Originally established as Alberta Treasury Branches in 1938, ATB Financial operates only in Alberta and provides financial services to over 800,000 Albertan residents and businesses. It is the largest public bank in North America and Alberta’s largest financial institution based in the province.[3][4][5] Headquartered in Edmonton, ATB Financial has over 5000 employees.
ATB is not a chartered bank, meaning it is not regulated by the Canadian federal government under the Bank Act and associated regulations. ATB is instead regulated entirely by the Government of Alberta under the authority of the ATB Financial Act and associated regulations;[6][7] the legislation is modeled on the statutes, regulations, and guidelines which govern banks and other federally chartered financial institutions. ATB is not a member of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation or Alberta's provincial Credit Union Deposit Guarantee Corporation; deposits are instead fully guaranteed by the Government of Alberta itself.[8][9] ATB Financial is one of fifteen financial institutions that participates in Canada's Large Value Transfer System.
The Alberta Treasury Branches were created by the Social Credit government of Premier William Aberhart in 1938, with its roots dating back to political unrest in 1917 arising from the unmet credit demands of the West.[10] Prior to ATB Financial's formation, Aberhart and Social Credit swept into power in the 1935 Alberta election in a wave of unrest following scandals surrounding the United Farmers Premier John Edward Brownlee. Aberhart's government sought radical monetary reform in a province which was devastated by the Great Depression, as well as greater economic autonomy from both the federal government and financial institutions based largely in Toronto and Montréal.[10]
However, in two years Aberhart's government failed to bring forward promised reforms, which resulted in a backbencher revolt forcing the government to pass three pieces of controversial financial reform acts. Credit of Alberta Regulation Act required all bankers to obtain a licence from the Social Credit Commission, Bank Employees Civil Rights Act prevented unlicensed banks and their employees from initiating civil actions, and Judicature Act Amendment Act prevented any person from challenging the constitutionality of Alberta's laws in court without receiving the approval of the Lieutenant-Governor in Council.[11] In August 1937, the federal government disallowed all three acts. The Supreme Court of Canada, in answering reference questions posed by the federal government, unanimously ruled that such disallowance was valid.[12]
Aberhart returned with three new bills, Bank Taxation Act (Bill 1) levying provincial taxes on banks' paid-up capital and reserve funds at punitive rates, Credit of Alberta Regulation Act, 1937 (Bill 8) similar to the previous disallowed act, but covering all "credit institutions", and Accurate News and Information Act (Bill 9) requiring newspapers to print "clarifications" of stories considered inaccurate by the Social Credit Board, and to reveal their sources on demand, and also authorizing the provincial government to prohibit the publication of any newspaper, any article by a given writer, or any article making use of a given source. All three bills were reserved by Lieutenant Governor John C. Bowen, and the federal government posed the reference questions to the Supreme Court. In Reference Re Alberta Statutes the Supreme Court ruled all three bills as ultra vires.[13]
Formation
Aberhart sought to create a State Credit House which facilitated some banking services in small communities where larger banks had previously closed. Subsequently, the Aberhart government created the Alberta Treasury Branches through a series of Orders in Council in late-August and early-September 1938,[14] following the judicial defeat of the Social Credit monetary reforms at the Supreme Court. The Aberhart government authorized the Treasury Department to establish "branches of the provincial treasury" and with $200,000 of provincial funds as capital the first Alberta Treasury Branch was opened in Rocky Mountain House on September 29, 1938, followed by branches in Edmonton, Andrew, Grande Prairie, Killam, and St. Paul which opened the next day.[15][16][17] The first employees of the Treasury Branches were provincial civil servants with previous banking experience, many of whom were transferred from the Treasury Department's Sales Tax Branch following the abolishment of the provincial sales tax.[18] Besides banking, the Treasury Branches served as government offices and propaganda centres.[13]
