The federal deputy finance minister wanted to “keep the heat off the bank branches” after accounts belonging to supporters of the Freedom Convoy movement were frozen, according to internal emails from the finance department.
“You should know that there have been threatening activities at certain bank branches,” Michael Sabia wrote to Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Feb. 18, 2022. “This is causing the banks considerable concern for the safety of their employees. Indirectly, if we aren’t careful on this, they will pull back.”
