For investors looking to load up on financial stocks some of the best options available come from Canada’s banking sector. The stability enjoyed by these banks comes from their regulations handed down from the federal government and the less combative relationship between the banks and its regulators. Even the fact that the Canadian economy declined in the previous quarter these banks have managed to post higher net incomes and generated better revenues across their operating divisions.

In Canada the banking sector is primarily comprised of what is called the Big 5 banks, Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RYRY), Toronto-Dominion Bank (NYSE:TD), Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) aka Scotiabank, the Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) and the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce.

While all of these banks are based in Canada and focus the bulk of their attention on their home country all have managed to push beyond their borders for growth. TD for example has managed to grow its personal/commercial banking presence in the United States, while RBC and BMO have made significant inroads into the American wealth management industry. Then you have Scotiabank which has managed to diversify itself internationally to the point were half of its revenues come from outside of Canada. Finally you have CIBC which is making it latest effort into the United States after a few missteps (*cough* Enron *cough cough* subprime mortgages).

Still all of these banks offer lots of upside for investors, especially those looking for long-term dividend backed growth. All of these banks have a long track record of consistent dividend growth and most recently RBC in its Q3 2016 raised its quarterly dividend by C$0.02 to C$0.83.

Here in the following chart, you can see which of these banks offer the best options in terms of their dividends, and the order is arranged to reflect my overall ranking of these banks.

In first place is RBC a bank I have a long term hold on due to its record setting earnings and its place as Canada’s largest bank. In second place is Canada’s second largest bank TD Bank, it offers investors a strong Canadian personal banking portfolio and a growing presence in the United States. In third place is Scotiabank, this bank offers the best exposure to emerging and Asian markets while still maintaining a large enough presence in Canada to keep it balanced. In fourth place is BMO which has been growing its wealth management operations on both sides of the border but may face some issues from its mounting provisions for credit losses. Finally last but not least is CIBC who after a change in leadership is looking to regain ground in the banking sector both in Canada and in the U.S. with a fresh set of acquisitions, hopefully this time without repeating any of their past mistakes (*cough* Enron *cough cough* subprime mortgages).