Credit Unions vs Banks in Canada: Deposit Insurance by Province and Desjardins

A credit union is a financial cooperative owned by its members, and unlike a bank’s customers, they take part in governing it. A credit union is registered or incorporated in a province or territory, which regulates it and may protect its deposits, unless it is a federal credit union, which is regulated at the federal level; CDIC says its members include banks and federally regulated credit unions. Below, each province’s deposit insurer describes its coverage in its own words, from west to east; then some credit unions follow in alphabetical order, which is neither a ranking nor a full list; then Desjardins and its caisses.

How is a credit union different from a bank?

• Ownership and vote. A credit union is owned by its members, who take part in its governance. For a federal credit union, the Bank Act gives each member only one vote on all matters the members decide.
• Regulator. Credit unions are among the institutions a province or territory regulates, while all banks and federal credit unions are federally regulated; in the Bank Act, a federal credit union is a bank organized and run on a cooperative basis. The two groups are set out under who regulates credit unions.
• Deposit insurance. Deposits at a credit union that is not federally regulated may be protected by a provincial or territorial plan, while CDIC’s members include banks and federally regulated credit unions. Each province’s insurer is in the insurer table.
• Products. FCAC gives the same examples for both: savings and chequing accounts, loans, mortgages and investment products. Mobile banking apps are compared feature by feature on mobile banking apps.
• Where it operates. A federally regulated institution may operate in any province or territory, and a provincially regulated one must usually operate within the province or territory where it is registered. Online banks and app-based accounts are compared on online banks.

Who regulates credit unions?

FCAC sorts financial institutions into two groups: those registered or incorporated at the federal level, which include all banks and federal credit unions, and those registered or incorporated in a province or territory, which include credit unions. Each province and territory has its own regulators, and the level of consumer protection at an institution depends on its regulatory body.

Under the Bank Act, a federal credit union is a bank that is organized and carries on business on a cooperative basis, and CDIC names federally regulated credit unions among its members.

The body that insures each province’s credit unions, and what it says it covers, are in that province’s row of the insurer table.

How are deposits at a credit union insured?

CDIC describes its membership this way: “Our member institutions include banks, federally regulated credit unions, and trust and loan companies.” The Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) insures eligible deposits at its member institutions if one fails, up to $100,000 per coverage category, principal and interest included, so deposits in more than one category can be covered for more in total. How CDIC coverage works is explained on CDIC deposit insurance.

Outside federal regulation, FCAC says deposits may be protected by a province or territory, and that “Deposit insurance plans vary from one province or territory to another”. The table gives each province’s insurer, who it says it covers and its coverage, each in the insurer’s own words.

Checked against each insurer's page on October 22, 2026.

Provinces in this table: British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador.

The insurers for British Columbia, Saskatchewan and New Brunswick say their protection does not extend to federal credit unions, and their rows’ “Not covered” lines give their words; CDIC’s members include federally regulated credit unions.

FCAC points depositors to their provincial or territorial deposit insurer, or to their financial institution, to find out how their deposits are protected.

Credit unions in Canada and their deposit insurers

The table names some credit unions, in alphabetical order; it is not a full list, and the order is not a ranking. Each row gives what the credit union says about itself and how it says its deposits are protected, in its own words.

A dash means this table has no statement from that credit union for that cell.

Checked against each credit union's or CDIC's page on October 22, 2026.

Credit unions in this table: Alterna Savings, Coast Capital Savings Federal Credit Union, Conexus Credit Union, Innovation Federal Credit Union, Meridian, Servus Credit Union, Steinbach Credit Union, UNI Financial Cooperation and Vancity.

Desjardins and its caisses

FCAC describes them this way: “Desjardins credit unions (caisses populaires Desjardins) are part of the Desjardins Group, a cooperative financial group. Like other credit unions, they offer a range of products and services to their members.”

Desjardins’s own count of its network: 189 caisses and branches and 547 points of service in Quebec and Ontario; 1,260 ATMs; data as at December 31, 2025, unless otherwise specified.

On membership, Desjardins says: We’re a democratic organization, meaning that all members can participate in shaping the priorities for their cooperative, according to the “one member, one vote” principle.

On member dividends, Desjardins says:

• “Member dividends are divided into 2 categories: product dividends and volume dividends.”
• “Product dividends are for personal members. Business members are not eligible for the product dividend. The maximum amount of the product dividend is $75.”
• “Prior to the pay out date, members can attend their caisse’s annual general meeting (AGM) and vote on how surplus earnings are distributed, which includes member dividends. Your individual member dividend is then calculated based on the outcome of the vote.”
• “If you were a caisse member during the last fiscal year, you’re eligible for member dividends.”

On deposit protection in Quebec, Desjardins’s deposit insurance page says: In Quebec, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) protects insurable deposits up to CAN$100,000 per person, per deposit category; each Desjardins caisse in Quebec and the Fédération des caisses Desjardins du Québec are authorized deposit institutions (the Quebec insurer’s row).

In Ontario, Desjardins’s personal service fees document says that Caisse Desjardins Ontario Credit Union Inc. is a deposit institution authorized by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario, and that all eligible deposits in Canadian dollars are protected by deposit insurance up to a set limit (the Ontario insurer’s row).

Desjardins’s plans and monthly fees are in the chequing tables and its row of the bank fees table; its savings rate is on savings rates by institution; its institution, transit and folio numbers and help line are on Desjardins numbers; and its rows for e-Transfer limits, ATM networks, mobile cheque deposit and app features are on those pages. TFSA accounts across institutions are on TFSA accounts compared.

Which banking rules apply at a credit union?

FCAC says federal oversight bodies ensure that federally regulated institutions, which include all banks and federal credit unions, comply with federal laws and regulations that also protect consumers’ rights, and that the laws and regulations of provinces and territories may vary from one to another.

Three topics have their own pages: opening a personal account at a bank, and when a bank may say no, on opening a bank account; the federal rules on NSF fees, and who they cover, on NSF fees; and the federal maximums on cheque holds, and who they bind, on cheque holds.

How banks disclose fees and give notice of fee changes is on the fees page.

Related pages

• How CDIC coverage works
• Online banks and fintech accounts and a big bank, an online bank or a credit union
• Mobile banking apps
• Opening a bank account and switching banks
• Savings rates by institution and bank fees by institution
• Types of mortgage lenders and GIC rates compared
• Choosing a bank and the banking section