First Nations Bank of Canada (FNBC) is the first Canadian chartered bank to be independently controlled by Indigenous shareholders.[1] FNBC is a Schedule 1 Federally Regulated Bank in accordance with the Bank Act[2] and received its charter on 19 November 1996. The bank headquarters are located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.
As of 2014, Indigenous Canadian groups own 80 percent of the bank.[3]
History
It began as a venture initiated by First Nations in Saskatchewan and was established in 1996 as a strategic alliance of the Saskatchewan Indian Equity Foundation, the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations, now the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (a First Nations organisation), and TD Bank. The first branch opened in Saskatoon. A ceremony was held in Toronto in 1996 to celebrate the bank's launch.[4]