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  5. GSY: I read one of the questions pertaining to GoEasy which talked about them being resilient during the 2008 financial crisis. [goeasy Ltd.]
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Q: I read one of the questions pertaining to GoEasy which talked about them being resilient during the 2008 financial crisis. In 2008, were companies such as GoEasy really impacted here in Canada ,as the banking regulations are different in Canada and the crisis was much more prevalent in the US. But this time around, if the tariff's kick in and a recession hits Canada, do you believe that GoEasy will still be able to weather the storm in a similar fashion, as I feel that there has been a very huge selloff of GoEasy in recent months. Do you think it may be overdone?
Asked by Walter on February 04, 2025
5i Research Answer:

While our banking system was certainly stronger at the time than the US, make no mistake there was indeed a recession in Canada in 2008/09. Although the effects on Canada were milder than on the United States and in Europe, the Canadian recession of 2008–09 was still severe enough to generate sharp declines in output and employment and to require significant responses by Canadian policy-makers.The TSX fell 35% in 2008 and the Canadian dollar fell sharply. Of course, no recession nor stock reaction are the same, and certainly GSY is not completely immune. Its stock fell 51% in 2008. But our point in the prior discussion was that it remained profitable: it earned 85c per share in 2008 (down from $1.14 in 2007) and earned 62c in 2009. Perhaps more important, its dividend was raised in 2008 and was not cut during the crisis.