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In its fight against the growing malaise of extortion, the Canadian government has finally granted ammunition to the armoury of its law-enforcing agencies, including financial institutions and police organisations, to take the fight to its logical conclusions.

The mainstay of the new measures is to “detect and disrupt” financial crime by following the “movement of the ill-got money”.

Announcing a series of measures, the Federal Government has initiated, Finance Minister and National Revenue Minister François-Philippe Champagne, along with Rechie Valdez, Minister of Women and Gender Equality and Secretary of State for Small Business and Tourism, Maninder Sidhu, Minister of International Trade, and Shafqat Ali, President of the Treasury Board, were in Mississauga on Feb. 19 to say “enough is enough”.

They reiterated their Government’s resolve to strengthen the country’s ability to detect, disrupt, and prevent extortion across the length and breadth of the country, especially in the most affected areas like Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta. By improving how financial intelligence is collected and shared, law enforcement will be better equipped to trace criminal networks, support investigations, and hold those responsible accountable, they said at a joint media conference.

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The latest series of measures primarily aims to coordinate the working of various agencies, including the RCMP, Police, Canadian Border Agency, banking and other financial institutions, together to keep a track on “extortions” by launching the “Follow the Money” initiative.

Admitting that for too many Canadian individuals and businesses, extortion has emerged as a reality of everyday life—one that brings fear, intimidation, and harm to communities and families alike and that undermines Canadians’ sense of safety. These crimes are typically carried out by organised networks operating across borders and using digital platforms. That’s why coordinated action between governments, law enforcement, and financial institutions is essential and at the heart of today’s announcement, they said. Threats were reported

Last year, there were 133 extortion threats reported to Surrey police alone. Besides, there were 49 shootings. Organised crime has been top of mind in the Greater Toronto Area, where early this month, police in Ontario announced it had laid charges against 27 people, including seven Toronto police officers, in connection with a corruption probe tied to an alleged plot to assassinate an Ontario corrections officer.

Mayors of some cities across Canada have been speaking about the growing incidence of attempted extortions, shootings and arsons aimed at the South Asian community in general and the Punjabi community in particular and urged the federal government to declare it a national emergency.

After returning from a visit to India, the British Columbia Premier, David Eby, met the Prime Minister, Mark Carney, in Ottawa, and even offered to hold a national police meet in Vancouver this month to fight this malaise jointly.

Finance and National Revenue Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said, “Extortion is a serious crime that harms Canadians, businesses, and communities. Our government is strengthening financial intelligence and working closely with law enforcement and financial institutions to better detect and disrupt extortion, support investigations, and help protect Canadians.

“Communities across Canada are feeling the impact of extortion. Our government is taking action by investing in prevention, strengthening enforcement, improving intelligence sharing, deepening collaboration at home and abroad, and bringing in tougher laws for extortion-related offences. Working with provincial, territorial, and municipal partners and law enforcement agencies across the country, we are taking a coordinated approach to combat this threat. The new measures announced today give police even more tools to target extortion and cut off the illicit money that fuels it,” remarked Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree.

Minister of Women and Gender Equality and Secretary of State for Small Business and Tourism Rechie Valdez said, “Small businesses are the backbone of Peel Region's economy. When organised crime targets businesses in our neighbourhoods, it puts entrepreneurs, employees, and entire communities at risk. Today’s measures reinforce that we will protect the hardworking business owners who power our local economies and ensure they can operate in safety and stability.”

Minister for International Trade Maninder Sidhu commented, “In Brampton, I’ve heard from families and business owners about the real fear that extortion creates in our community. No one should feel unsafe in their own neighbourhood or workplace. Our new government is strengthening the work of the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada and coordinating with partners such as the RCMP and other law enforcement agencies. We are following the money, targeting criminal networks, and protecting our communities.”

President of the Treasury Board Shafqat Ali said: “By strengthening cooperation between governments, law enforcement and financial institutions, we are taking action to disrupt criminal networks, protect livelihoods and ensure Canadians, including families and businesses in Brampton, can live and work without fear.”

