April 2014 – SparxTrading

Posted on April 25, 2014 by user — Leave a comment

Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup – April 25, 2014

When taking a position in a trend, timing is everything – just don’t tell the folks sporting a playoff beard about ‘peak beard’ though. As we wind through earnings season, it looks like more than a few traders may be trimming positions as well as beards as markets round out the week slightly in the red.

Unlike markets, this past week showed that several discount brokerages appear to be very much in the green as retail investors appear to continue the march back into the stock markets. This week also showed how a pair of Canadian online brokerages aren’t afraid to tackle the idea of commitment. The first of the pair took a look at a financial plunge many Canadians take with weddings. The second discount brokerage looked at a big commitment of another kind as they launched their new career oriented social media channel. Finally, we round out with a pair of interesting forum posts and some very bad investing advice from a new Nike commercial.

Guess Who’s Back?

From time to time we look to the activity of US investors to serve as a proxy for what might be happening with Canadian investors also. The most recent earnings figures from several of the major publicly traded US discount brokerages that came out this past week painted a relatively positive picture with strong results being posted across the board at TD Ameritrade, Schwab and E*TRADE.

Having Your Cake and Paying For it Too

A recent study sponsored by BMO InvestorLine also caught our eye this past week as it took a look at the financial plunge associated with taking the big plunge. In their news release, BMO InvestorLine reported that, on average, Canadians fork over $15,000 for a wedding, with those between the age of 18 and 44 reporting an average spend of $18,150. Fascinating as the study was, we’re not sure if many Canadians are as committed to their discount brokerages as they are to their spouses.

#WorkHardForTheMoney

In an interesting move Questrade took its talent scouting social this past week by launching their own career-focused Twitter handle @QuestradeCareer. While there may be some relation to the health of brokerages in the US, the decision to be hiring is a signal that brokerages may be doing ‘ok’ on this side of the border. Over the past several months, there have been a number of positions advertised at several discount brokerages to attract and retain talent, which is evidence of yet another area in which Canadian discount brokerages may be competing with one another.

From the Forums

In addition to being a somewhat quiet week around the discount brokerage space, the investor forums also showed a bit of a dip in terms of chatter about brokerages and markets. Nonetheless, the following two discussions were shareworthy.

ETFs vs Stocks

In this post from the Financial Wisdom Forum, an interesting discussion about the pros and cons of individual stock ownership vs. using ETFs. This thread was particularly noteworthy because it highlighted that there’s a case to be made for each and which of the two is “ideal” really depends on an individual’s situation and goals.

A Penny Stock Saved

This thread from RedFlagDeals’ forum started out as a story that one user shared about their experience trading penny stocks with TD Direct Investing. What ensued from that, however, was an interesting discussion between community members on trading in penny stocks (for better or worse) at several different Canadian online brokerages.

That’s a wrap for this quick version of the roundup. Of course as we point out from time to time, sports and competition can be a great learning space for investing do’s and don’ts. Every now and then, however, there’s a big neon sign that flashes ‘don’t do it’. One of those messages comes courtesy of a really entertaining Nike soccer ad that encourages individuals to #riskeverything – to which we have to #HumblyDisagree. Hope you’re weekend is a ball!

Posted on April 18, 2014 by user — Leave a comment

Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup – April 18, 2014

With the shortened trading week this week, it looks like markets got a chance to end the week on a high note. Now that spring is in full bloom (sorry Albertans) there will most certainly be tulips – which serve as an appropriate reminder about how crazy bubbles can form and burst.

As much as price is driven by supply and demand, the forces of competition are interesting to watch unfold in the discount brokerage market where, yet again, a commission drop was announced by a major bank-owned brokerage except this time with a twist. In addition to competition in price, there also appears to be movement in the investor education space – something that may be the next battleground amongst Canadian discount brokerages. Of course, with the competition comes complexity. Thankfully, an exciting announcement from here at SparxTrading will hopefully make things easier for DIY investors to do their research as the competition amongst brokerages continues to heat up.

