A Letter from the President
Canada Post is losing approximately ten million dollars per day. The traditional business model of delivering physical mail to every Canadian address is fundamentally unsustainable. The federal government has directed the corporation to reduce delivery frequency and fundamentally transform operations.
Crisis as Catalyst
This is a crisis. However, it’s also an opportunity that Canada risks missing if we consider Canada Post solely in terms of mail delivery.
The Hidden Infrastructure
Consider what Canada Post actually represents: a trusted institution with physical presence in virtually every Canadian community, deep expertise in verification and logistics, existing relationships spanning individuals and businesses, public accountability, and a mandate to serve all Canadians regardless of commercial viability.
These aren’t assets to be wound down. They are the foundations for building Canada’s digital trust infrastructure.
Where Private Innovation Falls Short
The private sector has pioneered remarkable innovations in digital trust and identity verification, user experience, and privacy-enhancing technologies. Still, private sector solutions may face inherent limitations: market forces drive them toward commercially valuable populations and geographies; profit imperatives can create tensions with privacy protection; and competitive dynamics resist the open standards that enable broad interoperability.
A Vision for Digital Trust
Canada Post could bridge this gap, not by displacing private innovation, but by complementing it. Imagine Canada Post operating as a privacy-preserving verification service that helps Canadians prove their identity online, confirm addresses for e-commerce and financial services, and authenticate business credentials. Imagine post offices serving as trusted in-person verification points where Canadians without smartphones or digital literacy can establish digital credentials with assistance. Imagine Canada Post providing the addressing infrastructure that enables secure digital commerce while protecting privacy.
Complement, Not Compete
This isn’t about government competing with private sector innovators. It’s about leveraging a trusted public institution to ensure universal access, serve populations that aren’t commercially attractive, maintain the physical-digital bridge that inclusion requires, and operate according to public interest principles rather than purely commercial logic.
Asking The Right Question
Canada Post’s transformation should be guided by a simple question: What role can a universally accessible, publicly accountable, and privacy-respecting institution play in Canada’s digital trust ecosystem? The answer isn’t “deliver less mail.” It’s “deliver digital trust services that complement private innovation while ensuring no Canadian is left behind.”
Joni Brennan
President, DIACC
Further Reading:
- Pan-Canadian Trust Framework
- Understanding Canada’s Decentralized Approach
- PCTF Certification Program
- What Canadians Want: Privacy, Security, and Choice
- Verifiable Credentials and Privacy-Preserving Technologies
DIACC is Where Digital Trust Means Business
Contact us to be a part of the change you want to see, stay informed about developments in digital trust and identity verification, and learn how you can contribute to discussion drafts or become a member.
