CIBC Investor’s Edge
By Lee Bennett, Senior Vice President, Direct Investing and Advice
This is an exciting time in the online brokerage space. With over $455 billion in assets, online brokerages in Canada are seeing an influx of investors as more and more Canadians choose to manage their own investments. CIBC Investor’s Edge is one of the fastest growing online brokerages and we are committed to putting our clients first and providing best-in-class services and resources.
2018 was a busy year for Investor’s Edge. We expanded our online education content, focused on the needs of millennial investors, and continued to invest in our trading platform.
Online education content
Our clients may make their own investing decisions, but we know they want access to the latest research and analysis to make smart and informed decisions. In our new Knowledge Bank library, clients can choose from a wide selection of videos and articles from CIBC economists, portfolio managers and tax and financial planning experts, covering topics a diverse range of topics.
We also host regular webinars, providing clients with the opportunity to learn directly from industry experts and ask questions.
Young investors
The needs and behaviours may change from one generation to the next, but we know they have one thing in common: they have financial goals that they want to achieve. We’ve made it easier for young investors to reach their goals on a student budget. Eligible post-secondary students now pay only $5.95 per online equity trade and we waive the annual fee on all accounts, regardless of account balance.
In 2018, we became the lead sponsor of the Capitalize for Kids (C4K) Student Challenge, an online investing competition for post-secondary students. Participants put investment theory into practice and compete for a $10,000 grand prize while raising funds for a cause that is important to so many of us — children’s mental health. The C4K Student Challenge was a great success in 2018 and we will continue to sponsor the event in 2019.
Investing in our trading platform
This year, we made things faster and easier, and we expanded the trading services available on our mobile platform.
Clients can now easily sign on to the Investor’s Edge mobile platform with finger print authentication and facial recognition. Improvements in our onboarding process means clients can now open an account online more efficiently and in less time.
We brought option trading to mobile devices and added more content and information to help clients learn about options and option trading strategies.
As we invest in our platform, protecting our clients and maintaining their trust is always front of mind. In the new year, we’re introducing enhancements to further strengthen our security features so clients can continue to know their accounts are safe and protected.
Looking Ahead
CIBC’s vision is to be the leader in client relationships, which means we put the client first, always. We are excited and proud of what we accomplished this year, and excited to deliver more. We have many new trading and reporting features planned for 2019, but we’re also looking beyond the next year with work already underway to deliver huge advancements to our clients over the course of the next several years.
Lee Bennett joined CIBC Investor’s Edge in June 2018, bringing with her 25 years of experience in the financial services industry.
To learn more about CIBC Investor’s Edge, visit www.investorsedge.cibc.com.