News just broke that Canada’s big investment banks could be committing forgery, investor fraud, and even criminal acts in order to increase profits at the expense of Canadians.

Former employees at TD and CIBC have come forward with shocking allegations that managers are pressuring financial reps to forge client signatures so it appears that clients are agreeing to pay for things they didn’t sign up to—  like insurance on loans or credit cards.

And it isn’t just an isolated incident: one employee says that around 85% of CIBC’s financial sales staff commit this kind of forgery, and she’s seen it in every bank where she’s worked.

Investment banking in Canada is largely self-regulated. The Mutual Fund Dealers Association (MFDA), in charge of enhancing consumer protection, is run by investment dealers who are more interested in keeping banks profitable rather than holding them accountable.

It’s clear that the banks and investors cannot regulate themselves. We need the government to step in and launch an investigation into these shady — possibly even criminal—  banking practices, and help protect ordinary Canadians.

When news broke last month that TD was pressuring its employees to inflate sales numbers to meet sales targets, it only took a matter of days for the government to agree to investigate. If enough of us speak out now, we can get the body responsible — the FCAC — to broaden its investigation into banks that may be purposefully cheating ordinary Canadians. Sign the petition calling on the FCAC to launch an investigation into possible banking fraud.