Equitable Bank, Canada’s seventh-largest lender by assets, delivered a year of significant milestones in 2024, highlighted by a record-setting profit and the first-ever revenue topping the $1 billion mark. The lender also took a bold branding step by tapping the cast of Schitt’s Creek — Dan Levy and Eugene Levy — to promote its consumer-facing EQ Bank platform. These moves come as Equitable navigates a sector traditionally dominated by the Big Six banks, signaling a strategic push to broaden its appeal, accelerate digital adoption, and diversify its lending mix. In this open, digitally oriented landscape, the bank’s leadership, led by Chief Executive Andrew Moor, has framed 2024 as a turning point that blends strong financial performance with ambitious branding and policy-driven priorities like open banking. This article revisits those developments, examines the implications for 2025, and explores how the bank intends to translate 2024’s momentum into sustained growth in the face of evolving economic conditions, regulatory expectations, and market dynamics.
EQB’s 2024 Performance and Brand Strategy
Equitable Bank’s 2024 results mark a watershed for a lender often perceived as a challenger within Canada’s banking ecosystem. The year culminated in all-time highs for profitability and revenue, with the milestone being the first time EQ Bank revenue exceeded the $1 billion threshold. This revenue achievement stands alongside broader indicators of business health: the bank reported a substantial increase in customer acquisition, with the EQ Bank brand borrowing additional visibility through high-profile endorsements, most notably from Dan and Eugene Levy. The leveraging of celebrity spokespeople represents a deliberate effort to humanize and differentiate the bank’s digital product lineup in a market where many consumers still equate banking with traditional, brick-and-mortar experiences. The Levy campaign is not merely a headline; it is a strategic initiative designed to elevate consumer awareness of EQ Bank’s digital platform and to push the bank toward a leadership position in Canada’s evolving digital banking space.
On the operational side, Equitable has reported meaningful growth in core metrics that underpin its long-term trajectory. The bank has surpassed the half-million-customer milestone for its consumer-facing digital arm, indicating a meaningful scale-up in user adoption. Deposits are robust, exceeding $9 billion, a figure that reflects both the popularity of EQ Bank’s digital product and the bank’s ability to monetize its digital footprint through diversified financial services. Yet the 2024 performance is not solely about raw numbers. It is also about how the bank has integrated its digital platform into everyday consumer behavior, elevating brand recognition while maintaining a disciplined approach to risk and capital management. The combination of revenue growth, customer expansion, and strong deposit inflows reinforces Equitable’s strategy of balanced growth: leveraging digital infrastructure to attract a broader customer base while maintaining prudent risk controls and a diversified product set.
The leadership narrative around 2024 emphasizes brand consolidation as a core driver of future growth. By bringing the EQ Bank brand to the forefront, executives argue that the bank has cultivated a more intuitive and accessible image for customers seeking modern, digital-first banking solutions. The Levy partnership is positioned as a differentiator that enhances both reach and resonance with target demographics, particularly younger or more tech-savvy consumers who value seamless digital experiences. The net effect is a stronger, more recognizable consumer brand that supports not only customer acquisition but cross-selling opportunities across Equitable’s broader portfolio, including traditional lending and specialized financing products. Taken together, the year’s financial performance and branding strategy signal a deliberate shift toward becoming a recognized, digitally enabled competitor in a sector once dominated by legacy institutions. This combination of profitability and brand elevation creates an inflection point for Equitable’s strategic planning as it eyes 2025 and beyond.
The strategic implications of 2024’s performance extend into the bank’s capital allocation and product development priorities. Management has underscored the importance of continuing to invest in the underlying digital infrastructure that powers EQ Bank’s growth, while simultaneously expanding the reach of its lending capabilities to serve diverse borrower segments. Importantly, the bank’s growth trajectory is not anchored to a single product line or customer segment. Instead, it reflects a broader, multi-product approach that leverages digital channels to deliver a wide array of services — from everyday checking and savings features to more specialized lending products that align with consumer needs and life stages. The cross-functional alignment between branding, technology, risk management, and customer experience is central to the bank’s plan to sustain the momentum achieved in 2024. As Equitable looks ahead to 2025, the company’s narrative centers on maintaining the delicate balance between growth, profitability, and prudent risk oversight, all while expanding the footprint of EQ Bank as a leading digital bank in Canada.