The Aberhart government was able to utilize the Treasury Branches to operate the "Interim Program", which was an attempt to provide the citizen's dividend promised by the Social Credit government in 1935. The Interim Program's name indicated the temporary nature of the program, which would remain in place until a complete system of Social Credit could be established in Alberta.[19] Under the interim program, the Treasury Branches issued non-negotiable transfer vouchers in place of regular currency that could be redeemed at participating merchants in the province. Consumers who purchased goods from participating merchants that were partially produced in Alberta would earn a "bonus" in their account of up to three per cent, the full bonus (in the form of transfer vouchers) being earned if one-third of a consumers aggregate monthly purchases were "Alberta-made".[16][20][21] The one-third Alberta-made program was generally ineffective in increasing domestic market demand as it was easy for consumers to meet the low threshold over the period of one month. [22] In response, the threshold on Alberta-made products was raised to one-half in February 1941.[23]
Transfer vouchers could also be used for payments to the provincial government, including taxes, licence fees, and other provincial debts.[24] The transfer voucher system worked considerably better than the previous attempt to issue a citizen's dividend in the form of prosperity certificates in 1936.[25]
The Treasury Branches proved popular amongst Albertans, resulting in the government establishing 22 branches and 270 branch agencies by June 1939.[26] The Treasury Branches were first authorized to provide loans in 1941 to be approved under a centralized "loan committee" overseen by the Treasury Branches Superintendent.[27] Expanding into lending services was necessary to gain a stronger presence in retail areas, as many merchants who operate with the Treasury Branches also maintained a separate account at another bank to ensure access to credit.[28]
The only services provided up to 1943 were term savings accounts at 1.5 to 3 per cent interest, and the sale of automobile, hunting and fishing licences. Furthermore, the government charged consumers a two per cent penalty on cash withdrawals to continue to incentivize Albertans to use non-negotiable transfer vouchers to ensure capital did not flow out of the branches.[29] Merchants were provided a means to withdraw a certain amount of cash without being charged a penalty in order to replace goods sold for vouchers. A formula was developed to determine the "basic rate", the amount of cash the merchant could withdraw without penalty by taking the merchant's annual profit margin as a percentage and subtracting it from 100 per cent (i.e. 10% margin less 100% means 90% of the balance is available to be withdrawn without penalty).[30] The calculation basic rate system was deemed cumbersome and replaced in February 1941 with a centralized list compiled by the Department of Industries and Labour, based on the type of products and services sold and the location of the business.[31] By early 1942 there were over 7,125 merchants enrolled under the interim program.[32]
Government employees were partially paid with Treasury Branch vouchers, with single employees, widows and widowers receiving 15 per cent of their salary in voucher form. Married employees were paid between 15 and 25 per cent of their salary in vouchers, and the calculation was made after all deductions. This policy encouraged employees to use the service instead of other banks.[33][34] The bonus system ceased in April 1945 and a contingency of $480,738 was paid out of the province's general revenue fund to a reserve fund for the purpose of covering the cumulative earned bonuses during the program.[35]
The Treasury Branches proved to be successful as deposits grew to $24-million by 1946,[36] and by 1950 there were 45 Treasury Branches, six sub-branches, and 110 agencies employing 331 staff.[37]
Changes in 1950s and 1960s
During the 1955 Alberta election the Treasury Branches came under scrutiny for allegations of preferential treatment for loans to members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs), as well as preferential contracts awarded to firms indebted to the provincial government.[38] The Treasury Branches provided significant loans to a handful of road construction companies, with the firm Sparling-Davis provided $4.5-million in loans, which was more than 20 per cent of the Treasury Branches overall loans.[39] Premier Ernest Manning reluctantly approved a Royal Commission to look into the lending practices of the Treasury Branches the day before the 1955 election, the commission was led by Hugh John Macdonald and James Mahaffy.[38] The commission was provided with narrow terms of reference and found there was no evidence of maladministration or wrongdoing by the government or the Treasury Branches.[39][40][41][42] Prior to the formation of the commission the government responded to the allegations by introducing a bill in 1955 which prevented MLAs from borrowing from the Treasury Branches.[43]
