President's Choice Financial

President's Choice Financial, commonly known as PC Financial, is the financial-services brand associated with Loblaw Companies Limited, the Canadian supermarket and retail group behind the President's Choice consumer brand. Rather than operating as one single financial institution, the brand has been used by several Loblaw-owned entities and by banking partners to provide different categories of financial products. Its principal activities have included personal banking, Mastercard credit cards, insurance and access to branded automated teller machines in Loblaw-affiliated stores. The brand's original consumer-banking model began in 1996 through a relationship with the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. Under that arrangement, customers could obtain branded chequing and savings accounts, loans, lines of credit, mortgages and registered investment products. Banking services were delivered primarily through direct channels, including the internet and telephone, as well as through ATMs and service pavilions located in or near Loblaw stores. For a period between January 2001 and October 2005, the banking activity was provided through Amicus Bank, a CIBC subsidiary. The service was generally available across Canada except Quebec. The arrangement used CIBC's bank number and a dedicated transit identifier, reflecting the fact that the branded offering was supported by a regulated banking partner rather than by a separate branch network. PC Financial's retail positioning emphasized convenience, integration with grocery shopping and value-oriented rewards. Customers could use PC-branded ATMs without a fee, while non-customers were generally subject to transaction charges. The brand also connected financial products with Loblaw's loyalty ecosystem. Holders of eligible President's Choice Financial Mastercards could earn PC Optimum points on purchases, and the later PC Money Account extended a similar rewards connection to a debit-like payment product. The consumer-banking partnership with CIBC ended in 2017. Loblaw and CIBC announced that PC Financial mortgages, loans, investments and deposit accounts would move to CIBC's new direct-banking brand, Simplii Financial, effective November 1 of that year. Approximately two million customers were associated with the transferred consumer-banking portfolio at the time. The credit-card and insurance businesses remained with Loblaw-related entities and continued under the PC Financial name. On September 14, 2020, the brand re-entered consumer banking with the PC Money Account. Unlike the earlier CIBC-supported accounts, this product was issued directly by President's Choice Bank. It was positioned as a no-fee, debit-like account, but its card used Mastercard's global payment network rather than Canada's Interac domestic debit network. The card could be used online and internationally at merchants accepting Mastercard and could also earn PC Optimum points. In functional terms, it operated as a prepaid payment card rather than as a conventional Canadian chequing account. The brand's card portfolio has included Mastercard products equipped with contactless PayPass technology. PC Financial also supported digital-wallet usage, including a 2014 partnership involving TD Canada Trust's Ugo Wallet and later compatibility with Apple Pay and Android Pay. Its insurance activities have included home, automobile, pet and travel coverage arranged through broker and managing-general-agent relationships with external insurers. Home and auto insurance sales were temporarily discontinued to new customers in 2009 during structural changes and returned in January 2010 under a broker model. In December 2025, Loblaw announced that Toronto-headquartered Equitable Bank had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire PC Financial. The announced transaction was valued at C$800 million and included President's Choice Bank, PC Financial Insurance Agency Inc., PC Financial Insurance Brokers Inc. and other affiliated…