As the epidemic of extortions accompanied by shooting at both residential and business premises of victims spread to various provinces, including British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario, the federal government recently convened summits on extortion in Surrey (British Columbia), Brampton (Ontario), bringing together federal, provincial, and municipal leaders, along with law enforcement partners, including the Canada Border Services Agency and RCMP, to strengthen coordination and advance integrated efforts to disrupt cross‑border criminal networks and protect local businesses and residents.

The Government of Canada, a statement said, was prioritising efforts, mobilising the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) to help to combat extortion and support law enforcement investigations. Key measures include prioritising financial intelligence resources to tackle extortion: FINTRAC will surge resources to combat extortion. This will enable law enforcement to receive more timely and relevant financial intelligence to identify criminal networks and support investigations.

Another measure was of launching the countering extortion partnership with financial institutions, government, and law enforcement: FINTRAC will work closely with Canadian banks, credit unions, and financial service providers of virtual assets, including cryptocurrencies, alongside partners such as the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), and local police, where applicable, to enhance information sharing and share best practices to fight extortion.

Assigning financial intelligence experts to support police is another step in this direction. FINTRAC will assign dedicated liaison officers to work directly with local law enforcement in the most affected areas, such as Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta. These officers will provide specialised financial intelligence expertise, strengthen information sharing, and ensure financial intelligence is supporting enforcement efforts, investigations, and prosecutions.

 Other measures include providing financial institutions with clear guidance on how to detect extortion transactions: FINTRAC will issue a Targeted Indicator Profile or ‘TIP’, which will give practical guidance to help financial institutions recognise patterns and behaviours commonly associated with extortion. This will help ensure suspicious transactions are reported quickly and accurately.

Publishing intelligence on how criminals move and hide extortion money: FINTRAC will publish strategic intelligence detailing how criminals launder extortion proceeds, including indicators and typologies to aid in its detection.

Together, these measures will support the ongoing efforts by federal, provincial, and municipal governments and law enforcement to combat criminal extortion activities that harm Canadians. These actions build on broader federal measures to combat organised crime and protect Canadians, including the creation of the new Canada Financial Crimes Agency, significant investments to strengthen RCMP investigative capacity, and enhanced coordination with law enforcement and intelligence partners, the statement said. 

Budget 2025 announced $1.7 billion in funding to strengthen the RCMP’s response to a wide range of threats related to transnational organised crime, financial crimes, and money laundering, while enhancing its intelligence and national security capacity, fulfilling the government’s commitment to hire 1,000 RCMP personnel. The Prime Minister has indicated that 150 of these new personnel will be dedicated to tackling financial crimes—targeting money laundering networks, organised crime, online fraud, and the recovery of illicit assets.

Leveraging these investments in federal law enforcement capacity, Budget 2025 proposed to establish a new Financial Crimes Agency to be Canada’s lead enforcement agency against financial crimes. This agency will be a best-in-class model that aims to unite the police and civilian expertise needed to investigate complex cases of money laundering, organised criminal activity, and online financial scams, and to recover illicit proceeds. The Minister of Finance and National Revenue is working with the Ministers of Justice and Public Safety to introduce legislation to stand up the new Financial Crimes Agency by the spring of 2026.

Businesses with anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing (AML/ATF) obligations are on the front lines of the fight against money laundering, terrorist financing, and sanctions evasion. Bill C-12, the Strengthening Canada’s Immigration System and Borders Act, proposes comprehensive reforms to strengthen AML/ATF supervision, compliance, and enforcement, including by increasing AML/ATF civil penalties by forty times, and criminal fines by ten times their current amount. 

Since 2019, the government has invested close to $379 million in combating financial crimes. These investments have strengthened supervision and financial intelligence functions at FINTRAC, increased resources and tools to support financial crime investigations, and enhanced Canada’s ability to combat trade-based financial crime. 

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