The 1967 Royal Commission on Banking and Finance led by Justice Dana Porter recommended that a deposit insurance scheme be implemented for Canadian banks. Subsequently, in 1969 the 16th Alberta Legislature passed The Treasury Branch Deposits Guarantee Act which provided a provincial guarantee for the deposits of the Treasury Branches.[44]
Oil and gas boom and bust
The Alberta economy grew significantly in the 1970s and early 1980s due to the rising price of oil. Total loans issued by the Treasury Branches grew from $10.6-million in 1950 to $1.9-billion by 1981.[44]
However, despite significant growth, prosperity would not last forever. All Alberta industries suffered in the early 1980s owing to high interest rates, low world commodity prices, and the National Energy Program. The Treasury Branches were no exception, posting the first of six consecutive years of losses in 1983.[45] Other regional financial institutions suffered at this time with the collapse of the Canadian Commercial Bank and the Northland Bank in 1985.[46][47] By 1989 the Treasury Branches had an accumulated deficit of CA$150 million.[45]
ATB was the subject of scandal in the late 1980s after clients such as Peter Pocklington's Gainers Foods[48][49] and the Ghermezian Brothers' West Edmonton Mall defaulted on loans.
The Treasury Branches did begin to innovate in the early 1980s as well, joining the Canadian Payments Association in 1983 allowed the institution to clear cheques, and the Branches developed an interest rate shielding policy for agricultural customers and delivered special payments on behalf of the government's residential mortgage loan program.[50] In 1984 the Treasury Branches offered US dollar savings accounts in partnership with Citibank.[50]Automated teller machines were introduced in 1989 and in 1990 the Treasury Branches became the first Canadian financial institution to offer telephone banking services.[50][51]
In the 1990s, the government reformed Alberta Treasury Branches with the intention of transforming it into a financial institution that could compete with Canadian chartered banks. Public trust was eroded during the 1980s and 1990s as high-risk loans with political motivations eroded the Treasury Branches financial footing, including a $100-million loss in 1996.[52]
By 1994, there were 142 Treasury Branches, 125 agencies, 3,000 staff and 80 automated teller machines in Alberta. The Klein government appointed Gordon Flynn to review the Treasury Branches operations, Flynn recommended a number of changes including greater autonomy, financial accountability measures and the appointment of a Board of Directors.[53] Flynn's recommendations were reviewed by a working group chaired by former federal finance minister Don Mazankowski, which provided nine further recommendations for the operations of ATB. Mazankowski recommended the government articulate the public policy goals and benchmarks for the institution, ATB must operate at an arms-length from the government, operate under a board of directors, be provided equal treatment against other private sector banks, modernized to allow ATB to compete with modern banks, offer new and in demand financial services and products, deliver programs with a for profit emphasis, remain cost conscious and profit motivated, and be subject to an accountability regime similar to the private sector.[54]
Provincial Treasurer Jim Dinning quickly introduced legislation to create an independent board of directors made up of government appointees was established in 1996 and ATB formally became an autonomous provincial Crown corporation on October 8, 1997.[52][54] The government also appointed former Metropolitan Life CEO Paul Haggis as the new superintendent of ATB in 1996.[55]
2000s to present
The Alberta Treasury Branches rebranded in January 2002 as ATB Financial in an effort to gain stronger brand recognition in urban areas such as Calgary and Edmonton. By 2002 ATB Financial controlled 15 per cent of the province's retail banking, but lagged in the cities with seven per cent in Calgary and eight per cent in Edmonton.[56] The official change of name for the crown corporation did not occur until 2017.[6]
