Giller Prize parts ways with sponsor Scotiabank after more than a year of protests

Protesters are escorted out of the Four Seasons Hotel by police after interrupting the Scotiabank Giller Prize ceremony in Toronto, on Monday, Nov.13, 2023.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young Chris Young

TORONTO — The Giller Prize has parted ways with its lead sponsor Scotiabank more than a year after members of the literary community began protesting the bank’s ties to an Israeli arms manufacturer.

The Giller Foundation, which administers Canada’s richest fiction prize, says its relationship with Scotiabank is over as of Monday.

The organization’s statement does not address the reason for the split.

In it, executive director Elana Rabinovitch says the Giller Foundation is indebted to Scotiabank for a partnership that spanned 20 years and deepened the annual prize pot to $125,000 -- including $100,000 for the winner.

Pro-Palestinian activists began protesting the Giller at the 2023 ceremony, and members of the literary community began a boycott of the award ahead of last year’s event in November.

They object to a Scotiabank subsidiary’s stake in Israeli arms manufacturer Elbit Systems.

The foundation says it will “explore new opportunities and collaborations” following the split.

A Scotiabank representative said by email the bank had no comment.

Rabinovitch previously said the contract with Scotiabank was to end at the end of 2025.

In a statement Monday, she said the literary foundation looked forward to “an exciting new era.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 3, 2025.

By Nicole Thompson