Scotia iTrade Commission Pricing Drop

This past week Scotia iTrade jumped into the price drop ring but with a twist. Instead of keeping pace with the other bank-owned brokerages at the standard commission pricing level, Scotia iTrade announced that they’re going to go after the highly active (and highly valuable) trader segment and lower their best commission level from $6.99 down to $4.99 flat for clients that make 150 or more trades per quarter.

While in dollar terms, the offer may not seem like a lot, for highly active traders, the savings are substantial enough to probably get their attention. The savings for traders that make 150 or more trades per quarter translate into at least $1200 per year.

One of the reasons why this deal ups the ante with both bank-owned brokerages and independent brokerages is because traders at that level of activity also qualify for free access to premium level of Scotia iTrade’s FlightDesk platform. This platform is a fairly robust trading tool so other brokerages that cater to the highly active segment will have their work cut out for them to match the total value of the offering.

The ‘cherry-on-the-sundae’ however is that Scotia iTrade is also pairing the new pricing drop with a deal. They’re offering up either cash back or free trades for new and existing clients that range from $50 to $500 or 100 free trades to 500 free trades depending on the deposit size. To learn more about the deal, check out our discount brokerage deals section.

Be on the look-out for an in-depth look a couple of follow up pieces we’re putting together on the commission price drop and the active trader segment.

View the story “Scotia iTrade Cuts Commissions for Active Traders” on Storify

We All Need Some Education

In a regular scan of the Canadian discount brokerage landscape, we picked up something interesting on a pair of different webpages.

On Credential Direct’s home page we spotted a large banner pointing to educational resources being offered to clients. While it just speculative at this point, it appears that after the session with Dan Bortolotti, Credential Direct may be moving to offer more education as part of its service offering.

CIBC Investor’s Edge has also picked up in activity by offering a couple of webinars this year, with the most recent one being a webinar on using some of Morningstar’s research features.

Although these moves are modest by comparison, investor education is definitely on the minds on several brokerages and even recent articles seem to suggest that self-directed investors can expect more of it to come.

Better Discount Brokerage Reviews Coming

For many self-directed investors, choosing or comparing online brokerages is no easy feat. In fact, this past week there two articles (this one on Morningstar by Gail Bebe, and this one on Globe Investor (paid) by Rob Carrick) that were published to try and add some clarity to the process. Thankfully, however, the process of researching and choosing an online trading account is about to get a little easier.

As announced in our post earlier this week, we’re getting set to roll out our new, redesigned brokerage profiles. The new profiles will make the research process much more efficient by including information that may self-directed investors are interested in learning about. We’re rolling out a beta version to a small group of industry participants before rolling it out in beta format at the end of this month. Check out the following post for more details.

From the Forums

Biting the Hand that (Data) Feeds You

The conversation on HFTs is still alive and well. In the following post on Canadian Money Forum, there was an interesting question posted on whether community members tended towards market orders or limit orders.

When the Dust Settles

Getting an order filled in stages can be stressful (and sometimes expensive) scenario that traders find themselves in. In the following post from the RedFlagDeals forum, there was an interesting thread that highlights the importance of understanding how particular brokerages treat partial fills for orders and why knowing your order types matters.

That does it for this week’s roundup. Hopefully everyone will have a chance to stop and smell the flowers this weekend – which is a great reminder going into Earth Day next week to take care of the green outside of your portfolios as well as inside.

Posted on April 17, 2014 by user — Leave a comment

New Online Brokerage Reviews Coming Soon

Just in time for Easter, SparxTrading.com is pleased to announce the roll-out of some very egg-citing features we’ve been working on. While we have been hinting about some improvements for some time, we’re glad to announce that they’re just about ready to be unveiled.

This year will have several big features launched, but one of the first big announcements has to do with a core feature of SparxTrading.com – our discount brokerage profiles. Specifically, we’re creating a new and improved user-centred platform for Canadian self-directed investors to learn about Canadian online brokerages.

