It's not every day, or even every decade, that a big foreign bank decides to have a go at Canada's retail banking market, The Canadian Press is reporting Wednesday.

But it said Spain's Banco Santander -- which has already shown an ability to attract customers, with more than 168 million of them worldwide -- is poised to be among the few that have tried as it nears the all-clear to expand in Canada.

Wednesday's report said a fresh international challenger has the potential to add competition to the country's banking oligopoly, though it added experts warn it won't be easy to shake up the status quo.

"You'd think the Canadian banking market should be ripe for disruption, and yet that never seems to happen," said Andrew Spence, author of the recently published book, "Fleeced: Canadians versus their banks."

The Canadian market, where the Big Six banks made about $54 billion in profits in 2024, should be tempting because it consistently shows margins well ahead of other regions, said Spence.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally, and/or from other media sources. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)