President's Choice Financial developed as Loblaw Companies' branded entry into Canadian consumer financial services. Its best-known early model was not a standalone branch bank but a retail-finance arrangement supported by regulated banking partners. Beginning in 1996, CIBC provided the infrastructure and products behind PC Financial's personal-banking offer. Customers could access accounts, loans, mortgages, lines of credit and registered investment products under the President's Choice name, using direct channels and facilities associated with Loblaw stores. Amicus Bank, a CIBC subsidiary, supplied the banking service for part of the period from 2001 to 2005. The arrangement allowed Loblaw to combine the reach of its supermarket network with banking services. Customers could transact online or by telephone, use PC- or CIBC-branded ATMs and visit service pavilions located in affiliated stores. PC-branded ATMs generally provided fee-free access for PC Financial customers. The banking service was available in most Canadian provinces but excluded Quebec according to the supplied reference. The offering was also connected to Loblaw's broader value and loyalty proposition, although banking operations remained dependent on the partner institution's regulated infrastructure. PC Financial's consumer-banking service received strong customer-satisfaction results in J.D. Power and Associates studies, ranking highest among mid-size Canadian banks in each of the years 2007 through 2011 cited by the reference material. These rankings helped reinforce the brand's positioning as a convenient direct-banking alternative rather than a traditional full-service branch bank. A major structural change occurred in 2017, when Loblaw and CIBC mutually agreed to end their consumer-banking joint venture. Effective November 1, 2017, PC Financial accounts and related mortgages, loans and investments were transferred to Simplii Financial, CIBC's new direct-banking brand. The transaction separated the banking portfolio from the PC Financial name but did not end the wider brand. Loblaw retained the Mastercard and insurance businesses, which continued to be offered through Loblaw subsidiaries and related entities. The brand later returned to personal banking in a different form. On September 14, 2020, President's Choice Financial launched the PC Money Account. This account was issued directly by President's Choice Bank rather than through CIBC. It was designed as a no-fee, debit-like payment account, but its card operated on Mastercard's global network and was described as prepaid rather than as a conventional chequing account using Interac for domestic debit purchases. The account could be used at Mastercard-accepting merchants worldwide and linked spending with PC Optimum points. Alongside banking, PC Financial maintained a payments business centered on Mastercard credit cards. The cards incorporated contactless PayPass functionality and supported digital-wallet use, including a 2014 Ugo Wallet initiative and later Apple Pay and Android Pay compatibility. The brand's insurance operations covered home, auto, pet and travel risks. Home and auto policies were temporarily closed to new customers in 2009 while the business underwent structural changes; after the earlier Aviva relationship ended, those products returned in January 2010 through a broker model using multiple insurers. Pet insurance was underwritten by SecuriCan General Insurance Company, while travel insurance used Travel Guard Canada as managing general underwriter and agent for American Home Assurance Company. In December 2025, Loblaw announced an agreement under which Equitable Bank would acquire PC Financial for C$800 million. The stated transaction included President's Choice Bank, PC Financial Insurance Agency Inc., PC Financial Insurance Brokers Inc. and other affiliated entities. The supplied material does not confirm closing, regulatory completion or the post-transaction operating structure. Accordingly, the brand's long-term ownership remains subject to the status of that announced acquisition.

• 2025

  Equitable Bank acquisition announced

  [1]President's Choice Financialen.wikipedia.org

  Loblaw announced a definitive agreement to sell PC Financial to Equitable Bank for C$800 million, subject to completion of the transaction and any required conditions.

• 2020

  PC Money Account launches

  [1]President's Choice Financialen.wikipedia.org

  President's Choice Bank introduced the PC Money Account as a no-fee prepaid Mastercard-based personal banking product.

• 2017

  Consumer-banking portfolio transfers to Simplii Financial

  [1]President's Choice Financialen.wikipedia.org

  Following the termination of the Loblaw-CIBC arrangement, PC Financial consumer-banking accounts and related credit products moved to Simplii Financial on November 1.

• 2014

  Mobile-wallet initiative launches

  [1]President's Choice Financialen.wikipedia.org

  PC Financial participated in the launch of the Ugo Wallet Android application with TD Canada Trust.

• 2010

  Home and auto insurance return under a broker model

  [1]President's Choice Financialen.wikipedia.org

  Home and auto insurance offerings returned in January through a broker-based structure involving multiple Canadian insurers.

• 2009

  Home and auto insurance temporarily close to new customers

  [1]President's Choice Financialen.wikipedia.org

  PC Financial temporarily stopped accepting new home and auto insurance customers while making structural changes and ending its previous Aviva partnership.

• 2005

  Amicus Bank period ends

  [1]President's Choice Financialen.wikipedia.org

  The temporary Amicus Bank arrangement ended in October 2005, after which the CIBC-supported structure resumed.

• 2001

  Amicus Bank provides the banking service

  [1]President's Choice Financialen.wikipedia.org

  For a period beginning in January 2001, the PC Financial banking operation was provided through Amicus Bank, a CIBC subsidiary.

