Meridian Credit Union Becomes First Provincial Credit Union to Join Payments Canada

Meridian Credit Union, Ontario's largest credit union with 378,000 members and $28.5 billion in assets under administration, became the first provincial credit union to gain full membership in Payments Canada on March 19, 2026. The admission follows amendments to the Canadian Payments Act that received Royal Assent in June 2024 and took effect in September 2025, opening a path for provincially regulated deposit-taking institutions to participate directly in national payment systems.

Payments Canada membership is a prerequisite for qualifying as a direct participant on the organization's clearing and settlement systems, including the Lynx RTGS, the Automated Clearing Settlement System, and the forthcoming Real-Time Rail. Meridian's admission does not immediately grant direct participant status on any system. The credit union must still meet operational, technical, and risk management requirements for each platform individually.

The development matters because Canada's provincial credit unions have until now accessed national payment infrastructure only indirectly, typically through Central 1 Credit Union or their provincial centrals. Direct membership creates an alternative path that could reduce settlement latency and intermediary costs for larger credit unions with sufficient scale to meet participation requirements.

Payments Canada's membership base has expanded steadily since the September 2025 eligibility changes. Five payment service providers joined in January 2026: Wise, Float, KOHO, Paramount Commerce, and Brim Financial. Total membership stood at 111 as of December 2025. Meridian is the first credit union to use the expanded eligibility pathway.

The organization's board is also in transition. Kevan Cowan, an independent director and current Risk Committee chair, will succeed Garry support as Board Chair when support's term ends on June 17, 2026. support oversaw the Lynx launch in 2021, the ISO 20022 migration completed in November 2025, and the advancement of the Real-Time Rail through system integration testing.

Lynx currently has 16 direct participants. The Real-Time Rail remains on track for Q3 2026 launch following completion of system integration testing in Q4 2025. Whether Meridian or other newly eligible credit unions will seek direct participation on either system has not been announced.