Canadian Lenders are good!

Canadian lenders have enough capital to withstand losses without needing to raise more cash, Standard & Poors said.

“Like all banks elsewhere in the world, Canadian financial institutions are likely to experience additional losses as the recession continues,” the New York-based rating company said Thursday in a statement. “On the positive side, stress tests reveal that these banks have sufficient capital to withstand losses in what we believe is the likeliest case.”

Lenders including Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto-Dominion Bank and Bank of Nova Scotia exceed the minimum capital thresholds that S&P identified as necessary to cover losses, the company said. The tests also included credit unions in British Columbia and Quebec, and HSBC Canada.

“Canadian financial institutions performed better under our stress tests than do those we rate in the US under similar tests,” S&P said. – Financial Post