Financial services named among world’s most AI-exposed industries
Canada’s placement alongside the United States, the United Kingdom, Singapore, and Mainland China signals that the enabling environment for AI in this country – infrastructure, talent pipelines, and regulatory posture – is more developed than in most of the world.
Execution is now the differentiator
BCG found that while ambition is near universal across economies, execution speed is the differentiator, defined as how quickly a government or organisation can turn strategy into coordinated action and drive economic transformation.
Domestic and international research confirms that the gap between stated intention and actual integration remains wide. Research published by IG Wealth Management in 2026 found that 91 per cent of Canadian advisors believe AI is a powerful tool that can help elevate their practices, but a significant share remains cautious about compliance implications and the potential impact on client relationships.
Meanwhile, a global survey of 2,950 financial professionals across 23 countries – conducted by CoreData Research on behalf of Natixis Investment Managers between March and May 2026 – found that 71 per cent of advisors worldwide are already implementing AI in their practices. However, the same survey revealed a sharp divergence in sentiment closer to home: more than a third of Canadian advisors (36 per cent) believe AI will put them out of business, a concern shared by only 12 per cent of US advisors and 18 per cent of advisors overall, meaning Canadian advisors are three times more likely than their American counterparts to view AI as an existential threat.
That anxiety is understandable but not a strategy. The advisors and firms that move from experimentation to systematic implementation will be the ones who compound the operational gains — and, more importantly, who retain clients through the intergenerational wealth transfer already under way.
