Politics · Canada · 14 hrs ago
Canada’s financial intelligence agency takes months to share information with police
Canada’s financial intelligence agency, FINTRAC, is taking too long to share information with police.
The agency helps detect and deter money laundering and the financing of terrorism.
It took about four months on average to provide intelligence after police flagged concerns.
Half of surveyed recipients said the information arrived too late to help their investigations.
That can make it harder for police to freeze assets, stop transactions or arrest suspects before money is moved or laundered.
The audit said manual data entry and limits in FINTRAC’s computer systems contributed to delays and repeated work.
FINTRAC agreed to speed up its intelligence sharing and modernize its systems.
Canada’s auditor general found that FINTRAC takes an average of about four months to provide financial intelligence to law enforcement after concerns are flagged.
Half of the survey respondents who received the intelligence said it arrived too late to be useful.
The audit said delays and inadequate tools limited FINTRAC’s ability to carry out its role.
Information was entered manually, and the agency’s IT system did not centrally store analysts’ work on networks and connections.
The audit covered Jan. 1, 2023, to the end of February 2026.
- Who
- The Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), Canada’s financial intelligence agency.
- What
- An audit found that delays and inadequate tools hindered FINTRAC’s work providing intelligence to law enforcement.
- When
- The report was tabled on Oct. 29, 2026. The audit covered Jan. 1, 2023, to the end of February 2026.
- Where
- Canada.
- Why
- Manual data entry and limits in FINTRAC’s IT system slowed the work. The audit said the delays limited law enforcement’s ability to act on financial intelligence.
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The audit examined FINTRAC’s work during this period.
The auditor general tabled the report in the House of Commons.
- Average delay
- About four months to provide financial intelligence after law enforcement flagged concerns
- Late information
- Half of survey respondents said it arrived too late to be useful
- Manual data entry
- Took several days to complete
- Audit period
- Jan. 1, 2023, to end of February 2026
- Annual money laundering estimate
- $45 billion to $113 billion in Canada, citing a 2020 estimate
3 sources
What people are saying
half of the respondents said they received this information too late to be useful