The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that deputy governor Toni Gravelle said Wednesday that the Bank of Canada is prepared to support the financial system if the banking-sector turmoil in the U.S. spills across the border and hits Canadian banks and markets. The Globe's Mark Rendell writes that Mr. Gravelle said that the Canadian banking system remains strong and financial markets are functioning. However, he said the BOC was "ready to act in the event of severe market-wide stress and provide liquidity support to the financial system." Mr. Gravelle's remarks were the BOC's first direct comments since the failure of Silicon Valley Bank on March 10 sent shockwaves through the global banking system. Two other U.S. regional banks have failed in recent weeks, and Swiss lending giant Credit Suisse was forced into an emergency sale to rival UBS Group. Mr. Rendell says current events remind him of the financial crisis of 2007 and 2008. Mr. Gravelle said, "Canadian banks weathered the global financial crisis well, and, since then, their resilience has been further strengthened with the implementation of new, higher global standards." Mr. Gravelle said BOC officials were "polishing off" their "contingency plans."