Bitcoin-focused, Montréal-based cryptocurrency company Shakepay has become a Payments Canada member.
“This recognition underscores the hard work we’ve invested in building a trusted and regulated platform.”
Eric Richmond,
Shakepay
This makes Shakepay the the first “crypto-native” business and third FinTech company (alongside Questrade and Wealthsimple) to be granted membership to Payments Canada, which oversees Canada’s core payment infrastructure.
Historically, Payments Canada has only been open to banks, credit unions, and other select financial institutions, but the organization is planning to open up its membership to a wider range of firms beyond just the country’s big banks.
This milestone gives Shakepay the ability to apply for direct access to the country’s key payments infrastructure, including the forthcoming Real-Time Rail (RTR) and other systems. Shakepay’s access to Payments Canada applies only to its Canadian dollar products, so it does not let the crypto exchange send Bitcoin to Canadian bank accounts.
Shakepay obtained Payments Canada membership through its Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) investment dealer status—a prerequisite which it secured in early 2025 following a more than two-year journey.
In a statement, Shakepay co-founder and CEO Jean Amiouny said Payments Canada membership will help the crypto firm provide its customers with faster, more reliable payment options and reduce its dependence on third-party intermediaries.
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In a blog post, Shakepay noted that it also gives Shakepay “a voice alongside the big banks and credit unions that will make it easier for us to demand for change.”
“As one of the few FinTechs to achieve this milestone in Canada, this recognition underscores the hard work we’ve invested in building a trusted and regulated platform,” Shakepay general counsel and head of business development Eric Richmond said in a statement. “It not only enhances our ability to deliver secure and seamless payment products that support our crypto offerings, but also empowers us to actively shape the future of payments in Canada.”
Founded in 2015 by Amiouny and CTO Roy Breidi, Shakepay began as a Bitcoin-loadable Visa card that users could spend in physical retail stores. The company pivoted into a crypto exchange, after identifying an opportunity to give Canadians an easier way to buy, earn, and sell Bitcoin.
Shakepay has grown to serve more than one million Canadians and raised $45 million CAD to date from a group that includes Montréal’s BoxOne Ventures as well as US-based QED Investors and Boost VC.
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The company has been expanding into bank-like services such as bill payments, direct deposits, and e-transfers.
In addition to now being a Payments Canada and CIRO member, Shakepay is also registered with FINTRAC, the federal government’s financial intelligence and anti-money laundering agency, as a money service business.
Payments Canada owns and operates the country’s core payment clearing and settlement systems. The non-profit, which reports to the Government of Canada, is currently overseeing the establishment of a new RTR system aimed at modernizing the country’s payments infrastructure to complete payments within seconds.
Payments Canada first promised to deliver RTR in 2022, but after multiple delays, the system still remains under development. Last month, Payments Canada chief delivery officer Jude Pinto announced the technical build of RTR is now 60 percent complete on all fronts and on target to be finished during the third-quarter of 2025, after which testing will take place.
Feature image courtesy Shakepay.