On April 27, 2026, the federal government introduced Bill C-29, the Financial Crimes Agency Act, marking a significant shift in Canada’s approach to financial crime enforcement. If passed, the legislation will establish the Financial Crimes Agency (FCA), a new specialized federal law enforcement body dedicated to investigating serious and complex financial crimes and contributing to the recovery of proceeds of crime.
For years, Canada has faced criticism that its anti-money laundering and anti-fraud enforcement model has been too fragmented, with responsibilities spread across multiple agencies and relatively low rates of investigation, prosecution, and asset recovery in major financial crime cases. Bill C-29 is intended to change that. It signals a move toward a more centralized, specialized, and enforcement-focused model that treats financial crime not just as a regulatory issue, but as a matter of economic security and public confidence.
What Bill C-29 Does
At its core, Bill C-29 creates the Financial Crimes Agency as a new federal institution. The legislation gives the FCA a clear statutory mandate: to investigate financial crimes, contribute to the recovery of proceeds of crime, and participate in international efforts to counter crimes of a financial nature.
The bill defines “financial crime” broadly. It includes offences involving money laundering, trafficking or possession of proceeds of crime, offences that affect the integrity or security of Canada’s economy or financial system, designated Criminal Code offences that generate proceeds of crime, and offences under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act. That broad definition matters. It means the FCA is not limited to classic money laundering investigations. Its scope could extend to sophisticated fraud, investment scams, online financial crime, sanctions-related conduct, and other offences tied to illicit financial activity.
The FCA will be headquartered in the National Capital Region, but the Commissioner will be able to establish offices elsewhere in Canada with ministerial approval. This gives the new agency a national footprint from the start.
A New Enforcement Body with Real Police Powers
One of the most important features of Bill C-29 is that the FCA is not being created as a policy or intelligence body alone. It is being designed as an operational law enforcement agency.
The FCA will be led by a Commissioner appointed by the Governor in Council. The Commissioner will have the rank and powers of a deputy head and will also be a peace officer throughout Canada. The Commissioner will manage the agency under the direction of the Minister of Finance, and the Minister will be able to issue directions on matters that materially affect public policy or the strategic direction of the FCA. Those directions must be made public as soon as feasible.
The legislation also allows the Commissioner to designate certain employees as investigations officers and, subject to regulations, as police officers. Employees designated as police officers will have peace officer powers across Canada. This is a material development. It confirms that the FCA will have frontline investigative authority rather than relying solely on referrals to existing police services.
Bill C-29 also requires an arrangement between the FCA and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police for the RCMP to provide services and assistance to the new agency. In practice, that may help bridge operational gaps while the FCA builds its own capacity, and it reflects that the new agency is expected to work alongside — not wholly replace — existing enforcement institutions.
Independent Investigations and Cross-Border Cooperation
The bill gives the Commissioner authority to launch investigations in two ways: on the Commissioner’s own initiative, or at the request of, or in collaboration with, law enforcement agencies or public bodies in Canada or abroad. That authority is especially important in the modern financial crime environment, where fraud, laundering, sanctions evasion, and digital asset misconduct often involve multiple jurisdictions, fast-moving transactions, and layered corporate structures.
The legislation also contemplates information-sharing arrangements and regulations governing the collection, retention, use, disclosure, and disposal of information. As a result, the FCA is likely to become a central node in Canada’s broader financial crime enforcement network, working with domestic and foreign partners where investigations intersect.
Federal Prosecution Powers Could Expand
Another noteworthy feature of Bill C-29 is its treatment of prosecutions. The legislation provides that the Attorney General of Canada may conduct proceedings for offences investigated under the Act if the alleged offence is a financial crime. It also allows the Attorney General of Canada to issue a fiat establishing exclusive federal authority over a prosecution in a province, taking into account factors such as whether the offence is transnational, spans more than one province, or engages the national interest.
