Wealth One Bank of Canada

Wealth One was established with $50 million from four key investors. Its principal goal is to get deposits from Chinese Canadians and provide mortgages.[1] It offers a range of personal and business banking services.

Wealth One Bank of Canada received the Letters Patent on July 22, 2015 from Canada's Minister of Finance, is a federally chartered Schedule I Bank under the Bank Act, and is regulated by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI).

The bank is a member of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Its Chief Executive Officer and president is Charles Lambert, had worked at the Royal Bank of Canada and the Bank of Nova Scotia.[2]

The bank was founded by Shenglin Xian, who is also a chief investor. According to Lambert, Xuan's "... view was that there were some opportunities to be able to service the Canadian Chinese community in a culturally sensitive way, by understanding their culture and being able to speak the language...." Xian attracted other investors, including Yuansheng Ou Yang and Mao Hua Chen, who became directors of the bank.[3]

On November 24, 2016, The Globe and Mail reported that the founder and a chief investor of the new bank, Shenglin Xian, was fined for mishandling client insurance claims and faced allegations that he persuaded Chinese immigrants to buy expensive insurance policies they could not afford. The Globe also reported that another key investor, grocery entrepreneur Yuansheng Ou Yang who is a director of the bank, misrepresented his credentials on the bank's website. It claimed he had served as a member of the National People's Congress, which is the parliament of the People's Republic of China, and the People's Political Consultative Conference, a political advisory board to the Chinese government. Four of the directors of the bank, including the chairman and chief executive, acknowledged the website information was incorrect.

On November 28, 2016, WOBC responded to The Globe and Mail, pointing out that

"like every other Schedule 1 bank in Canada, WOBC had to go through an exacting and rigorous process under the Bank Act and OSFI. It's one of the toughest processes in the world. And it's the key reason why the Canadian banking system is so highly regarded internationally. We're very proud of the fact that WOBC met those stringent standards. Far from 'murky', WOBC submitted itself to unrelenting and intense scrutiny and complete transparency – and we more than met the test."

The WOBC letter pointed out that all the regulatory conditions that the bank was required to meet were set during the mandate of the previous (Harper) government.

• www.wealthonebankofcanada.com