The broader market context matters as well. In a country where the financial services sector is widely perceived as a fortress of stability, Equitable’s growth story resonates with investors and industry observers who are watching for concrete breakthroughs in customer acquisition, digital adoption, and revenue diversification. By reporting record revenue, expanding its customer base, and driving brand recognition through strategic partnerships, EQ Bank is signaling to the market its readiness to challenge conventional assumptions about what a mid-sized Canadian bank can achieve. This strategic posture is especially relevant in a climate where interest rate dynamics and housing activity influence borrower behavior and credit demand. In sum, 2024 was framed not only as a financial milestone but also as a branding and strategic milestone that underpins Equitable’s longer-term ambition to redefine its role in Canada’s financial services landscape.
The Open Banking Outlook: Policy, Benefits, and Industry Challenges
A core theme that emerged from Equitable Bank’s leadership discussions centers on open banking and the regulatory pathway that Canada’s government is pursuing. CEO Andrew Moor and his team have framed open banking as a critical structural development for the industry—one that promises to improve consumer choice, encourage competition, and enable more personalized financial services. Open banking, at its core, would allow consumers to share their financial data securely with third parties, potentially enabling better credit terms, budgeting insights, and new financial products that respond to individual financial behaviors. Moor emphasized that open banking is not simply a trend but a foundational change that could transform the way Canadians interact with banks and non-bank lenders alike. The policy trajectory in Canada, including commitments made in the federal fall economic statement, signals both political consensus and regulatory intent to introduce a framework within which data can be shared in a controlled, secure manner.
However, Moor did not shy away from acknowledging the challenges and frictions embedded in the open banking dialogue. He pointed to real concerns about data security, potential fraud, and the operational burdens associated with implementing compliant and robust data-sharing mechanisms. These concerns are not just theoretical; they have practical implications for how financial institutions design interfaces, security protocols, and customer consent frameworks. The industry-wide risk management considerations require banks to invest in sophisticated data governance, fraud prevention technologies, and user-centric consent management—areas where Equitable is positioned to take a leadership role given its emphasis on digital excellence and customer experience.
From a policy and industry perspective, the open banking debate in Canada has been complicated by inputs from the “Big Six” incumbents, whose lobbying and operational preferences shape the pace and scope of regulatory change. Moor acknowledges that while resistance exists, there is broad political support across Ottawa. The challenge, as he frames it, is not whether open banking should exist but how best to implement it in a way that protects consumers, minimizes risk, and preserves financial stability. The practical implication for Equitable is straightforward: the bank must prepare technologically and operationally to participate fully in an open banking environment, should and when such an environment is legislated. That means investing in data interoperability, secure APIs, consent management tools, and customer education to ensure that users understand the benefits and safeguards of data sharing.
The consumer value proposition in open banking, as described by Moor, centers on greater control over financial information and the potential to receive more tailored offers and better terms of credit. Consumers could benefit by integrating multiple financial accounts into a single, unified experience, enabling smarter budgeting and more accurate credit decisions based on comprehensive financial behavior. In practice, open banking could translate into more competitive financing for home purchases, improved terms for borrowers who demonstrate responsible financial management, and better access to financial products for individuals who may have been underserved previously. The practical realization of these benefits, however, depends on a well-functioning ecosystem where financial institutions, fintechs, and regulators collaborate to build secure, user-friendly solutions. Equitable’s stance—supportive of open banking while stressing the need for robust risk controls—reflects its broader strategic emphasis on technology, customer experience, and responsible growth.
