A poll of Canadian business owners shows Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce is "far and away the worst bank" in providing services to the country's smallest companies.
The survey, released Tuesday, is based on responses by 12,124 business owners and it was conducted last year. It is part of a broader report by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, which also examined how market share has changed over the past 20 years.
It found CIBC has lost almost half its small business market share over the past two decades. Royal Bank of Canada and National Bank have lost a quarter of that share. Bank of Nova Scotia and credit unions, on the other hand, have almost doubled their market share.
"Some banks – CIBC in particular – appear to have missed a real opportunity here," CFIB president Catherine Swift said in a release. The poll results "may help explain CIBC's drop in total market share in the small business segment."
Among "micro" businesses -- those with zero to four employees -- credit unions came out tops in terms of fees, financing and services. Scotiabank ranked second. CIBC was last of 10 financial institutions on the list.
Among small businesses -- five to 49 employees -- credit unions were first, followed by HSBC. CIBC was again last in that category.
It ranked first, however, among medium-sized outfits. Mid-sized businesses with 50 to 499 staff placed CIBC as their top bank, followed by HSBC.
The study said the vast majority of businesses, or 97.8 per cent, fall into the micro and small categories.
Access to financing has long been a sore point for many smaller Canadian business owners, made more difficult by the recession. The report said loan applications are being rejected at the highest rate since 2000, with one in five applications turned down.
In conducting the poll, business owners were asked questions on banks' willingness to lend, lending terms, bank service fees, access to full-service branches, and treatment by account manager.
The 16-page report, entitled Banking on Better Services, also examined how market share has changed. It said CIBC has lost the most market share among the small and medium-sized businesses, falling to 10.1 per cent in 2009 from 19.3 per cent in 1989. RBC still has the largest share, but it too has lost ground, falling to 18.3 per cent last year from 24.3 per cent.
"These findings should be viewed as troublesome, especially for CIBC and Royal Bank, and worrisome to SME borrowers and policy makers," the report said.
Both credit unions and Scotiabank have strengthened their positions. Credit unions have seen a 5.2-percentage-point increase in 20 years, while Scotiabank has increased its market share by 6.9 percentage points.
"Credit unions dominate in serving the smallest businesses," the report said.
CIBC declined to comment.
The poll was released Tuesday and conducted between March and May, 2009.