ATB was not immune to the 2008 financial crisis, when over $1.2-billion of non-bank sponsored asset-backed commercial paper became illiquid. The financial crisis resulted in special provisions for credit loss of $253-million and $225-million in 2008 and 2009. Alberta's Auditor-General noted that inappropriate incentives may have been to blame for insufficient due diligence on for the losing securities.[57] The Progressive Conservative government responded in July 2009 when Finance Minister Iris Evans announced a number of government programs to strengthen ATB's balance sheet including providing $600-million in notational capital, and changes to requirements for capital adequacy test.[57]
In 2015, the New Democratic government capitalized ATB Financial with an additional $1.5-billion to promote lending access to small and medium-sized businesses.[58] In 2021 Fast Company named ATB Financial one its 100 Best Workplaces for Innovators[59] in the International category. Based in Calgary, it had a three-year-old incubator, ATB Ventures.[60]
Controversies
West Edmonton Mall scandal
In 1998 ATB filed a lawsuit against the former acting superintendent of the bank and the Ghermezian family alleging the family bribed the official to issue a commercially unreasonable loan guarantee for West Edmonton Mall. The $65-million, 30-year loan in question was issued at no interest, and fully guaranteed a $353.5-million loan provided by Toronto Dominion Bank, both occurring on October 31, 1994. The loan agreement also provided unusual concessions such as allowing dividends to continue to be paid, prevents ATB from initiating foreclosure proceedings for 20 years and included a lease that allowed the Ghermezian family the right to manage the mall for 99 years.[61] The former superintendent claimed the financing occurred on the orders of Premier Ralph Klein and other provincial politicians, although a probe by the auditor general found no evidence of government direction. The lawsuit was settled in December 2002, with details of the settlement remaining private.[62]
Privatization
Throughout its history ATB Financial has remained a prominent candidate for proponents of privatization in Alberta. Under Premier Ralph Klein the Government of Alberta moved to privatize government corporations and services. The Klein mantra of "getting government out of the business of business" applied to several government owned businesses that competed against similar private companies. ATB as a financial institution competed against chartered banks and credit unions, making it prime target for privatization.[54] The government review led by Gordon Flynn recommended privatization; however, support from the Progressive Conservative rural caucus,[55] and the ongoing and high-profile West Edmonton Mall lawsuit in the late 1990s created significant uncertainty for the value of ATB, scuttling any plans for privatization.[63]
In its 2018 report, the Parkland Institute argued against privatization of ATB Financial noting the policy implications available to the Government of Alberta through a fully government controlled financial institution. The Parkland Institute argued ATB could be used to provide low cost financing to Albertans, financing social housing, financing climate change goals, purchasing government debt and providing for agricultural growth.[64] The Parkland Institute further argues against privatization due to the vast network of rural and remote branches ATB operates, which would not be financially viable for a traditional bank without a similar mandate.[65]
In March 2019, Finance Minister Joe Ceci revealed the Government of Alberta had received a detailed offer from Scotiabank to purchase ATB Financial; however, the amount offered to privatize ATB was not provided by Ceci.[66]
Financials
As of May 24, 2018, ATB reported assets of $51.9 billion, deposits of $32.7 billion, loans of $44.1 billion, and a net income of $274.6 million.[67]
ATB Branch, Edmonton.
Awards
In 2017, ATB Financial was named second best workplace in all of Canada by Great Place to Work.[68]
In 2015, ATB Financial was named one of Alberta's Top Employers by Mediacorp Canada Inc.[69]
Ranked 4 of Canada's Top 50 Best Workplaces, Large and Multinational in 2016.[70]
Received two governance awards from the Canadian Society of Corporate Secretaries in 2014.[71]
Awarded Outstanding Corporation award in the Edmonton Philanthropy Day celebrations.[citation needed]
ATB Financial won the People's Choice Award for Alberta BoostR at the 2014 North America Corporate Entrepreneur Awards[72]
The economy of Alberta is the sum of all economic activity in Alberta, Canada's fourth largest province by population. Alberta's GDP in 2018 was CDN$338.2 billion.