That is a meaningful power. It suggests the federal government wants the ability to centralize prosecution decisions in appropriate cases, particularly where investigations are complex, cross-border, or national in scope. Depending on how this power is used, it may become one of the more closely watched aspects of the legislation.
Why This Matters for Business
For businesses, financial institutions, fintech companies, payment service providers, crypto-asset businesses, and other organizations operating in higher-risk sectors, Bill C-29 is more than an institutional reform. It is a clear signal that financial crime enforcement in Canada is poised to become more specialized and more active.
Organizations should expect:
- more sophisticated federal investigations into money laundering, fraud, and proceeds-of-crime issues;
- greater coordination between agencies;
- increased attention to transaction monitoring, sanctions compliance, and internal fraud controls;
- more scrutiny of complex structures, cross-border payment flows, and digital assets; and
- potentially stronger focus on asset tracing and recovery.
In practical terms, this means legal, compliance, and investigations teams should be reviewing whether internal systems are robust enough to respond to heightened enforcement risk. Record retention, escalation protocols, suspicious activity reporting, internal investigations procedures, employee training, and privilege management may all become more important if the FCA begins operating as intended.
Relationship with FINTRAC, the RCMP, and Other Agencies
The FCA will not operate in a vacuum. Canada already has multiple bodies involved in financial crime risk, including FINTRAC, the RCMP, securities regulators, provincial police, border authorities, and intelligence agencies. Bill C-29 does not eliminate those institutions. Instead, it creates a specialized enforcement body that may sit more squarely at the intersection of investigation, coordination, and asset recovery.
That distinction matters. FINTRAC, for example, primarily functions as a financial intelligence unit and regulatory administrator under the anti-money laundering regime. The FCA, by contrast, is being built as an investigative and enforcement agency with designated police powers. The RCMP will remain a key policing partner, but the FCA appears intended to bring concentrated expertise and dedicated focus to serious financial crime matters that may previously have competed with other policing priorities.
Governance and Oversight Questions Remain
Although the bill sets out a strong operational framework, it also raises important governance and oversight questions. Because the Commissioner acts under the direction of the Minister of Finance, some observers may ask whether the FCA will have sufficient operational independence, particularly in politically sensitive or high-profile cases. The bill requires ministerial directions affecting policy or strategic direction to be made public, which promotes transparency, but the practical line between strategy and operations may still attract attention.
The legislation also provides for annual reporting, parliamentary tabling of those reports, and a five-year review of the Act. In addition, complaints concerning the conduct of FCA employees designated as police officers will ultimately be folded into the Public Complaints and Review Commission framework. Those are meaningful accountability measures, though much will depend on implementation.
The Broader Policy Message
Beyond its technical provisions, Bill C-29 reflects a broader policy shift. It frames financial crime as an issue that affects not only individual victims and regulated entities, but also the integrity of Canada’s financial system and the security of the national economy. That framing aligns Canada more closely with jurisdictions that have increasingly treated money laundering, sanctions evasion, kleptocracy, and large-scale fraud as serious strategic threats.
If the FCA is properly resourced and effectively coordinated with prosecutors and partner agencies, it could become one of the most important institutional developments in Canadian white-collar and anti-money laundering enforcement in years.
Final Takeaway
Bill C-29 is still only at first reading, and the legislation may change as it moves through Parliament. Even so, its direction is clear. Canada is preparing to create a dedicated Financial Crimes Agency with national reach, investigative powers, and a mandate to pursue serious and complex financial crime in a more focused way than the current system allows.
For businesses and regulated entities, the message is straightforward: financial crime compliance and investigative readiness should be treated as a priority now, not later. If the FCA becomes operational in the form proposed, organizations can expect a more assertive and coordinated federal enforcement environment.
Businesses that are exposed to fraud, anti-money laundering, sanctions, or proceeds-of-crime risk would be well advised to review their internal controls, reporting systems, and investigation protocols before the new agency begins to reshape the enforcement landscape.