The board of directors at the embattled financial industry dispute resolution service, the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments, has come out with a statement in support of the organization.
OBSI’s board released a statement late Friday, saying, “In the wake of TD Bank’s withdrawal from OBSI for banking complaints, the board of directors would like to strongly express our complete support of and confidence in OBSI management and staff. We are grateful to them for the tireless and often thankless work they do day in and day out to achieve fair outcomes for the most difficult financial consumer complaints.”
TD pulls out of OBSI dispute resolution
The statement comes after TD announced that it was pulling out of OBSI, joining Royal Bank, which left the service back in 2008. OBSI has also recently faced complaints from the investment industry, and several firms have sought to pull out of the service, a move that was disallowed by securities regulators. While investment firms are obliged to belong to OBSI, bank participation in the service is voluntary.
In its statement, the OBSI board says that the dispute resolution system should not be allowed to become further fragmented. Without voluntary support from the banks, it says that it believes an effective consumer protection service needs either participation to be made mandatory under the Bank Act, “or the approval process contemplated by the anticipated regulations pursuant to Bill C-47.”
“We are committed to balancing the interests of all stakeholders, including consumers, industry, government and regulators, as we seek a way forward,” it concludes.