Canadian banks - regulations may have saved them

The Galloping Beaver: Mr. Dithers may have saved the Canadian banks

It should come as no surprize then that suddenly the so-called over-regulated Canadian banking system is the envy of the global consumer banking sector and considered one of the most stable in the world. In fact, when Canadian banks have attracted the attention of the editor of Newsweek International, Fareed Zakaria, you might say they're a force to be reckoned with because they're so well regulated.

Canadian banks are well capitalized and poised to take advantage of opportunities that American and European banks cannot seize. The Toronto Dominion Bank, for example, was the 15th-largest bank in North America one year ago. Now it is the fifth-largest. It hasn't grown in size; the others have all shrunk.