Premier Doug Ford’s reported support for Toronto’s bid to serve as the headquarters of a new international defence bank isn’t being well-received by the City of Ottawa, which is also in the running for the site.
A senior source with the office of Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said it’s “frustrating” that Ford is throwing his weight behind Toronto’s bid, though acknowledged that it wasn’t “unexpected.”
“It’s frustrating, but that’s kind of life in politics,” said the source, who asked to not be identified because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.
As iPolitics reported, Ford is expected to announce at a press conference on Wednesday his public support for Toronto to win the headquarters of the new Defence Security and Resilience Bank, which is being established by NATO countries and allies in the Indo-Pacific region.
Ontario Finance Minister Peter Bethanfalvy and Liberal MP Julie Dzerowicz, who chairs the party’s Toronto caucus, will join Ford at the media event.
Dzerowicz told iPolitics on Wednesday that Toronto caucus is strongly supportive of the city’s bid and it would make sense as the host for the bank because of its heavy concentration of industry professionals and status as one of North American’s biggest financial capitals.
But the Ottawa city source said the DSRB will be structured in the same manner as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, with countries acting as clients.
Because of this, it would make more sense for Ottawa or the broader National Capital Region — with its concentration of embassies and the centre of Canada’s diplomatic community — to serve as the headquarters, the source said.
“Everyone is interested because they see the value that this institution would have. I think the differentiating factor between every other city and Ottawa — aside from the fact that there’s already a significant defence base in the city [and there’s] over 330 defence companies employing over 10,000 people — is the fact that there’s the diplomatic connection,” the source said, adding that Sutcliffe is working “hand in hand” with Gatineau Mayor Maude Marquis-Bissonnette on the bid.
“It’s not a commercial bank per se. The IMF was set up in [Washington] D.C., not New York, and that was done on purpose, obviously. So that’s kind of the same approach that we’re taking in terms of why we feel that Ottawa-Gatineau is really the only choice for it.”
It’s expected the bank would act as a major lender for NATO countries like Canada seeking to ramp up defence spending to hit the agreed upon 2 per cent of GDP target.
Canada has agreed to do so by 2026, and then joined with other NATO partners in agreeing to increase spending to 5 per cent by 2035.
The bank is expected to have in place a charter in early 2026 and open by the end of that year.
Major lenders like the Royal Bank of Canada, JP Morgan and Chase and ING Group have agreed to help establish the institution.
It’s expected the bank would bring some 3,500 jobs to whatever site serves as its headquarters.
The Ottawa source said Sutcliffe and Ford have a “very good working relationship,” and the mayor brought up the DSRB bid when Ontario Economic Development Minister Vic Fedeli recently visited the city.
Landing the DSRB was part of Ottawa’s defence industrial strategy, released in October.
The source added that Sutcliffe raised the issue with Prime Minister Mark Carney, who earlier this month attended the mayor’s breakfast series event.
The source said that Carney is interested in the bank but didn’t hint what city — if any — he preferred.
A decision on the site of the headquarters is expected in early 2026.
Montreal and Vancouver have also been reported as bidders.
