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That's what I like about Canadian banks. They have a system in place they promote as sending money via email. You don't really send it through email. It's simple a system all the major banks in Canada have adopted. I can transfer money from one account to another, quickly and easily, with minimal fuss. It takes 30 minutes, and I believe this is more for security reasons then purely technical reasons. It makes sending money in Canada so incredibly easy.

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Yes, I lived in Canada for three years, and had the impression that the electronic transfer capabilities of their banks surpassed what's available in the U.S. Perhaps this is due (in part) to the fragmentation of the banking system in the U.S.? In Canada there are essentially five banks that dominate the banking industry - see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Five_(banks). There is also more regulatory control of banks in Canada, which likely makes it easier to require standard operating procedures, consistent infrastructure, etc.

I remember payments in NZ being <1 min -- possibly seconds -- 10-15 years ago, as there was a single clearing-house for all EFT, nationally.

Same thing in The Netherlands, I can transfer money to my dad and it shows up almost instantly in his account.

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