BankSync

Connecting Canadian banks

Connect Canadian chequing, savings, credit, and investment accounts through Plaid.

5 min read

On this page

Canadian institutions connect to BankSync through Plaid, which covers Canadian banks alongside the United States. The flow is the same as connecting any other bank: search for your institution, sign in through Plaid's secure window, pick the accounts you want to share, and the bank appears on your Banks page ready to power a feed.

Before you start

You need a BankSync account and your Canadian online banking login (card number or username, password, plus any verification step your bank uses such as an SMS or email code). Confirm you can sign in to your bank's website directly first. If the institution you want is a brokerage or investment platform rather than a bank, see Connecting brokerages instead, since those connect through SnapTrade.

Your credentials stay with your bank

BankSync connects Canadian banks through Plaid. You enter your bank login in Plaid's own secure window, not in BankSync. BankSync never sees or stores your bank password.
Canadian banks connect through the same Plaid flow.

Open Banks and add a bank#

Start the connection

  1. Go to the Banks page

    Open BankSync and select Banks from the navigation. This is where all your connected institutions live.

  2. Click 'Connect a new bank'

    Select the dashed "Connect a new bank" tile (the card with the plus icon). The "Connect Bank" dialog opens with a "Search and connect your financial institution" subtitle and a search box.

Search for and select your Canadian bank#

You do not choose a region first. Type your bank's name and BankSync searches across every supported country and provider at once, then routes Canadian results to Plaid automatically.

Find your bank

  1. Type your bank name

    In the "Search institutions" box, enter at least 2 characters of your bank's name (for example "RBC", "TD", "Scotiabank", or "BMO"). Matching institutions appear as cards as you type.

  2. (Optional) narrow to Canada

    Click the filter button next to the search box to open Filters, then under Country select the 🇨🇦 CA chip. You can also leave Provider on "All" or set it to Plaid. Leave both on "All" if you are not sure.

  3. Read each result card

    Each Canadian result shows the institution name, the account types it supports, and a 🇨🇦 CA flag next to the provider name (Plaid). Use these to confirm you are picking the right institution.

  4. Select your institution

    Click the matching card. BankSync detects that the institution is Canadian and selects Plaid for you, so there is no separate region step. A "Preparing connection..." overlay appears and Plaid's secure login window opens shortly.

The BankSync Connect Bank dialog searching for RBC, showing Canadian institution result cards (Royal Bank of Canada, TD Canada Trust, Scotiabank, BMO Bank of Montreal) with chequing, savings, and credit-card account-type tags, a Canadian flag, and the Plaid provider.
Searching for a Canadian institution in the Connect Bank dialog.

Picking the right TD entity

Some institutions appear more than once (for example a Canadian retail bank versus a U.S. arm of the same brand). Check the 🇨🇦 CA flag on the card so you select the Canadian institution, not its U.S. counterpart.

Supported Canadian account types#

BankSync surfaces whatever account types Plaid exposes for the institution. The result card lists them so you know what you can sync before you connect.

Account typeCard labelNotes for Canadian institutions
ChequingCheckingDay-to-day transaction accounts. Most common Canadian connection.
SavingsSavingsHigh-interest and regular savings accounts.
Credit cardCredit CardVisa, Mastercard, and store cards where the issuer shares them through Plaid.
InvestmentInvestmentAvailable where the bank shares investment holdings through Plaid. For standalone brokerages, connect through SnapTrade instead.
Loan / MortgageLoan / MortgageShown only where the institution exposes loan or mortgage data.

Where account selection happens

You choose which accounts to share inside Plaid's window, not in BankSync. After you sign in, Plaid lists your accounts and lets you tick the ones you want (for example just your chequing and credit card). Only the accounts you select are shared with BankSync.

Sign in and give consent#

After you select the institution, Plaid's own secure window opens. Confirm the institution, enter your Canadian online banking credentials, complete any verification step (such as an SMS or email code), and select the accounts to share.

If you already have a connection to the same institution, BankSync shows an "Existing Connections" screen instead of opening a fresh login:

  • Choose "Create New Connection" to link a separate set of accounts (Plaid supports multiple connections to the same bank).
  • Choose "Add Accounts" next to an existing connection to share more accounts on that same connection.
  • Choose "Reconnect" if a connection is flagged as needing re-authentication.

Multi-currency CAD and USD accounts

Many Canadian banks offer both CAD and USD accounts (for example a USD chequing or USD credit card). Each currency is usually a separate account in Plaid's account list, so tick every currency you want to sync. When you later build a feed, each account keeps its own currency in the synced data, so a USD account is not converted to CAD for you.

Confirm it worked#

When Plaid's window finishes, BankSync shows an "Authorization Successful" dialog confirming "You have successfully authorized access to your bank account." and "Your bank has been added and transactions will be synced automatically." Click "Continue".

You have connected your Canadian bank successfully when:

  • The institution appears as a card on the Banks page (no longer just the "Connect a new bank" tile).
  • The card shows the 🇨🇦 CA flag and the accounts you selected in Plaid's window are linked to that bank.
  • The bank shows an active state rather than a "Requires re-authentication" or "Scheduled for deletion" label.

Troubleshooting#

Bank not listed

If your Canadian bank does not appear, try the full legal name or the parent brand, and confirm the Country filter is on "All" or 🇨🇦 CA rather than another country. When few results come back, a "Not finding your bank?" prompt with a "Request this bank" button appears: submit it and the team will look into adding coverage.

Accounts missing after connecting

If an account you expected is not linked, it usually means it was not ticked in Plaid's selection screen, or the bank does not share that account type through Plaid. Open the bank's card on the Banks page and use "Reconnect / Add Accounts" to reopen Plaid and select the missing accounts. If a USD or CAD variant is missing, check that you selected every currency.

This is a brokerage, not a bank

Standalone Canadian investment and brokerage platforms connect through SnapTrade, not Plaid. If you searched for a brokerage and the connection does not behave like a bank, follow Connecting brokerages instead.

Connection failed or needs re-authentication

Confirm you can sign in on your bank's own website first, then reconnect from the bank's card on the Banks page. If the bank shows "Requires re-authentication", open it and use "Reconnect / Add Accounts" to refresh consent with Plaid.

Next steps#

With your Canadian bank connected, the next step is to build a feed that syncs its data to your spreadsheet or database.

Create your first feed

Related guides#

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