The federal government has appointed Gina Byrne as acting president and chief executive of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation and named Martin Glynn chair of its board, sharpening CDIC’s leadership at a time of heightened attention on depositor protection.
Byrne’s appointment takes effect Oct. 1, 2025, while Glynn begins a five-year term as chair. The announcement came from Minister of Finance and National Revenue François-Philippe Champagne in Ottawa on Sept. 8.
The minister thanked outgoing president and CEO Leah Anderson, who has led the agency since 2023, and Robert Sanderson, who served as chair for nine years.
The government framed the changes as part of its standard Governor-in-Council process for selecting qualified candidates.
CDIC, a federal Crown corporation, insures deposits up to 100,000 Canadian dollars per depositor for each of nine account categories at its member institutions and serves as resolution authority for those firms.
According to the government, its coverage fully insures about 95% of eligible deposit accounts.
Byrne steps in after nearly two decades inside CDIC. She served this year as chief operating officer and previously led Member Risk and Resolution, the unit that plans for and manages interventions when a bank fails.
Before joining CDIC in 2007, she worked in accounting and audit roles at KPMG and MD Management. She holds an MBA from Dalhousie University, an honors bachelor’s degree from Wilfrid Laurier University, and is a Chartered Accountant.
Those credentials suggest continuity in the insurer’s technical and operational approach as it advances resolution planning and depositor outreach.
Glynn brings a different vantage point from a long career in banking and institutional governance.
He previously served as president and CEO of HSBC Bank Canada, then of HSBC Bank USA, and has chaired the board of PSP Investments, one of Canada’s largest pension managers.
He has also held directorships at major Canadian companies and roles in academic and investment advisory settings.
His appointment gives CDIC a chair steeped in both bank management and oversight, experience that tends to matter most when markets turn volatile or when the agency must steer complex resolutions.
Ottawa is in the middle of a formal review of the federal deposit insurance framework, including a public consultation launched July 22 that seeks feedback on potential changes to scope and coverage.
The Department of Finance says the review is intended to ensure the system continues to serve depositors and promote financial stability as banking evolves.
CDIC has separately been updating disclosure rules to help consumers understand what is and is not insured.
Leadership choices during a review can shape how policy translates into practice, from how premiums are assessed to how swiftly insured funds are paid when a member institution fails.
CDIC coverage is set at $100,000 per depositor per category at each member institution. Categories range from individual and joint accounts to registered plans like RRSPs and TFSAs.
The government estimates that level fully insures the vast majority of Canadian depositors. What often surprises people is how those categories can be combined to increase effective protection across accounts and institutions.
The agency’s calculator shows how coverage stacks, and it has stressed the importance of keeping beneficiaries and trust records up to date so payouts are not delayed in a failure.
Byrne’s resolution background aligns with CDIC’s core mission of protecting depositors and preparing for stress events.
Glynn’s boardroom and bank leadership experience may resonate with industry as CDIC refines expectations for member institutions, including data readiness and client disclosure.
The current cycle of by-law and guidance updates underscores that push, from premium methodologies to how deposit insurance information is presented to customers.
The combination of an internal operator and an external veteran could streamline decision-making if conditions deteriorate or if Ottawa’s review results in technical changes to coverage.
Canada’s deposit system has not faced a major retail bank failure in decades, but last year’s banking shocks abroad and the pace of financial product innovation have kept regulators focused on confidence.
The government’s reminder that roughly 95% of eligible accounts are fully insured is meant to anchor expectations before any stress event.
With a new chair and an acting CEO in place, CDIC will be tasked with turning the policy review’s findings into clear guidance for banks and clear information for savers.
The handoff from Anderson and Sanderson to Byrne and Glynn aims to keep that work on track.
