Thank you very much for inviting us this morning.

I am accompanied by my colleague, Samantha Taylor, who is an expert in accounting, which is not my area of expertise. I haven't done a whole lot of research on credit cards in my career, so I thought that Ms. Taylor's presence would be appropriate for this testimony.

The expansion of buy now, pay later options in Canada, notably through platforms like Apple Pay and providers such as Klarna, has implications for consumers who may already be facing financial strain. Though current regulations don't address BNPL for essential items like food, I would recommend restricting BNPL credit options specifically for grocery and food purchases either directly at the point of sale or indirectly through digital payment intermediaries. Such a measure could help prevent Canadians from incurring additional debt on essential items.

While I have reviewed key government resources, including the code of conduct for the payment card industry in Canada and the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada Act, there appear to be no existing restrictions on using BNPL for groceries or restaurant purchases, underscoring the need for action in this area.

In addition, social media's influence on consumer perceptions cannot be underestimated. generation Z and millennials increasingly rely on social media for news consumption, diverging from older generations who prefer traditional media like print and radio. That really affects their behaviour.

Of concern, we've seen campaigns promoting grocery boycotts and even social encouragement for shoplifting. To address the potential influence of bots and coordinated misinformation, which may disproportionately affect younger Canadians, I recommend considering requiring social media platforms to implement a verification system for users on online platforms to prevent manipulation of Canadian consumers by automated accounts.

Additionally, agencies like the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada can use social media to share credible, engaging content such as short videos, boosting financial literacy where younger Canadians are most active. I do want to underscore the fact that financial literacy is a big issue in Canada right now.

At this point, I'd like to pass it to my colleague, Samantha Taylor, for the remainder of our opening remarks.