Mike asked:

What are the differences between Canadian banks and American banks?

Sharon Wilks answered:

The American Banking System:

• The United States has a regional banking system. This means that finding one's branch or a bank-specific automated banking machine (ABM) on the other side of the country can be difficult. There are smaller-scale, more independent banks that one might bank at in their hometown and not be able to find in a different state.
• Cheques are the preferred method of payment in the U.S. because there are several different ABM networks.
• Bank cards are not guaranteed to work in all banking machines. There isn't the same inter-connectedness there is here in Canada.
• Bank failures are a lot more common in the United States.

• Canada has a national banking system, where most banks have branches across the country . This makes it feasible for one to bank at their own bank anywhere in the country.
• This, in turn, makes it easier for Canadians to bank electronically. ABMs and the use of debit cards are a lot more popular in Canada than they are in the United States.
• Banking systems are much more stable in Canada, as we haven't had a banking failure in some time. Canada's last bank failures were in 1985; the Northland Bank and the Canadian Commercial Bank. Before that, Home Bank was the last in 1923.

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