Early beta access will be granted to industry members shortly with wider beta access available by the beginning of May.

This post explains why we decided to upgrade as well as what the upgrades will entail.

Starting at the Beginning

Our choice to start by looking at Canadian online brokerages and making the process of choosing a brokerage simpler, reflects the importance that we place on getting started on the right foot with self-directed investing.

Understanding how online brokerages work, what the processes and costs of trading are and staying on top of educational opportunities are things that we believe self-directed investors should be able to find out about easily, reliably and inexpensively. And, while choosing which brokerage to use seems like a simple enough task, it can actually end up impacting every trade a self-directed investor makes.

Our first version of online brokerage comparisons and profiles enabled visitors to access essential product and pricing details for the most popular kinds of trading that many Canadians engage in. As we have grown in popularity and learned what users were looking for, we saw the need to make things even easier and clearer for our visitors.

Building by Listening

Most of what we have implemented on SparxTrading.com has been informed by data and user feedback and what our data has been telling us is that there is an opportunity to offer a greater user experience.

For that reason, our improved brokerage profile pages are built around clearly connecting visitors with product knowledge, providing awareness of different promotions and/or current events as well as data from popular reviews all on one page. With our new online brokerage profiles, users can expect an improvement in the way in which they learn about, share their experiences with and connect to Canadian online brokerages.

A Platform to Learn

Constantly staying on top of the Canadian discount brokerage marketplace is hard work. The highly competitive landscape means information about pricing, products and promotions is always changing. In order to make better-informed decisions about choosing an online brokerage, however, it is critical to be able to access timely and accurate information on the choices that are out there.

Our new online brokerage reviews offer Canadian consumers convenient and comprehensive information about a discount brokerage that was previously scattered across many different websites. When combined with our online brokerage comparisons section, consumers have a full view of what is currently being offered by different brokerages and what price.

The redesigned profiles enable consumers to learn about online brokerage pricing and products (including platforms), current promotions (if they’re available for that brokerage), educational events as well as read the results of reviews done on brokerages all on one page. In addition, for those interested in learning more about a particular brokerage’s recent activities, the related articles link enables users to connect to stories on SparxTrading.com that mention or feature the discount brokerage.

A Platform to Share

When it comes to discount brokerages, every investor may have slightly different needs and therefore have different experiences with their brokerage. We understand that many self-directed investors would like a channel to share those experiences, whether they be positive or negative, with prospective clients as well as with online brokerages.

Fortunately, SparxTrading.com is widely read by both consumers as well as by online brokerages, so feedback is viewed by both groups. The new profiles will provide an opportunity for users to post and read comments made by other users or would-be users of a particular brokerage – again conveniently located on the broker profile.

A Platform to Connect

Whether it’s to find out more information about a brokerage or to get in touch with them directly, we provide easy to find contact points about a brokerage. New on the profiles this year, users will notice two important changes.

First, we are providing links to a brokerage’s social media presence – if they have one. While it is not a widespread practice, some brokerages do have a presence on social media (such as a Twitter feed or LinkedIn page) and for those that do, we’ve provided users with a quick way to connect to those channels.

A second important change for this year is that hyperlinks to brokerage sites will now be active only if/when a brokerage enables those links. To help facilitate the transition we will be leaving the links up during the beta test phase. After that point, however, only those brokerages that subscribe to this feature will have it enabled.

We’d Love Your Feedback

Since we built SparxTrading.com for self-directed investors, we always value feedback on what features users enjoy, which features they’d like to see added and which one’s they’re not so crazy about. During this beta testing phase we’ll be ironing out some of the bugs and so if you happen to notice a feature that isn’t working quite right, drop us a note with the details and we’ll look into it.

Turning an Exciting Corner

The exciting changes we’re rolling out this year mean that self-directed investors will be able to access information about Canadian discount brokerages in a way that they haven’t been easily able to do before. Of course the new online brokerage profiles are just the start of some exciting improvements we have planned.