In terms of competitive advantage, Equitable argues that its digital-first model positions it well to capitalize on open banking once a regulatory framework is in place. The bank’s investment in EQ Bank’s platform, its consumer-facing branding, and its willingness to engage in partnerships and new product development align with the open-banking paradigm. The interview excerpts reveal a clear intent to lean into the opportunity while acknowledging the governance, privacy, and security issues that must be resolved. For stakeholders and readers, the key takeaway is that Equitable is preparing to operate in an environment where data portability and customer-centric services could reshape the lending landscape, intensifying competition but also creating room for stronger value propositions for consumers. The strategic implication is that Equitable’s readiness for open banking could become a differentiator, enabling quicker product innovation cycles and more proactive risk management as the market evolves.
Open banking, as Moor framed it, is more than a compliance exercise; it is a catalyst for redesigned customer relationships and enhanced value propositions. The bank’s leadership emphasizes the importance of solving data-related risks rather than using them as a barrier to entry. In this view, the industry should “lean in” to the opportunities and not delay the implementation due to perceived risks. This perspective underscores a broader industry trend: the willingness of incumbents to innovate and collaborate with fintechs, accelerators, and policymakers to bring consumer-centric, secure, and useful financial products to market. Ultimately, Equitable’s approach to open banking combines strategic readiness with a measured acknowledgment of the regulatory timetable, indicating that the bank is prepared to move decisively when the policy framework is fully aligned with industry capabilities and consumer protections.
2025 Economic Outlook: Housing, Rates, and Immigration Dynamics
Looking ahead to 2025, the bank’s leadership expressed cautious optimism about the macroeconomic backdrop. A central theme is the expectation that interest rates will trend down further, which has meaningful implications for housing activity and consumer borrowing. Moor and the team pointed to a more favorable environment for the housing market, driven by lower borrowing costs and a recovery in demand among prospective homeowners. The housing market’s revival is framed as a positive development for lenders, given the potential uptick in mortgage originations and refinancing activity. However, this optimism is tempered by an awareness of geopolitical uncertainties that could introduce volatility into the Canadian economy. The global backdrop may influence energy markets, trade dynamics, and capital flows, all of which can indirectly affect domestic demand, inflation expectations, and borrowing costs.
Another key variable discussed by the bank’s leadership is immigration. The commentary notes that immigration levels have begun to fall from earlier peaks, while the country continues to welcome new arrivals. This shift carries important housing implications: a sustained increase in immigration typically translates into greater demand for housing units, which can lift housing starts and purchase activity. If immigration trends moderate, the housing supply gap may not tighten as rapidly, potentially easing price pressures but also reducing one of the demand catalysts that had supported mortgage markets in recent years. The bank acknowledges the broader reality that immigration, while still a significant and ongoing trend, intersects with housing supply constraints and interest-rate policy to shape the credit and housing markets for 2025.
On the debt and credit side, Equitable expects a constructive environment for lending, particularly in segments where it has established strengths. The bank highlighted its franchises in lending to self-employed individuals and its niche position in reverse mortgages for seniors. These segments represent a strategic counterbalance to core residential mortgage activity, building diversification in the bank’s loan book. The self-employed segment is characterized by borrowers who may face more nuanced credit assessments and income documentation requirements; Equitable’s experience in underwriting these risks could translate into continued capacity to originate and service loans despite cyclical headwinds. The reverse mortgage space is likely to benefit from a low-interest-rate environment, making the product more attractive to seniors seeking liquidity in retirement. Equitable’s anticipated growth in these segments signals a deliberate strategy to broaden its lending mix beyond traditional mortgages and into specialized products that align with demographic needs and market conditions.
In addition to the housing sector, the economy’s broader growth trajectory remains a focal point. The bank’s leadership frames 2025 as an year in which housing demand and consumer confidence could recover in tandem with easing interest rates. The anticipation of stronger housing turnover implies a need for efficient processing, risk management, and customer service capabilities to capitalize on higher origination volumes and maintain prudent credit standards. The potential for a mortgage “war” is discussed by analysts in the market, and while the bank recognizes the scenario’s possibility, it emphasizes its own opportunities to differentiate through its lending capabilities, including for self-employed borrowers and seniors seeking reverse mortgages. The 2025 outlook thus combines optimism about growth in housing and consumer demand with a sober assessment of potential risks from geopolitical events and macroeconomic shocks. Equitable’s strategic response is likely to emphasize product diversification, enhanced customer experiences, and robust risk governance to sustain profitability even if market conditions shift.
