It cuts both ways. In the past, the smaller number of Canadian banks made it easier for them to push common payment projects, albeit ones that don't challenge t

It cuts both ways. In the past, the smaller number of Canadian banks made it easier for them to push common payment projects, albeit ones that don't challenge their business model. For example, debit cards were in common use in Canada at least ten years before they started to appear in the US. I would visit the US in the late 90s, and it always struck me as anachronistic how many people were still paying for everyday purchases with checks. I doubt any Canadian store has accepted personal checks in more than a decade. It hasn't been until recently that Americans seemed to catch up with Canada in debit card use.