In addition to the content improvements, we’ve been working harder to make our site much more mobile friendly and will be implementing some further design improvements to ensure visitors can do their discount brokerage research effectively on smartphones, tablets and desktops.

Stay tuned as we will be enabling beta access for a select group of users first and then widening access to all users. If you are with a discount brokerage and would like early access to the new profiles, please contact us directly. Note, only users replying from official organization emails will be allowed to participate for early release.

Posted on April 11, 2014 by user — Leave a comment

Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup – April 11th 2014

Between a few days of markets selling off and glitch named ‘heartbleed’ that is turning the internet upside down, it has been a tough week for anyone sitting behind a screen. For those with a view of the outdoors, however, it has probably been even tougher as the nice weather has finally started to show up in Montreal and Toronto (save the bragging Vancouver). The online brokerages may have to wait to get outside, however, as many of them were very busy this past week dropping prices, introducing products and navigating the ‘busy season’ for investors.

In this week’s roundup we look at an interesting trend highlighted by one of Canada’s largest discount brokerages. Next we look at another cost reducing product for investors, this time in the mutual fund space. A pair of updates to the deals section takes us to the halfway point. For TFSA holders, we found a great video offering tips for those trading US stocks with dividends. Finally we round out with some interesting tweets that we spotted as well as some informative forum threads.

Thoughtful Thirties

There’s something about turning 30 that makes people, and discount brokerages, a little more reflective. This past week, as part of their 30^th anniversary, TD Direct Investing reflected on how the profile of the ‘typical’ investor has changed since the launch of their discount brokerage service in 1984. As part of their news release, TD Direct Investing highlighted that online investors are more diverse with younger investors and women investors forming a greater percentage of the investing population. The timing of this announcement was interesting as there were two separate articles that also highlighted the growing interest and perhaps the advantage that younger investors have in the online trading space.

Mutually Assured Discount

BMO InvestorLine recently announced the roll out of a new group of 33 discounted mutual funds, known as Series D, to online investors. Also in the announcement was the news that management fees were being lowered on the Series F products. The move by BMO InvestorLine into the low-cost mutual fund arena appears to be in line with both RBC Direct Investing and TD Direct Investing in this space.

Discount Brokerages Dealing Back In

A pair of moves in the discount brokerage promotions section over the past week signaled that competition for clients remains high.

Starting with Questrade, they have taken a seat back at the $100,000 table by introducing a cash back offer of $250. Their iPad mini offer (or cash back) offer for deposits at this level recently expired however this latest move looks like they’re interested in buying back in.

BMO InvestorLine also checked on their $300 + 300 trade offer by further extending the deadline for this deal from April 9^th to April 30^th.

Little Birdies

Birds chirping is a great sign of spring. Online however, tweets from investors across the Twitterverse can be a little less delightful. This past week there were a couple of interesting moments we spotted. First, as Questrade found out, even though the ice on the sidewalks is gone, there’s still room for tax slips to cause problems. Of course, with the warmer weather also comes a bit of heat – which is what one twitter user sent Scotia iTrade’s way when asking about the ability to route orders to the new ‘HFT – free’ exchange IEX.

No Party in the TFSA

While Miley Cyrus may enjoy rocking out in the USA, having US dividend paying stocks in a TFSA is a bit of a portfolio wrecking ball. The following video from Rob Carrick and the Investor Education Fund provides a quick overview on how to navigate the tricky waters of withholding taxes and registered accounts.

From the Forums

Bucking a Fee

In the following post from RedFlagDeals, community members were alerted to an interesting observation from an Interactive Brokers Canada client – namely that minimum monthly fees of $10 appear to be waived for clients with assets over $100,000.

D is for…

The announcement by BMO InvestorLine of a low cost mutual fund series that could rival either TD or RBC was certainly enough to get the discussion going on the forums. Interestingly while the announcement caught the attention of forum members, so too did the way in which the roll-out took place.

