The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Canada announced this week it hosted an economic roundtable in Vancouver on Sept. 3 with nearly 60 representatives from Chinese and Canadian companies and institutions.
Ernie Daniels, president and CEO of the First Nations Finance Authority and former Canadian finance minister Bill Morneau were in attendance. The roundtable discussed the future of China-Canada economic and trade relations, including co-operation on green transition, Indigenous finance and community development, according to the embassy.
Chinese Ambassador to Canada Wang Di delivered written remarks, saying “bilateral economic and trade co-operation has always been a mainstay of China-Canada relations.”
He specifically “expressed the hope that the Chinese and Canadian business communities, financial institutions and First Nations communities will continue to strengthen communication and collaboration, enable bilateral economic and trade co-operation to better serve as a stabilizer and propeller of bilateral relations, and lay an even more solid foundation for the China-Canada new strategic partnership.”
Di’s roundtable in B.C. comes amid broiling public debate over First Nations land claims across the province, as well as consultation rights under the B.C. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA).
Business in Vancouver was unable to reach Daniels before publication. BIV also could not reach Morneau through his positions at the University of Toronto or investment firm Clairvest Group Inc.
Daniels is a director of the Bank of Canada. He has been president and CEO of the FNFA since 2012 while overseeing tremendous investment growth in the past few years.
The FNFA is a non-profit agency mandated by the First Nations Fiscal Management Act to provide financing, investment and advisory services to First Nation governments across Canada. It is not government-funded, and board members are chosen by member First Nations chiefs.
Eligible capital projects FNFA can finance include infrastructure, social and economic development, land purchases, independent power projects and community housing.
Investors purchase FNFA debt issues, such as bonds, through all six major Canadian banks and at some securities brokerages.
“FNFA bonds continue to attract strong demand from domestic and international investors seeking stable, investment‑grade opportunities with measurable social impact,” according to its investor page.
As of March 2026 FNFA reported $4.4 billion of loans, up from $790 million in 2020.
Daniels stated in July that FNFA bond issuances are contributing an estimated $12.08 billion to the economy, citing Haisla Nation’s majority equity ownership in Cedar LNG, a floating LNG facility, as a major FNFA-financed project.
The current $900-million FNFA commercial paper program reports most investors are pension funds (43 per cent) or asset managers (25 per cent) and from B.C. (45 per cent) or Ontario (42 per cent) with three per cent from non-domestic sources.
Also in attendance at the roundtable, according to the ambassador, were Sen. Yuen Pau Woo and former Sen. Victor Oh, both of whom have advocated for stronger Canada-China ties.
