Credit Line for agriculture, Scotia Professional Plan (SPP) Line of Credit and 4 others); FX & payouts (The Bank of Nova Scotia (in-house)); Treasury (The Bank of Nova Scotia (in-house)).

Who founded Scotiabank?

Scotiabank was founded by William Lawson (first President) and is founded in 1832, headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

What companies has Scotiabank acquired?

Scotiabank's acquisitions include ING Direct Canada (Tangerine) (2012).

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