That does it for this week’s roundup. For those in the west – enjoy the summer, and for those in the east, brace yourselves for a potential dusting. Yes, April is still full of surprises all around. For those trying to make sense of all the heartbleed hype, here is a comical explanation:

Posted on April 4, 2014 by user — Leave a comment

Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup – April 4, 2014

If the acronym HIMYM means something to you, then you know this past week was a drama filled one on screens across the globe. It’s hard to imagine more drama than the HIMYM ending, however that was certainly the case across the screens of traders as the debate on high frequency trading has taken a very public turn, implicating online brokerages, exchanges and crazy computers.

In this week’s roundup there is a full dance card. We take a look at another major Canadian online brokerage that has connected to the Canadian Securities Exchange, the new set of deals that have come along with the beginning of April, trading volumes from a major US brokerage, a major online trading story rattling investors’ nerves north and south of the border and finally, some interesting views from the Canadian investor forums.

Scotia iTrade Goes Online with the CSE

Although Scotia iTrade had telegraphed earlier in March that they would be enabling online trading with the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE), a formal announcement was made this past week from the CSE and Scotia iTrade. For self-directed investors, the move means that it is becoming easier to access trading on this increasingly popular exchange. To learn more about which major online brokerages offer online trading access to the CSE listed stocks, click here.

New Month New Deals

With the month comes a new set of promotions and deals from Canadian online brokerages. The current deals section showcases two of the major offers that were announced in March by TD Direct Investing as well as Desjardins Online Brokerage respectively. Even though there were many deals that expired at the end of March, it is likely that additional offers will be coming from several brokerages looking to get the attention of self-directed investors in the market for a new trading account.

In addition to the list of offers, there is a contest that was announced by Questrade earlier this week focusing on Spring Cleaning one’s portfolio. They will be giving away prizes of 5 free trades per week as well as a grand prize of 10 free trades to one lucky winner. To qualify, individuals must post on the Questrade forum or Facebook page, or write a tweet to @Questrade with #SpringCleaning in the message. For full contest details, click here.

Trading Volumes Steady

Interactive Brokers released their monthly trading statistics from March of 2014. On a year-over-year basis, the latest figures paint an improving picture across key metrics such as daily average revenue trades (DARTs), new accounts and margin loan balances. When compared on a month-over-month basis, however, the figures are about the same as the previous quarter.

While it is too early to tell what this plateau means, it certainly is an interesting development because the growth rate in retail investor participation may be tapering.

HFT Coming to a Flashpoint

Slowing momentum in retail investor is one thing however a loss of confidence from investors is something completely different.

While the story of whether high frequency trading is harmful to markets or helpful has been playing out over the past few years, it seems that the story has taken a recent twist. Specifically, recent publicity from 60 minutes and media coverage of the book “Flash Boys” by Michael Lewis has touched off a firestorm of scrutiny and renewed the debate on whether or not HFT should be curbed altogether.

Many online brokerages in the US were caught in this crossfire, with the publicly traded ones suffering some early selling pressure of their stocks on the speculation that their participation in paid order flow will either end or be curbed. Even major trading exchanges, such as BATS, have been caught in the fray.

The story continued to pick up steam as Interactive Brokers announced that they would be connecting to the ‘HFT free’ exchange IEX, started by one of the individuals who blew the cover off HFT practices, Brad Katsuyama. Within Canada, the promise of an “HFT free” exchange has been taken up by Aequitas Innovations.

The debate on HFT and paid order flow is far from over. With the recent revival of interest and major publicity, it is a safe bet that major Canadian brokerages and market participants will be looking at how to position themselves on the issues of paid order flow and HFT. Stay tuned as this will be exciting to follow.

From the Forums

Algorithms Gone Wild

The debate around HFT was not only played out in the media but also on many threads on the Canadian Investing forums. Here is a list of a few very interesting conversations that took place on high frequency trading:

Financial Wisdom Forum: Proof of Front Running and How to Prevent it

RedFlagDeals Forum: on Stewart interviews Michael Lewis on high frequency trading (HFT)

Tweed Goes Up In Smoke

Every now and then a really instructive moment comes along about how ‘reliable’ online trading can sometimes not be. In an interesting story, a company named ‘Tweed’ that is linked to medical marijuana, had more than a few trading hiccups as it debuted trading.

