Canadian Association of Financial Institutions in Insurance

What Canadian Association of Financial Institutions in Insurance does

The Canadian Association of Financial Institutions in Insurance (CAFII) is a Toronto-based not-for-profit industry association founded in 1997 to represent financial institutions that distribute insurance products in Canada. Its membership comprises major Canadian banks (BMO Insurance, CIBC Insurance, Desjardins Financial Security, RBC Insurance, ScotiaLife Financial, TD Insurance), leading insurers (Manulife, Canada Life, American Express Bank Canada, Assurant), and regional/specialty institutions (Canadian Tire Bank, Chubb Life Insurance Company of Canada, Canadian Western Bank), with new members added through 2024. The association's stated purpose is to foster an open and flexible insurance marketplace in which consumers can access insurance through diverse distribution channels including client contact centres, agents and brokers, travel agents, direct mail, branches of financial institutions, and the internet.

CAFII delivers value through three principal activities: (i) regulatory advocacy engaging provincial and federal regulators on insurance legislation and policy affecting creditor, travel, and related distribution; (ii) commissioning objective third-party research through partners such as Pollara Strategic Insights, Deloitte Canada, and LIMRA on consumer behaviour, digital transformation, and industry trends; and (iii) consumer education via a bilingual consumer-facing website (cafii.com, launched 2017), animated explainer videos covering 15+ insurance product categories, an annual webinar series, and media relations. The association is governed by a Board of Directors with rotating chair positions drawn from senior executives at member institutions, currently chaired by Julie Gaudry of RBC Insurance with Keith Martin serving as Executive Director following Brendan Wycks' 2012-2024 tenure.

CAFII is funded entirely by membership dues from its member institutions; it does not sell products, charge consumer fees, or monetize the consumer website. Operating with a small professional staff (1-10 employees) out of 411 Richmond Street East in Toronto, the association functions as an industry coordination body rather than a commercial enterprise, and accordingly has no funding rounds, no subsidiaries, no M&A history, and no venture-style growth metrics.

Name

Canadian Association of Financial Institutions in Insurance

Legal name

Canadian Association of Financial Institutions in Insurance

Website

https://cafii.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Canadian Association of Financial Institutions in Insurance (CAFII) is a Toronto-based not-for-profit industry association, founded 1997, that represents major Canadian banks and insurers distributing creditor and travel insurance, advocating for an open insurance marketplace through regulatory engagement, third-party research, and consumer education.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: CAFII is a not-for-profit industry association that generates revenue through membership dues paid by financial institutions including banks, insurance companies, and credit unions that sell insurance products through various distribution channels.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

CAFII is a not-for-profit industry association that represents Canadian financial institutions involved in selling insurance through multiple distribution channels including client contact centres, agents and brokers, travel agents, direct mail, branches of financial institutions, and the internet. It delivers consumer education resources, commissions objective third-party research, and conducts regulatory advocacy to promote an open and flexible insurance marketplace in Canada.

Product overview

CAFII is a not-for-profit industry association, not a product company. It does not offer its own commercial products or services. Rather, it provides consumer education resources about insurance products available through its member financial institutions, including credit protection insurance, travel insurance, mortgage insurance, and related products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Consumer Insurance Education Resources
• Industry Research and Insights
• Industry Webinars and Events

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Canadian Western BankcoreOthers · 23 April 2024Canadian Western Bank joined CAFII as a new member, representing the association's continued growth and expansion of member financial institutions.
• Chubb Life Insurance Company of CanadacoreOthers · 27 February 2023Chubb Life Insurance Company of Canada joined CAFII as a new member, expanding the association's representation of the Canadian insurance industry.
• Canadian Tire BankcoreOthers · 8 July 2021Canadian Tire Bank joined CAFII as a new member, with Adam Vesp as the representative on the Board of Directors.
• Canada Life Assurance CompanycoreOthers · 30 April 2018Canada Life joined CAFII as a new member with David Fear, Senior Vice-President, Creditor Insurance, appointed to CAFII's Board of Directors. Canada Life, together with Great-West Life and London Life, serves the financial security needs of 13 million people across Canada. The addition strengthened CAFII's representation of major Canadian insurance providers.
• Manulife (The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company)coreOthers · 16 April 2018Manulife became a CAFII member with Wally Thompson, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Consumer Markets, joining the Board of Directors. Manulife is a leading international financial services group serving one in three Canadians. Manulife was the first of the three Canadian insurance giants to join CAFII.
• Pollara Strategic InsightscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCAFII regularly commissions objective third-party research through Pollara Strategic Insights on key insurance issues impacting Canadians, including credit protection insurance and travel insurance consumer satisfaction studies.
• Deloitte CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCAFII collaborates with Deloitte Canada on research examining challenges and opportunities in the credit protection insurance industry, including digital transformation, consumer expectations, and best practices for insurance modernization.
• LIMRAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCAFII commissioned LIMRA to conduct research on creditor life insurance coverage among Canadian homeowners, revealing gaps in protection and financial vulnerability of mortgage holders.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• LIMRA: Global research and consulting organization for the insurance and financial services industry; comparable as a research partner serving insurance trade bodies, and already engaged with CAFII on creditor insurance research.

Regional players

• Canadian Insurance Services Regulatory Organizations: Council of provincial and territorial insurance regulators in Canada; comparable because it operates alongside CAFII in the Canadian insurance regulatory ecosystem, though as a regulator-coordinating body rather than an industry advocacy association.
• Insurance Europe: European insurance industry federation; comparable to CAFII as a continental insurance trade association, though operating across European markets rather than focusing on bank-distributed insurance in a single country.

Direct peers

• Insurance Bureau of Canada: Canada's primary industry association for property and casualty insurers; directly comparable as a national trade association representing insurers, but with a broader P&C mandate rather than CAFII's creditor/travel distribution focus.
• Insurance Brokers Association of Canada: National association for insurance brokers in Canada; comparable as a Canadian insurance trade body, though representing brokers rather than financial-institution distributors of insurance.
• Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association: National trade association representing Canadian life and health insurers; comparable to CAFII as a membership-based advocacy body, though focused on life/health insurers rather than financial-institution-distributed insurance products.

Broad incumbents

• Association of British Insurers: UK trade association for the insurance and long-term savings industry; comparable to CAFII as a national insurance advocacy body, though covering the full UK insurance market rather than financial-institution distribution channels specifically.
• American Council of Life Insurers: US trade association representing life insurers; comparable to CAFII as a national life insurance advocacy organization, though substantially larger and operating in the US market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@cafii
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/canadian-association-of-financial-institutions-in-insurance

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Canadian Association of Financial Institutions in Insurance