Ernest Charles Manning was a Canadian politician and the eighth premier of Alberta between 1943 and 1968 for the Social Credit Party of Alberta. He served longer than any other premier in the province's history and was the second longest-serving provincial premier in Canadian history.
William Aberhart, also known as "Bible Bill" for his radio sermons about the Bible, was a Canadian politician and the seventh premier of Alberta from 1935 to his death in 1943. He was the founder and first leader of the Alberta Social Credit Party, which believed the Great Depression was caused by ordinary people not having enough to spend. Therefore, Aberhart argued that the government should give each Albertan $25 per month to spend to stimulate the economy, by providing needed purchasing power to allow needy customers to buy from waiting businesses.
Richard Gavin "Dick" Reid was a Canadian politician who served as the sixth premier of Alberta from 1934 to 1935. He was the last member of the United Farmers of Alberta (UFA) to hold the office, and that party's defeat at the hands of the upstart Social Credit League in the 1935 election made him the shortest serving premier to that point in Alberta's history.
Alberta Social Credit was a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada, that was founded on social credit monetary policy put forward by Clifford Hugh Douglas and on conservative Christian social values. The Canadian social credit movement was largely an out-growth of Alberta Social Credit. The Social Credit Party of Canada was strongest in Alberta, before developing a base in Quebec when Réal Caouette agreed to merge his Ralliement créditiste movement into the federal party. The British Columbia Social Credit Party formed the government for many years in neighbouring British Columbia, although this was effectively a coalition of centre-right forces in the province that had no interest in social credit monetary policies.
John Campbell Bowen was a clergyman, insurance broker and long serving politician. He served as an alderman in the City of Edmonton and went on to serve as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1921 to 1926, sitting with the Liberal caucus in opposition. He also briefly led the provincial Liberal party in 1926.
Big Five is the name colloquially given to the five largest banks that dominate the banking industry of Canada: Bank of Montreal (BMO), Scotiabank, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), and Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD).
In 1936, the Alberta Social Credit Party-led government of the Province of Alberta, Canada, introduced prosperity certificates in an attempt to alleviate the effects of the Great Depression. Premier William Aberhart's government had won power in the 1935 provincial election partly on the scheme.
The Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation is a Canadian federal Crown Corporation created by Parliament in 1967 to provide deposit insurance to depositors in Canadian commercial banks and savings institutions. CDIC insures Canadians' deposits held at Canadian banks up to C$100,000 in case of a bank failure. CDIC automatically insures many types of savings against the failure of a financial institution. However, the bank must be a CDIC member and not all savings are insured. CDIC is also Canada's resolution authority for banks, federally regulated credit unions, trust and loan companies as well as associations governed by the Cooperative Credit Associations Act that take deposits.
Citibank Canada, operating as Citi Canada, is the Canadian subsidiary of the American multinational financial services corporation Citigroup. Citi Canada is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, with offices in Calgary, London, Ontario, Montreal, Mississauga, and Vancouver.
The 1940 Alberta general election was held on March 21, 1940, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.
The 1944 Alberta general election was held on August 8, 1944 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.
Alberta separatism comprises a series of 20th- and 21st-century movements advocating the secession of the province of Alberta from Canada, either by joining the United States, forming an independent nation or by creating a new union with one or more of Canada's western provinces. The main issues driving separatist sentiment have been the perceived power disparity relative to Ottawa and other provinces, historical grievances with the federal government dating back to the unrealized Province of Buffalo, a sense of distinctiveness with regards to Alberta's unique cultural and political identity, and Canadian fiscal policy, particularly as it pertains to the energy industry.
Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) is a Canadian Crown corporation and institutional investor established to manage several public funds and pensions headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta. AIMCo was established by an act of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta in 2008 under the government of Progressive Conservative Premier Ed Stelmach.
The Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund(HSTF) is a sovereign wealth fund established in 1976 by the Government of Alberta under then-Premier Peter Lougheed. The Heritage Savings Trust Fund was created with three objectives: "to save for the future, to strengthen or diversify the economy, and to improve the quality of life of Albertans." The operations of the Heritage Savings Trust Fund are subject to the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund Act and with the goal of providing "prudent stewardship of the savings from Alberta's non-renewable resources by providing the greatest financial returns on those savings for current and future generations of Albertans." Between 1976 and 1983 the Government of Alberta deposited a portion of oil revenue into the fund. The Heritage Savings Trust Fund used oil revenues to invest for the long term in such areas as health care, education and research and as a way of ensuring that the development of non-renewable resources would be of long-term benefit to Alberta. The strategy and goals of the fund have changed through successive provincial governments which moved away from direct investments in Alberta to a diversified approach, which now includes stocks, bonds, real estate and other ventures.
Bangladesh is a developing country with an impoverished banking system, particularly in terms of the services and customer care provided by the government run banks. In recent times, private banks are trying to imitate the banking structure of the more developed countries, but this attempt is often foiled by inexpert or politically motivated government policies executed by the central bank of Bangladesh, Bangladesh Bank. The outcome is a banking system fostering corruption and illegal monetary activities/laundering etc. by the politically powerful and criminals, while at the same time making the attainment of services or the performance of international transactions difficult for the ordinary citizens, students studying abroad or through distance learning, general customers etc.
John William Hugill was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as Attorney General of Alberta from 1935 until 1937. Born in England, he came to Canada and studied law before setting up a practice in Calgary. He became a prominent resident of that city, and served two years on its city council. In the early 1930s, he was one of the few prominent Calgarians with mainstream respectability to support William Aberhart's Social Credit League. He was elected as a candidate for it in the 1935 provincial election and, when it formed government, was named Attorney General by Aberhart.
The 1937 Social Credit backbenchers' revolt took place from March to June 1937 in the Canadian province of Alberta. It was a rebellion against Premier William Aberhart by a group of backbench members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) from his Social Credit League. The dissidents were unhappy with Aberhart's failure to provide Albertans with CA$25 monthly dividends through social credit as he had promised before his 1935 election. When the government's 1937 budget made no move to implement the dividends, many MLAs revolted openly and threatened to defeat the government in a confidence vote.
The Accurate News and Information Act was a statute passed by the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada, in 1937, at the instigation of William Aberhart's Social Credit government. It would have required newspapers to print "clarifications" of stories that a committee of Social Credit legislators deemed inaccurate, and to reveal their sources on demand.
The Social Credit Board was a committee in Alberta, Canada from 1937 until 1948. Composed of Social Credit backbenchers in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, it was created in the aftermath of the 1937 Social Credit backbenchers' revolt. Its mandate was to oversee the implementation of social credit in Alberta. To this end, it secured the services of L. Dennis Byrne and George Powell, two lieutenants of social credit's British founder, C. H. Douglas.
↑ "O.C. 241/2018". Queen's Printer for Alberta. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
↑ "Financial service providers regulated in Alberta". Alberta.ca. Government of Alberta. Retrieved July 14, 2019. The repayment of money deposited with ATB Financial and interest payable on that money is guaranteed by the Alberta government.
↑ Reference re The Power of the Governor General in Council to Disallow Provincial Legislation and the Power of Reservation of a Lieutenant-Governor of a Province, 1938 CanLII 34, [1938] SCR 71(4 March 1938), Supreme Court (Canada)
Elliott, David R. (2004). "William Aberhart, 1935-1943". In Rennie, Bradford J. (ed.). Alberta Premiers of the Twentieth Century. Regina, Saskatchewan: Canadian Plains Research Center, University of Regina. pp.126–145. ISBN0-88977-151-0.
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Can$1.78 billion (2021) [1] 
Can$55.76 billion (2021) [1] 
