Meaningful losses loom on office loans, says Canadian regulator

A view of Downtown Toronto

TORONTO: As the risk of sizeable losses on commercial real estate loans grows, Canadian banks’ earnings are poised to take a hit, according to the head of Canada’s financial system regulator.

“It’s likely that banks across the world are going to suffer some commercial real estate losses and they’re likely to be meaningful,” Peter Routledge, head of the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI), said last Friday at a conference in Toronto hosted by TD Securities.