During the Great Recession, financial institutions in the US and around the world nearly collapsed as inter-bank transactions came to a virtual standstill. Some financial institutions were sustained by government bailouts, while others simply went belly-up. Financial giants Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) and Citigroup (NYSE: C) were forced to slash or suspend their dividends as part of drastic cost-cutting efforts—their dividends have yet to recover to their previous yields.

By contrast, Canadian banks did not require bailouts; their dividends remained unscathed by the financial crisis and their reputations untarnished. For the past four years, Canada has been recognized as having the world’s soundest banking system due to its banks’ strong balance sheets as well as its thorough regulatory oversight. Investors looking to add a financial name with a stable yield to their portfolio should look north.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE: RY) is the largest bank in Canada as measured by market capitalization, deposits and revenue. The bank boasts more than 17 million customers in 56 countries and is also North America’s leading diversified financial services company, providing wealth management and insurance along with its core banking operations. Its capital base, credit ratings and balance sheet liquidity are among the strongest of all banks globally.

As a Schedule I bank, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) operates under a government charter as a true domestic bank. These major regulated banks have a reputation for being stable institutions.

RBC maintains a conservative Tier 1 capital ratio of about 13 percent. This ratio compares a bank’s equity and reserves against its total risk-weighted assets. The safest dividend-paying banks generally have Tier 1 capital ratios above 10 percent.

With a 65 percent payout ratio, the bank’s dividend is well supported by earnings. Last year, RBC increased its dividend by 8 percent to $0.54 per quarter, with a current yield that’s slightly less than 4 percent.

Despite last year’s difficult financial market, RBC led all major Canadian banks in overall volume growth, and total revenue increased 5.2 percent to $27.4 billion from the prior year.

However, its bottom line fell about 7 percent to $4.9 billion due largely to a $1.3 billion write-off from the sale of its US retail banking operations to PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE: PNC). RBC’s average deposits were up 9 percent to $17 billion as a result of steady growth in personal and business deposits.

Canadian banking, RBC’s largest segment, grew revenue 15 percent to $3.4 billion and contributed over half of the company’s total earnings. This solid growth was driven by increased volume in home equity loans, personal loans and personal deposits. Revenue for RBC Capital Markets—its corporate and investment banking division—jumped 20 percent.

With more than $538 billion in assets under administration and $307 billion in assets under management, the company’s high-growth RBC Wealth Management is the world’s sixth-largest wealth manager.

The wealth management segment generated $809 million in net income, up 21 percent from last year. Its global asset management division saw revenue surge 41 percent to $301 million from a year ago, mainly due to higher levels of fee-based client assets.

RBC manages about $20 billion for affluent clients living in the developing world and seeks to expand that figure to $50 billion by 2015.

RBC’s solid balance sheet and conservative operations make this Canadian bank a safe option for income-seeking investors.