This is the weekend edition of the Daily Briefing, so it covers the whole week.

1. Jensen Huang is out at Nvidia, and Canadian pensions own a big piece of it

Four days after admitting an affair, Huang resigned on Thursday as Nvidia’s president, CEO and board member, ending 33 years running the company he co-founded. CFO Colette Kress is interim CEO, and former Synopsys chief Harvey C. Jones became the board’s first-ever chair, Nvidia said. The scandal turned political because of reports that U.S. officials believe the woman involved is a Chinese intelligence asset, which China denies. Those reports rest largely on anonymous sources. Our explainer separates what’s confirmed from what’s alleged.

Why it matters: Seven of Canada’s biggest pension funds held about $29 billion CAD of Nvidia shares as of June 30, The Logic reports, and Nvidia is a returning investor in Cohere’s planned Series E. Nvidia reports quarterly results on Tuesday, its first under Kress.

2. Canada’s instant payment system is running

Payments Canada switched on the Real-Time Rail on Monday with eight participants, led by Wealthsimple and KOHO. None of the Big Six banks is in the first wave; they join in later phases, with every institution targeted by mid-2027. Every payment gets a real-time fraud score, and a “confirmation of payee” check lets you verify who owns an account before you send money.

Why it matters: Instant payments are also instant for scammers, so the fraud checks are the feature to watch. Being on the rail doesn’t mean your app uses it yet: check before assuming a transfer will land instantly.

3. Microsoft 365 went down for most of two days

Outlook started failing around midday ET on Thursday, and Teams, Copilot and other Microsoft 365 apps followed. Service was still only gradually coming back by late Friday morning. In Canada, Unity Health Toronto declared a Code Grey, several universities and colleges lost email, and Via Rail told passengers to rely on its train tracker. Microsoft says it has seen no sign of malicious activity and will publish a root-cause report.

Why it matters: It’s the second major Microsoft 365 incident in about two months. Email sent during the outage may still trickle in late.

4. What Bill C-22 would require, and why Signal might leave

We read the lawful access bill, now in Senate committee. It would let police demand basic subscriber details on a lower standard than most warrants, and let Cabinet require “core providers” to build access capabilities and keep metadata for up to six months. It rules out forced decryption of end-to-end encrypted messages that a provider can’t decrypt, but critics say it still leaves room to order changes to how a service is built. Signal says it would rather leave Canada than comply, and Toronto VPN company Windscribe says the same.

Why it matters: Who’s on the “core provider” list, and what the minister orders in secret, will be decided later by regulation. The Senate is the last chance to change the wording.

5. Xplore enters creditor protection

The rural internet provider obtained CCAA protection from the Ontario Superior Court on Tuesday. It says service, rates and support won’t change. The problem is cash flow: government subsidies for its fibre builds pay out near the end of construction, and permitting delays stretched those timelines.

Why it matters: Current customers don’t need to do anything. Rural households waiting on Xplore fibre, including in a $181-million Newfoundland and Labrador build, may face delays.

6. Rogers: higher Shaw internet prices, and a hockey fight at the CRTC

Shaw internet customers will pay $7 more a month from Feb. 18, 2027, according to a billing notice first reported by iPhone in Canada; discounts and fixed-term plans are protected until they end. Separately, Cogeco, Eastlink and SaskTel asked the CRTC to rule that making Monday Night Hockey a Sportsnet+ exclusive breaks a Rogers-Shaw merger condition. Sportsnet says it will defend the exclusive.

Why it matters: If your Shaw promo is ending, call before February. Outside Rogers TV, Monday games cost an extra $12.99 a month for now.

7. Blue J raises $176 million USD for AI tax research

The Toronto U of T spinout raised about $249 million CAD at a $700-million USD valuation (about $990 million CAD), the Globe and Mail first reported. It now has more than 6,500 client firms, up from just over 1,000 at the end of 2024. Nearly $100 million USD of the round buys shares from employees and early investors.

Why it matters: It’s a big round for a narrow AI tool professionals already pay for, and it lets early staff cash out while the company stays private.

That’s the week. The first weekday briefing lands Monday morning. Have a tip or a correction? We want to hear it.