• 1996

  CIBC-supported consumer banking begins

  [1]President's Choice Financialen.wikipedia.org

  President's Choice Financial began offering consumer-banking products through a joint venture or operating relationship with CIBC.

A value-oriented, retail-integrated financial-services brand using Loblaw's grocery footprint and PC Optimum loyalty program to provide convenient payment, banking and insurance products.

• Credit card

  President's Choice Financial Mastercard

  The PC Financial Mastercard portfolio is the brand's principal credit-card offering. The cards use contactless PayPass technology and connect card spending with Loblaw's PC Optimum loyalty program. The cards have also been supported by mobile-wallet services, including Apple Pay and Android Pay. Unlike the former CIBC-supported deposit and lending products, the Mastercard business remained with Loblaw-related entities after the 2017 consumer-banking transfer.

• Prepaid personal banking account · 2020

  PC Money Account

  Launched in September 2020, the PC Money Account is a no-fee, debit-like account issued directly by President's Choice Bank. Its card runs on Mastercard's global payment network rather than the Interac domestic debit network, allowing use online and internationally wherever Mastercard is accepted. The account can also earn PC Optimum points and is structurally a prepaid payment product rather than a conventional Canadian chequing account.

• Banking and lending · 1996

  Former PC Financial consumer-banking products

  The former consumer-banking range included chequing and savings accounts, personal loans, lines of credit, mortgages and registered investment products such as RRSPs. These products were provided through CIBC and, for part of the early 2000s, Amicus Bank. They were transferred to Simplii Financial in November 2017 and are no longer part of the PC Financial-branded consumer-banking portfolio.

• Insurance

  PC Financial insurance

  The insurance business has included home and auto coverage arranged through a broker model, along with pet and travel insurance. The products have been underwritten or administered through external insurance companies and managing general agents rather than through a single universal PC Financial insurer. Home and auto insurance were temporarily unavailable to new customers in 2009 and returned under a revised broker structure in January 2010.

• ATM access

  PC Financial ATMs

  PC-branded automated teller machines have been placed in many Loblaw-owned stores. PC Financial customers can generally use these machines without a fee, while other users may be charged transaction fees. The ATM network supports the brand's retail-based convenience proposition.

• 2025

  Agree to sell PC Financial to Equitable BankM&A

  Background

  Loblaw announced that Equitable Bank had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the PC Financial business and associated entities.

  Action taken

  The announced transaction was valued at C$800 million and included President's Choice Bank, PC Financial Insurance Agency Inc., PC Financial Insurance Brokers Inc. and other affiliated entities.

  Aftermath

  The supplied reference does not confirm whether the acquisition had closed, received all approvals or changed the brand's operating model.

  announced acquisition value. C$800 million (December 2025 announcement)

  Source

• 2020

  Launch the PC Money AccountProduct launch

  Background

  After the transfer of its former CIBC-supported banking products, PC Financial returned to personal banking with a product structured differently from a conventional Canadian chequing account.

  Action taken

  President's Choice Bank issued the PC Money Account as a no-fee, prepaid Mastercard-based account that could be used globally and connected to PC Optimum rewards.

  Aftermath

  The launch restored a personal-banking presence under the PC Financial name while relying on Mastercard's payment network rather than Interac domestic debit processing.

  Source

• 2017

  End the CIBC consumer-banking arrangementStrategy

  Background

  Loblaw and CIBC mutually decided to end the arrangement through which PC Financial offered deposit, lending and investment products. The consumer-banking portfolio had approximately two million customers when the change was announced.

  Action taken

  CIBC transferred PC Financial mortgages, loans, investments and bank accounts to its Simplii Financial direct-banking brand effective November 1, 2017. PC Financial Mastercard and insurance products were excluded from the transfer.

  Aftermath

  The decision removed the original CIBC-supported consumer-banking range from the PC Financial brand while leaving Loblaw's card and insurance businesses in operation.

  Source

1. 1President's Choice Financialen.wikipedia.org