💸 legislation as venture capital

🤔 regulation can subsidize success

Vass Bednar

Jul 15, 2022

Chris Locke @chrislockeworld

I find the constant injustice in our existence to be almost unbearable. But we must remember the good times. Like eating an Oh Henry all to yourself in a 7-11 parking lot. Trucks driving by kicking up dust, concrete everywhere, sweaty stressed people walking in their work clothes

Dalton Baker @bakeryfreshhh

Due to inflation my love will now be costing a thing

👋 Welcome, new readers!

This week I am exploring legislation as subsidization in the Financial Post. I had been thinking about some of the behaviours that our banks demonstrate and what that means for the viability of fintechs.

Financial Post @financialpost

Vass Bednar: Canadians want more competition in banking but regulators stand in the way

financialpost.comVass Bednar: Canadians want more competition in banking but regulators stand in the wayA responsive regulatory environment is needed to allow fintech services firms to legitimately thrive, writes Vass Bednar. Read more.

System Corrupt @systemcorrupt

.@TD_Canada restricts buying non-TD ETFs on it’s online discount brokerage TD EASY TRADE. This is so anti-competitive and gives consumers no choice. @CompBureau

Otunba LDN @antbase10

Banning crypto purchases through credit card isn’t banks being anticompetitive, they are just protecting themselves

🏃‍♀️ I have also been in a little vortex of Rogers-outage-related musing. You may have caught me muddling through on CBC’s The National, Cross Country Checkup, or Metro Morning (ya, I’m sick of me, too - and I was misgendered on BNN but it happens).

I also had the opportunity to contribute an opinion piece in the Globe & Mail, chat with the Big Story podcast about it, AND co-host Canadaland with Jesse Brown to talk about competition in Canada. Pasting all of that below in case it is of interest.

The Globe and Mail @globeandmail

The Rogers outage is an opportunity to change how we think about our digital infrastructure

theglobeandmail.comOpinion: The Rogers outage is an opportunity to change how we think about our digital infrastructureOur telecommunication networks are vital public infrastructure, controlled by private corporations. That’s not a good thing, as the Rogers network collapse showed – especially given government inroads in the space

The Big Story Podcast @thebigstoryfpn

The Rogers’ outage had many wondering who should control our telecommunications infrastructure. Today, @VassB speaks to @garveyschild for @thebigstoryfpn about what solutions we should we be pushing for.

link.chtbl.comThe Big StoryAn in-depth look at the issues, culture and personalities shaping Canada today.

Rylan @RylanColeslaw

With a title like this, you know there is only one guest it could be on @CANADALAND Shortcuts and I was not disappointed Once the Rogers-Shaw merger is passed or blocked, I’ve gotta see @VassB on @backbenchcast so @fatimabsyed can ask all the questions

canadaland.com#797 Wet Hot Antitrust SummerThree telecoms in a trench coat and other Canadian oligopolies. And we need a new playbook when it comes to engaging with Pierre Poilievre. Vass Bednar co-hosts

💡 As a friend pointed out, it seems like the “nerdier” aspects of the Rogers outage/Red Friday didn’t come forward (think: that removing your SIM would have let you connect to 911 or just learning about BGP). Does the outage reinforce the need for oligopoly? If we had more companies, then errors like this could happen more often. What these systems need is external accountability and oversight. We just had a major infrastructure failure. And not enough of the discourse is talking about governance.

🌞 PS. I’m heading to Halifax with my husband for ten days of family time. I *probably* won’t be typing too much (?) as it might make me a “punk rock loser” (I can’t stop listening to the Viagra Boys).