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Opinion: Our banks are still being weaponized. It should be stopped

The U.S. and U.K. have taken measures to prevent 'de-banking' — cutting off bank services for political reasons. Canada should do the same

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Banks are key institutions of modern life. The idea that they might become ideological actors and deny service to — or “de-bank” — otherwise eligible individuals or companies because of their political opinions or the perfectly legal business they’re engaged in is more than a little disconcerting. Yet until recently Canadian banks have been all-in on punishing the oil and gas industry and enforcing ESG requirements on institutions that borrow from them, and in several high-profile instances they have denied service to protesters and activists, though only those on one side of the political spectrum.

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