The broader policy context also remains relevant. Open banking continues to be advanced as a strategic priority, but progress will depend on the regulatory timetable and the industry’s collective ability to implement secure, interoperable data-sharing mechanisms. The government’s commitment to open banking, amid ongoing consultations and industry dialogue, may eventually unlock new competitive dynamics and collaboration opportunities. For Equitable, the combination of lower rates, housing activity revival, and a regulated path for data sharing offers a pathway to growth, provided the bank continues to invest in technology, risk controls, and customer education to optimize the benefits for borrowers and depositors alike. In sum, 2025 is positioned as a transition year in which the bank can capitalize on improved financing conditions and a more conducive housing environment, while remaining vigilant about external risks and the pace of regulatory change.
Lending Portfolio Focus: Equipment Financing, Risk Management, and Growth Prospects
A notable portion of Equitable’s fourth-quarter performance reflects the evolving dynamics of its lending portfolio, particularly in equipment financing for long-haul transportation. The bank reported that loans tied to trucks and trailers encountered a tougher period, a reflection of broader cyclical headwinds within the long-haul logistics sector. The COVID-era surge in demand for transportation capacity has waned, and the subsequent normalization has created an environment where lenders face higher credit losses or tighter funding margins in this niche. Moor characterized this development as a temporary and industry-specific challenge rather than a systemic weakness in the bank’s overall balance sheet. The key takeaway is that while certain segments experience cyclicality, the bank’s diversified portfolio and disciplined risk management practices help cushion the impact and maintain overall resilience.
From a strategic perspective, the equipment-financing issue underscores the importance of portfolio diversification and robust risk controls. The bank’s response likely includes a combination of tighter underwriting standards for volatile sectors, more diversified client exposure, and stronger reserve buffers to absorb potential losses. This approach is consistent with Equitable’s overall philosophy of prudent risk management, particularly in a period of macro uncertainty and sector-specific volatility. It also reinforces the importance of maintaining a balanced mix of assets, including higher-growth segments such as consumer digital lending and alternative financing tied to housing markets that may benefit from lower rates and higher activity.
Looking forward, the bank’s development roadmap includes opportunities to optimize profitability from non-traditional lending channels. For example, self-employed borrower segments, as highlighted by Moor, present a compelling growth thread because these borrowers often rely on specialized income verification and credit analytic frameworks that Equitable has refined. The bank’s capacity to serve self-employed borrowers with competitive terms, while maintaining rigorous risk management, could contribute meaningfully to revenue growth and market share. The reverse-mortgage product line also remains a strategic area with a potential for higher net interest margins in environments of modest rate volatility. In any case, the underlying message is that Equitable intends to strengthen its risk-adjusted returns by balancing cyclical capital-intensive segments with steadier, scalable digital lending streams and targeted specialized products. Sustained profitability will require ongoing attention to underwriting quality, portfolio diversification, and proactive portfolio monitoring.
The 2024 performance highlights the bank’s ability to navigate sector-specific headwinds while continuing to build a broader and more resilient lending franchise. The emphasis on a diversified product mix, disciplined risk management, and strategic branding efforts aligns with a long-term plan to secure a stable growth trajectory beyond traditional home financing. The 2025 outlook suggests a careful but constructive course: leverage the digital platform to unlock efficiency gains, expand higher-margin segments, and maintain a resilient balance sheet amid evolving interest-rate and macroeconomic conditions. The end goal remains clear — to sustain profitability, grow the customer base, and deepen engagement with customers across product lines, all while preparing for a broader shift toward data-driven, consumer-centric financial services in a post-open-banking environment.