The following posts highlight some of the frustrations experienced by discount brokerage clients that couldn’t access the early trading. Interestingly, this is one of those times where being shut out by the trading gods actually works out for the best.

That does it for this week’s roundup. For those Game of Throne’s fans that do not manage to catch the premiere, it will be an epic adventure to avoid any spoilers! Good Luck!

Posted on April 1, 2014 by user — Leave a comment

Discount Brokerage Deals & Promotions – April 2014

[*Updated 4/15/14*] There are noticeably fewer discount brokerage deals & promotions at the start of April than at the same time last month. That said, this is spring and there are any number of surprises that can pop up.

While the month starts off on a slightly leaner note than month’s past there were a couple of very big deals announced in March from TD Direct Investing as well as from Desjardins Online Brokerage (Disnat) which should have rival brokerages cooking up a response in the near future.

Coming into April, several deals saw an extension of their deadlines including deals from BMO InvestorLine, Disnat, Virtual Brokers and Scotia iTrade. Of these deals, BMO’s offer is set to expire in early April which suggests that something interesting may be coming from this online brokerage in the days to come.

In terms of expired offers, the major offers from HSBC InvestDirect and National Bank Direct Brokerage were the biggest ones that concluded at the end of March. That said, there are likely promo offers that NBDB is working towards as they continue their push to maintain competitiveness with the bigger online brokerage players in the space.

For investors looking for a promotion or a deal on an online trading account, the good news is that there is still lots to choose from and there are offers that span all activity levels of investor. If the previous months have been any indicator, however, there is likely more to come in the near future especially as Canadians ponder which online brokerage they’d like to invest their income tax refunds with.

New Deals

[Updated 4/15/14] – Scotia iTrade has launched a sizable deal this month with a $500 cash back OR 500 free trade offer for deposits of $500,000 or more. This is largest deposit promotion we’ve seen in some time, a sign that competition is heating up. Cash back or free trade offers are also being made available for deposits of $15,000-$99,999 ($50 or 100 free trades) and for deposits of $100,000-$499,999 ($250 or 250 free trades). In addition, this deal also comes with 6 months free access to Scotia iTrade’s FlightDesk platform and coverage of transfer fees up to $150. More details below]

[Updated 4/14/14 – Questrade jumped back into the deals space again this month, this time with the launch of their cash back offer of $100 for a deposit of $50,000 or $250 for a deposit of $100,000 or more. More details below.]

Disnat ‘hat trick’ offer
TD Direct Investing Free Trade Offer
Questrade Cash Back Promotion
Scotia iTrade $500/500 trade

Extended Deals

BMO InvestorLine $300 cash back + 300 trade offer [Update 4/14/14: BMO has extended the deadline for this offer from April 9th to April 30th]
Disnat $300 commission credit
Virtual Brokers 25 free trades offer
Scotia iTrade refer-a-friend

Expired Deals

BMO InvestorLine: RSP Cross Sell Promotion
Credential Direct’s 5+5 Offer
HSBC InvestDirect Dalbar Award Trading Offer
NBDB Commission Credit Offer
Questrade iPad Mini Offer
Questrade Unlimited Trade Offer
RBC Direct Investing’s 20 Free Trade Offer
Scotia iTrade Stanley Cup Promotion

