Committed to high standards of business ethics and integrity—in our own operations and for the businesses we support.
Business integrity at EDC
Responsible and ethical business
We enable and support responsible and ethical business in compliance with our Code of Conduct, international standards, and the laws of the countries where we work.
Our Code of Conduct
Our code serves as the foundation for how we do business and helps define our culture and reputation for ethical excellence. Our ethics and integrity permeate every interaction we have—with customers, each other, our shareholder and society—and our code helps us navigate the complexities of the global trade ecosystem.
Our code applies across our organization and all employees—permanent and contract—are expected to comply with it. Employees participate in annual training on the code, and sign an annual statement confirming their understanding of, and compliance with, its terms. Our board members are also expected to carry out their roles in accordance with EDC’s Board Code of Conduct and sign an annual attestation statement.
Preventing and combating financial crime
Financial crime is a real and costly risk in global trade, and we take a strong stance against it. We also recognize we have a role to play in combating financial crime on the global stage.
We abide by all laws and international guidelines that apply to us and are bound by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Convention, the Recommendation on Bribery and Officially Supported Export Credits. We also actively support Canada and other leading trading nations in efforts to fight corruption as an OECD member.
Our financial crime program focuses on providing the right controls and tools to ensure we don’t knowingly support sanctioned parties or transactions that involve bribery or corruption. It also prevents our products and services from being used to further money laundering, sanctioned or fraudulent activity, or terrorist financing.
The foundation of this program is our Financial Crime Policy, which is being implemented across all business lines. Key elements of our policy include:
- Annual mandatory financial crime training for employees, with enhanced training for those working in specialized areas
- An automated risk assessment tool that screens customer information for risk indicators early in our relationship with a company, and triggers enhanced due diligence by EDC’s subject matter experts if there are financial crime risk flags
- Clear risk escalation standards for fast decision-making
- Ongoing monitoring of counterparties and transactions
- Resources for companies on how to protect themselves against threats to business integrity
Find out how companies can unknowingly become involved in financial crimes and how to manage that risk with our guide on Financial crime in international trade.
Corruption and bribery can distort trade and inhibit economic growth. We have zero tolerance for corruption and bribery and don’t support business that was obtained through these means.
We’re dedicated to conducting our business responsibly and in compliance with all applicable anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws and regulations. As a member state of the OECD, Canada signed the Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions and passed the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act (CFPOA), making it a criminal offence to give or offer a bribe to a foreign public official.
EDC is also bound to our commitment to the OECD’s Recommendations on Bribery and Officially Supported Export Credits, which was designed to deter bribery in international business transactions. In observing this agreement, EDC requires each customer to sign a declaration stating that bribery and corruption aren’t involved in the transaction we might finance or insure. This helps protect our business and the Canadian companies with which we work.
When we review transactions for potential support, we conduct due diligence to ensure we don’t knowingly engage in or support any transaction that involves any form of bribery or corruption.
Money laundering is the process by which the funds or proceeds of criminal activity, such as drug trafficking, are moved through legitimate businesses to hide all traces of their criminal origin. Terrorist financing refers to funding for terrorist activities and can come from legitimate or criminal sources.
We don’t tolerate, aid or support money laundering or terrorist financing in any part of our business. As part of our due diligence process, we conduct screening to help detect and deter activities associated with these risks.
We’re committed to complying with all applicable laws relating to this global issue and to taking measures to prevent our products and services from being used to further money laundering and terrorist financing.
Sanctions are a foreign policy tool used to address security concerns, gross violations of human rights and significant foreign corruption. Canadian sanctions are levied on individuals, entities and countries, and prohibit dealings with designated persons or within targeted sectors of specified foreign jurisdictions. They impose screening, reporting and asset-freeze obligations on regulated financial institutions and other businesses.
Our primary focus is on detecting and preventing activities associated with sanctioned persons, entities and prohibited sectors and/or industries in sanctioned countries. We do this by conducting screening to ensure we comply with all relevant Canadian sanctions obligations.
Anti-corruption resources
Business leaders today are faced with a complex trade environment, further complicated by the possibility of corrupt practices. We’re here to help you navigate these complexities and understand our requirements.
We offer several guides for Canadian exporters to learn about how to manage corruption and bribery risks to their business:
- Keeping corruption out: Anti-corruption guide for Canadian exporters
- EDC’s approach to combatting bribery and corruption
- Briber beware: Six questions to help you avoid bribery in international transactions
These guides and additional resources are available on our Anti-Corruption Resource Centre. Learn more.
Transparency
As Canada’s export credit agency, we understand that transparency and disclosure are integral to EDC’s business, to facilitating accountability and oversight, and building trust and promoting meaningful dialogue with our stakeholders. We also recognize the importance of ensuring all communications about our business must be honest, accurate and consistent.
We’re also bound by specific rules about how and when information about EDC is released to the public.
Learn more
EDC’s Anti-Corruption Resource Centre
Your resource for essential information that can help your business adopt anti-corruption best practices and become a leader in responsible business.
Anti-Corruption Policy Guidelines
Explains the measures we take in our due diligence process to align with legislation and international standards.
Code of Conduct
All employees are expected to honour and comply with our Code of Conduct, which helps us navigate the complexities of our business.
Policies & reports
Explore policies, reports and other reference materials related to environmental, social and governance practices at EDC.
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