Immigration, Housing Supply, and Policy Impacts on Lending
In examining the housing market and policy dynamics, Equitable’s leadership highlighted the role of immigration in shaping housing demand. The surge in immigration over recent years has underscored the importance of housing supply to meet the needs of newcomers and established residents alike. While the absolute numbers of immigrants remain high by historical standards, the bank acknowledges that the latest adjustments in immigration targets influence demand trajectories for housing and mortgage products. This nuanced view reflects a sophisticated understanding of the interplay between demographic trends and housing affordability, as well as the potential implications for lending activity.
From a regulatory and policy perspective, the bank sees open banking as a structural change that could intersect with immigration-driven housing demand in several ways. Open banking may enable more efficient credit decisioning, broader access to financial services for newcomers, and more competitive terms for borrowers who demonstrate healthy financial management. In this sense, immigration policy and housing policy become interwoven with the bank’s growth strategy, as higher influxes of residents necessitate greater housing supply and more accessible financing options to support home purchases. The bank’s stance is thus one of cautious optimism: it recognizes the positive impact of higher immigration on housing demand but also cautions about the potential supply constraints that could dampen the pace of activity if not addressed by policy responses and market interventions.
It is important to note that within this framework, Equitable’s strategic focus on specialized lending—such as financing solutions for self-employed borrowers and reverse mortgages for seniors—complements the broader housing market dynamics shaped by immigration trends. Self-employed borrowers often navigate different income verification routes and require flexible underwriting approaches, which Equitable has cultivated as part of its core competency. By expanding offerings that align with the needs of diverse borrower groups, the bank aims to capture a larger share of the mortgage and home-purchase market while maintaining traditional risk controls. In addition, reverse mortgages serve as a tool to support seniors who may be seeking liquidity to meet living expenses or fund home improvements, further diversifying the bank’s loan portfolio.
From a market perspective, the housing supply constraints that typically accompany periods of strong immigration demand necessitate collaboration with policymakers, developers, and lenders to improve housing stock. Equitable consistently emphasizes responsible lending practices and prudent risk management while pursuing opportunities to finance housing for Canadians. The bank’s approach to policy shifts and open-banking readiness is designed to ensure it can respond to evolving lending conditions without compromising credit quality or financial stability. The overarching narrative is that regulatory developments, demographic shifts, and housing-market dynamics will continue to influence Equitable’s lending strategy, and the bank is positioning itself to respond through product diversification, digital-enabled efficiency, and a prudent risk framework.
Competitive Positioning: Branding, Digital Leadership, and Growth Levers
Equitable’s public-facing strategy centers on building a compelling brand narrative that showcases its digital platform, risk-aware lending, and customer-centric product design. The Levy partnership is a focal point of this strategy, providing the EQ Bank brand with a distinctive voice and broad audience reach. The bank’s emphasis on the digital customer journey, ease of access to products, and transparent communication aligns with contemporary consumer expectations for financial services. In a market traditionally dominated by the Big Six, Equitable’s approach to branding and digital leadership seeks to carve out a distinct space by emphasizing speed, simplicity, and customer empowerment.
From a product perspective, Equitable’s growth strategy includes expanding the reach of EQ Bank, broadening the array of digital-first products, and leveraging data-driven insights to optimize cross-selling and customer retention. The bank’s customer base has grown to over half a million, and deposits have surpassed $9 billion, reflecting not only strong customer acquisition but also the effectiveness of its value proposition in a competitive environment. This trajectory signals the potential for enhanced profitability through higher fee-based revenue, cross-sell opportunities, and more efficient operation enabled by digital platforms. The bank’s brand strategy, grounded in a modern and accessible image, supports its efforts to attract younger customers who might otherwise be drawn to fintechs or non-traditional lending platforms.