Discount Brokerage Deals

Brief Description	Minimum Deposit Amount	Commission/Cash Offer Type	Time Limit to Use Commission/Cash Offer	Details Link	Deadline
A Sparx Trading exclusive offer! Use the promo code “Sparx Trading” when signing up for a new account with Jitney and receive access to their preferred pricing package and a massive 45% discount on the Real Tick trading platform.	n/a	Discounted Commission Rates	none	For more details click here	none
Open and fund a new account at TD Direct Investing with either A)$99,999 or less or B)$100,000 or more and receive commission rebates on either A)30 trades or B)300 trades. New accounts must be opened by April 30, 2014. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for full information on this offer.	A)$0-$99,999 B)$100,000+	A) 30 commission free trades (rebated) B) 300 commission free trades (rebated)	Trades must be executed by August 1, 2014 4pm ET to qualify for rebate.	TD Direct Investing Free Trade Offer	April 30, 2014
Open a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) and receive $50 commission credit . Use promo code: kdkfnbbc	$1,000	$50 commission credit	none	none	none
Open an account with Virtual Brokers with a deposit at least $1,000 and Virtual Brokers will offer 25 commission free trades which can be used for up to 1 year. Use promo code “FTR2” when signing up. This offer is open to new clients only. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for full details on this offer.	$1,000	25 commission-free trades	365 days	25 free trades offer	June 30, 2014
Refer a friend to Questrade and when they open an account you receive $100 and they receive $50. To receive this deal you must be an existing client with an equity account and refer a person that does not reside with you and who has not previously opened a Questrade account.	$1,000	$50 commission credit (friend) $100 commission credit (referrer bonus)	60 days	Refer a friend	none
Open a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) by July 1 2014 A) $1000 or B) $10,000 to receive either A)10 commission-free trades or B)100 commission-free trades. The promo code QT100 must be used at time of account opening. There are many conditions attached to this offer so be sure to read the details link for more information.	A)$1,000 B)$10,000	A)10 free trades B)100 free trades	60 days	100 commission-free trades	July 1, 2014
As part of their Stockscores tour, Disnat Direct is offering a “hat trick” promotion. Open a new account with at least $10,000 by June 15, 2014 and receive: $300 in commission credits, 3 months of trading at $5 commission per trade, 3 months of platform access to DDWeb/DDXtra and 1 year’s free subscription to TradeScores daily newsletter. Use the promo code “Hat Trick” when registering via phone. Read the terms and conditions for more details.	$10,000	1) $300 commission credits 2) 3 months of $5/trade commission rate 3) 3 months platform access to DDWeb/DDXtra 4)1 year’s free subscription to TradeScores daily newsletter	1) 3 months	Disnat Direct Hat Trick Promotion	June 15, 2014
If you refer a friend/family member who is not already a Scotia iTrade account holder to them, both you and your friend get a bonus of either cash or free trades. You have to use the referral form to pass along your info as well as your friend/family members’ contact info in order to qualify. There are lots of details/conditions to this deal so be sure to read the details link.	A)$10,000 B)$50,000+	A) You(referrer): $50 or 10 free trades; Your “Friend”: $50 or 10 free trades (max total value:$99.90) B) You(referrer): $100 cash or 50 free trades; Your “Friend”: $100 cash or 50 free trades (max total value: $499.50)	60 days	Refer A Friend to Scotia iTrade	June 30, 2014
Open and fund a new Scotia iTRADE account with at least $15,000 before June 30, 2014 and the commissions associated with your first 100 trades placed within 60 days of the date the account is activated and funded are free. Also, the new FlightDesk platform is being offered for free for 60 days. Use promo code HUN-SP. See details link for further terms and conditions.	$15,000	100 commission-free trades ($999 value @ $9.99 commission rate)	60 days	Scotia iTrade 100 free trades + FlightDesk	June 30, 2014
Open a new account by June 29 & fund with: A) between $15,000-$99,99 B) $100,000-$499,999 or C)$500,000+ and receive either A)$50 cash back or 100 free trades B)$250 cash back or 250 trades or C)$500 cash back or 500 free trades. Also, Scotia iTrade is including 6 months free access to their FlightDesk trading platform. Use promo code: SPTRD14 for free trades and CSHSG for cash back. Be sure to read the terms & conditions on this deal.	A)$15,000 – $99,999 B)$100,000 – $499,999 C)$500,000+	A)$50 or 100 free trades B)$250 or 250 free trades C)$500 or 500 free trades	Cash Back: deposit by Feb 28/15 Commission Rebate: 90 days	$500 Cash Back or 500 Free Trade promo	June 29, 2014
Disnat is offering new & existing clients $300 in commission credits which can be used for up to 6 months. To be eligible, new/existing clients need to deposit $50,000 into a Disnat account. You’ll have to call 1 800 268-8471 and mention promo code Disnat300. See details link for more info.	$50,000	$300 commission credit	6 months	Disnat $300 Commission Credit Promo	August 29, 2014
Open and fund a new account with Questrade before May 30th 2014 and receive either A)$100 or B)$250 cash back for a deposit of either A)$50,000 or more or B)$100,000 or more. This offer is open to new and existing clients. Use promo code CASHBACK250 to qualify. Be sure to read the full terms and conditions associated with this offer.	A)$50,000 B)$100,000	A)$100 cash back B)$250 cash back	Payout occurs within 30 days of account funding	Cash Back 250 Offer	May 30th, 2014
If you refer a new client to BMO InvestorLine and they open an account with a)$50,000 – $249,999 or b)$250,000+ the referrer and the referee will both receive cash. The new account must be opened with the referral code specific to the referrer.	A) $50,000 – $249,000 B) $250,000+	A) You(referrer): $200; Your Friend(referee): $50 B) You(referrer): $300; Your Friend: $100	Payout occurs after 60 days (subject to conditions).	Refer A Friend Terms & Conditions	October 31, 2014
[Main offer]Open a new account or deposit new funds of $100,00 or more and you can be eligible for cash rebates of $250 and 250 commission-free trades (Promo code: RSP250). [Bonus Offer] If you open a new account or fund another account you could also be eligible for an additional $50 and 50 commission-free trades (Promo code ADD50). Be sure to read the full details & terms of this offer.	$100,000 (main offer) $5000 (bonus offer)	[main offer] $250 cash back + 250 commission-free trades (max value $2500) [Bonus offer] $50 + 50 commission-free trades	90 days	$300 + 300 trade offer	April 30, 2014

