A NOTE ABOUT FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:
From time to time, we make written or oral forward-looking statements within the meaning of certain securities laws, including in this Annual Report, in other filings with Canadian securities regulators or the SEC and in other communications. All such statements are made pursuant to the “safe harbour” provisions of, and are intended to be forward-looking statements under applicable Canadian and U.S. securities legislation, including the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements made in the “Message from the President and Chief Executive Officer”, “Overview – Performance against objectives”, “Economic and market environment – Outlook for calendar year 2026”, “Significant events”, “Financial performance overview – Taxes”, “Strategic business units overview – Canadian Personal and Business Banking”, “Strategic business units overview – Canadian Commercial Banking and Wealth Management”, “Strategic business units overview – U.S. Commercial Banking and Wealth Management”, “Strategic business units overview – Capital Markets”, “Financial condition – Capital management”, “Financial condition –
Off-balance
sheet arrangements”, “Management of risk – Risk overview”, “Management of risk – Top and emerging risks”, “Management of risk – Credit risk”, “Management of risk – Market risk”, “Management of risk – Liquidity risk”, “Accounting and control matters – Critical accounting policies and estimates”, “Accounting and control matters – Accounting developments”, “Accounting and control matters – Other regulatory developments” and “Accounting and control matters – Controls and procedures” sections of this report and other statements about our operations, business lines, financial condition, risk management, priorities, targets and sustainability commitments (including with respect to our sustainability ambitions and our environmental, social and governance (ESG) related activities), ongoing objectives, strategies, the regulatory environment in which we operate and outlook for calendar year 2026 and subsequent periods. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by the words “believe”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “estimate”, “forecast”, “target”, “predict”, “commit”, “ambition”, “goal”, “strive”, “project”, “objective” and other similar expressions or future or conditional verbs such as “will”, “may”, “should”, “would” and “could”. By their nature, these statements require us to make assumptions, including the economic assumptions set out in the “Economic and market environment – Outlook for calendar year 2026” section of this report, and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties that may be general or specific. Given the potential negative economic impacts tied to the actual and proposed U.S. imposition of tariffs on Canada and other countries and their countermeasures, the softening labour market and uncertain political conditions in the U.S., the continuing impact of hybrid work arrangements and high interest rates on the U.S. real estate sector, and the war in Ukraine and conflict in the Middle East on the global economy, financial markets, and our business, results of operations, reputation and financial condition, there is inherently more uncertainty associated with our assumptions as compared to prior periods. A variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control, affect our operations, performance and results, and could cause actual results to differ materially from the expectations expressed in any of our forward-looking statements. These factors include: trade policies and tensions, including tariffs; inflationary pressures in the U.S.; global supply-chain disruptions; geopolitical risk, including from the war in Ukraine and conflict in the Middle East; the impact of post-pandemic hybrid work arrangements; credit, market, liquidity, strategic, insurance, operational, reputation, conduct and legal, regulatory and environmental risk; currency value and interest rate fluctuations, including as a result of market and oil price volatility; the effectiveness and adequacy of our risk management and valuation models and processes; legislative or regulatory developments in the jurisdictions where we operate, including the Organisation for Economic
Co-operation
and Development Common Reporting Standard, and regulatory reforms in the United Kingdom and Europe, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision’s global standards for capital and liquidity reform, and those relating to bank recapitalization legislation and the payments system in Canada; amendments to, and interpretations of, risk-based capital guidelines and reporting instructions, and interest rate and liquidity regulatory guidance; exposure to, and the resolution of, significant litigation or regulatory matters, our ability to successfully appeal adverse outcomes of such matters and the timing, determination and recovery of amounts related to such matters; the effect of changes to accounting standards, rules and interpretations; changes in our estimates of reserves and allowances; changes in tax laws; changes to our credit ratings; political conditions and developments, including changes relating to economic or trade matters such as tariffs; the possible effect on our business of international conflicts, such as the war in Ukraine and conflict in the Middle East, and terrorism; natural disasters, disruptions to public infrastructure and other catastrophic events; the occurrence of public health emergencies and any related government policies and actions; reliance on third parties to provide components of our business infrastructure; potential disruptions to our information technology systems and services; increasing cyber security risks, which may include theft or disclosure of assets, unauthorized access to sensitive information, or operational disruption; social media risk; losses incurred as a result of internal or external fraud; anti-money laundering; the accuracy and completeness of information provided to us concerning clients and counterparties; the failure of third parties to comply with their obligations to us and our affiliates or associates; intensifying competition from established competitors and new entrants in the financial services industry, including through internet and mobile banking; technological change, including the use of data and artificial intelligence (AI) in our business; the heavy reliance on AI-related capital spending for U.S. growth and the uncertain employment impacts from its adoption; global capital market activity; changes in monetary and economic policy; general business and economic conditions worldwide, as well as in Canada, the U.S. and other countries where we have operations, including increasing Canadian household debt levels and global credit risks; climate change and other ESG-related risks, including our ability to implement various sustainability-related initiatives internally and with our clients under expected time frames and our ability to scale our sustainable finance products and services; our success in developing and introducing new products and services, expanding existing distribution channels, developing new distribution channels and realizing increased revenue from these channels; changes in client spending and saving habits; our ability to attract and retain key employees and executives; our ability to successfully execute our strategies and complete and integrate acquisitions and joint ventures; the risk that expected benefits of an acquisition, merger or divestiture will not be realized within the expected time frame or at all; and our ability to anticipate and manage the risks associated with these factors. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of our forward-looking statements. These and other factors should be considered carefully and readers should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements contained in this report represent the views of management only as of the date hereof and are presented for the purpose of assisting our shareholders and financial analysts in understanding our financial position, objectives and priorities and anticipated financial performance as at and for the periods ended on the dates presented, and may not be appropriate for other purposes. We do not undertake to update any forward-looking statement that is contained in this report or in other communications except as required by law.
