The Globe and Mail reports in its Wednesday edition that the Ontario Securities Commission and industry self-regulator, the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization, have launched an investigation of sales practices in Canadian bank branches. The Globe's Stefanie Marotta writes that the OSC and CIRO said Tuesday that the initial phase of the review will develop an understanding of the sales culture in banks to identify and assess the scale of the potential issues. The OSC and CIRO's announcement follows a media report from CBC News in March that probed alleged high-pressure sales practices for banking products and mutual funds at some Canadian banks. The banking industry's lobby group said maintaining strong customer relationships is fundamentally important for banks. The Canadian Bankers Association said in a statement, "Banks and their employees take comprehensive steps to comply with consumer protection measures and embrace the responsibility of putting customer needs at the center of all product and service recommendations." Canadian banks have faced scrutiny for aggressive sales practices before. In 2018, a Financial Consumer Agency of Canada review found Canadians could be sold unsuitable products.