Transfer Fee Deals

Brief Description	Maximum Transfer Fee Coverage Amount	Minimum Deposit Amount for Transfer Fee Eligibility	Details Link	Deadline
Tranfer $15,000 or more and Scotia iTrade may cover up to $150 of the transfer fee.	$150	$15,000	$500 Cash Back or 500 Free Trade promo	June 29, 2014
Transfer $15,000 or more to RBC Direct Investing and they will pay up to $135 in transfer fees	$135	$15,000	Transfer Fee Rebate Details	none
Move your brokerage account to Questrade and they’ll cover the transfer-out fee up to $150.	$150	$25,000	Transfer Fee Promo	none
Transfer at least $25,000 to TD Direct Investing and TD will cover up to $150 in transfer fees	$150	$25,000	TD Direct Investing Free Trade Offer	April 30, 2014
Virtual Brokers will cover transfer fees from your transferring institution to a maximum of $150 per account. This offer is only applicable to accounts opened with at least $25,000 in equity before June 30, 2014	$150	$25,000	Transfer Fee Promo	June 30, 2014
Transfer $25,000 or more to a National Bank Direct Brokerage account and they will pay up to $135 plus taxes in transfer fees	$135	$25,000	Transfer Fee Rebate	none
Qtrade Investor will reimburse your transfer fee up to $125 when transferring a balance of $25,000 or more. For reimbursement, please mail or fax a copy of your statement from the transferring institution that shows the transfer charge to Qtrade Investor at 604.484.2627 and indicate your Qtrade Investor account number.	$125	$25,000	Transfer Fee Promo	none
Disnat is offering up to $150 to cover the cost of transfer fees from another institution. To be eligible, new/existing clients need to deposit $50,000 into a Disnat account. You’ll have to call 1 800 268-8471 and mention promo code Disnat300. See details link for more info.	$150	$50,000	Disnat $300 Commission Credit Promo	August 29, 2014