In terms of competitive dynamics, the big incumbents have advantages in scale and distribution, but Equitable’s digital-first architecture offers speed-to-market and flexibility that are more challenging to achieve at larger institutions. The bank’s investments in technology, risk management, and customer experience are designed to offset any scale disadvantages through operational efficiency and superior user experience. The Levy partnership, while a high-profile marketing initiative, serves a broader strategic purpose: it introduces EQ Bank to a wider audience and reinforces the bank’s image as an innovative and customer-centric digital bank. The brand-building elements complement the bank’s product portfolio and risk controls, enabling a more integrated approach to attracting and retaining clients in a rapidly changing financial services landscape.
Strategically, Equitable also seeks to differentiate itself by focusing on underserved or specialized segments. For self-employed borrowers, the bank touts its proven underwriting capabilities and tailored financing solutions, which can address a segment that traditionally faces more hurdles in securing conventional financing. For seniors, the reverse-mortgage offering represents a niche with potential for growth as interest rates evolve and retirement planning considerations become more salient. These strategic bets align with a broader objective to diversify the loan book and to provide products that address evolving consumer needs. By combining a strong digital platform, a differentiated brand, and targeted product strategies, Equitable is pursuing a path to sustainable growth that stacks up favorably against larger incumbents, particularly in segments where it has established competencies and a track record of performance.
Overall, the competitive positioning narrative underscores the bank’s commitment to a multi-pronged growth strategy: strengthen digital leadership, leverage brand partnerships to extend reach, diversify lending portfolios to reduce concentration risk, and pursue products that align with demographic and market trends. The combination of a record-breaking year, a robust digital platform, and a strategic focus on niche lending and open banking readiness positions Equitable as a distinctive player capable of capitalizing on evolving consumer behavior and regulatory landscapes. The roadmap forward emphasizes disciplined execution, continuous investment in technology and risk controls, and an emphasis on delivering tangible value to customers in a rapidly evolving financial services environment.
Tariffs, Immigration Policy, and Macroeconomic Uncertainty
The discussion of macroeconomic factors in Moor’s conversations with Financial Post touches on policy developments that could influence the economic environment in which Equitable operates. While there was no definitive conclusion about the ultimate impact of Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs, Moor acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding tariffs and their potential implications for Canada’s economic outlook. He suggested that it is difficult to imagine tariffs adversely affecting critical Canadian exports, such as oil, at a magnitude that would slam the economy, but the uncertainty remains a variable for forecasting and strategy. This recognition of policy volatility demonstrates a pragmatic approach to risk assessment, acknowledging potential downside scenarios without overreacting to uncertain headlines.
In parallel, immigration policy and housing supply considerations continue to shape Equitable’s operating environment. Immigration remains a significant driver of housing demand, and the government’s policy stance on immigration targets continues to influence market dynamics. An important takeaway is that immigration trends intersect with the housing market’s supply constraints, influencing demand patterns for mortgage products and other housing-related financing. Equitable’s leadership emphasizes that changes in immigration policy or housing supply could alter the volume and composition of lending opportunities, underscoring the need for a diversified product mix and flexible underwriting approaches. The bank’s emphasis on self-employed lending and reverse mortgages reflects an intent to capture opportunities across a broader spectrum of housing-related finance, enabling resilience in the face of shifting immigration and housing cycles.
In this context, open banking emerges as a potential catalyst for consumer empowerment and competition, even as the policy framework remains under development. Moor’s comments reflect a belief that open banking will eventually deliver tangible benefits to Canadians by enabling better credit access, pricing, and financial management tools. The interplay between regulatory progress, macroeconomic factors, and consumer demand will shape the speed and direction of Equitable’s growth. The bank’s leadership signals willingness to adapt its strategy as policy environments evolve, while maintaining a focus on risk governance and customer value. The macroeconomic uncertainties—tariffs, immigration flows, housing supply, and interest-rate trajectories—will require continued vigilance and agility from Equitable as it navigates a shifting external environment while pursuing its growth objectives.
Growth Levers: Innovation, Self-Employed Lending, and Open Banking Readiness
Equitable’s growth approach is anchored in a blend of innovation, diversified lending, and readiness for future regulatory regimes. The bank emphasizes its strong franchises in self-employed lending as a core growth engine. Self-employed borrowers often present a more complex underwriting profile, requiring alternative documentation, cash-flow analysis, and nuanced risk assessment. Equitable has developed capabilities in underwriting and servicing this segment that differentiate it from traditional lenders, enabling it to tap demand from a growing pool of entrepreneurs and independent professionals seeking financing for home purchases, business expansion, or personal needs. The bank’s approach to self-employed lending aligns with its broader digital strategy, which prioritizes streamlined application processes, faster decisioning, and transparent terms.
Another growth lever lies in housing-related products beyond conventional mortgages. Equitable’s reverse mortgage offering for Canadian seniors represents a distinctive option for liquidity and retirement planning. In a low-rate environment, such products can be attractive and competitive, expanding the bank’s footprint in a market segment that is often underserved by traditional lenders. The bank’s product development in this area could help diversify risk by adding assets with different cash-flow characteristics to the loan portfolio. The objective is to maintain a balanced mix that supports stable earnings and risk-adjusted returns, even as market conditions shift. These initiatives collectively contribute to the bank’s ability to grow deposits, attract borrowers, and increase cross-selling across product lines, reinforcing the long-term strategy to become a more comprehensive, digital-first financial services platform.
Open banking readiness is another critical growth lever with both short- and long-term benefits. The bank’s readiness for data-sharing and interoperability will enable more seamless customer experiences, improved risk profiling, and the potential for new product innovations. While the regulatory timetable remains a factor, Equitable’s investments in data governance, privacy protections, and secure API architecture position it to accelerate product development as soon as the regulatory framework allows. The inclusion of customer consent management, robust fraud prevention, and transparent data usage policies will be essential to gaining consumer trust and maximizing the value of open banking for both customers and the bank. Together, these growth levers—self-employed lending, reverse mortgages, digital platform expansion, and open banking readiness—create a multi-pronged strategy designed to sustain revenue growth, deepen customer relationships, and improve overall profitability in the face of evolving macroeconomic conditions.
Conclusion
Equitable Bank’s 2024 performance embodies a strategic synthesis of strong financial results, brand elevation through notable partnerships, and a forward-looking agenda centered on digital leadership and policy-driven opportunities. Achieving revenue over $1 billion for the first time, expanding its EQ Bank customer base beyond half a million, and growing deposits beyond $9 billion signal a robust foundation for growth. The Levy partnership represents more than a marketing push; it is a strategic signal of the bank’s ambition to redefine its presence in a market historically dominated by larger incumbents. The emphasis on open banking readiness, coupled with an expedited focus on underserved lending segments such as self-employed borrowers and seniors seeking reverse mortgages, underscores a diversified path to sustained profitability and market differentiation.
Looking to 2025 and beyond, Equitable’s leadership sees a favorable yet nuanced macroeconomic backdrop: lower interest rates, improving housing activity, and a continued evolution in immigration dynamics that will influence housing demand. The bank’s approach—reliable risk management, strategic diversification, and customer-centric digital innovation—positions it to navigate potential headwinds while capitalizing on growth opportunities. The challenges surrounding open banking implementation, regulatory timelines, and potential external shocks remain integral to strategic planning, but Equitable’s readiness and disciplined approach offer a framework for resilience and growth.
In all, Equitable Bank’s 2024 trajectory—anchored by profitability, scale in digital banking, and a strategic focus on future-ready products and policy contexts—paints a picture of a mid-sized bank expanding its footprint with clarity, purpose, and a commitment to sustainable, customer-focused growth. As the financial services landscape continues to evolve—with ongoing regulatory developments, macroeconomic shifts, and technology-driven innovations—Equitable’s integrated strategy will be tested and refined. The bank’s ability to balance growth with prudent risk management, to harness digital transformation, and to respond effectively to policy developments will determine its trajectory in the competitive Canadian banking environment.