Tag: HSBC InvestDirect

HSBC InvestDirect

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Discount Brokerage Deals & Promotions – May 2018

*Update: May 29*  There’s an old trader tip that says “buy when it snows and sell when it goes.” Now, it wasn’t too long ago that the snow actually did leave but the arrival of May “should” mean no more snow. Alas, snow wasn’t the only thing disappearing to kick off this month. Several Canadian discount brokerages decided to hang up their promotional skates (for the moment anyway) which has certainly cleared the field for those brokerages actively promoting offers, to continue to post offers to win over new clients and assets.

Discount Brokerage Deals Quick Nav

  1. Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions
  2. Referral Promotions
  3. Transfer Fee Promotions
  4. Contests & Other Offers
  5. Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

Yes, the big story heading into the new month isn’t who arrived but rather who stepped back. As of the beginning of May, HSBC InvestDirect, National Bank Direct Brokerage and Virtual Brokers all let the clocks on their respective offers run out.

For DIY investors seeking out cash-back promotions, the field is slim, with either Questrade (via their referral offer) or BMO InvestorLine (whose offer also comes with free trades) providing easy to access cash back offers.

Scotia iTRADE and BMO InvestorLine also offer referral promotions with a cash-back component to them however accessing these offers requires more effort that either Questrade’s referral-based cash-back offer or BMO’s standard offer. Side note, BMO InvestorLine’s referral offer can be combined with their current commission-free trading + cash back offer.

It will be interesting to see just how long competitor online brokerages to BMO InvestorLine and Questrade are willing to sit on the sidelines while both firms dominate the deals field unchallenged (at least for now). For the moment, however, the stats are clear: for DIY investors looking for a deal are going to focusing hard on the only brokerages in the spotlight at this point.

Correction: an earlier version of the table that referenced a cash reward of $400 at Questrade for a deposit of $250,000 was incorrect. The current table has been updated with correct information.

 

Expired Offers

Several offers from Canadian online brokerages expired at the end of April. Virtual Brokers’ transfer fee technically expired, while National Bank Direct Brokerage’s commission-free trading promotion also expired. HSBC InvestDirect’s cash back promotion officially ended after having been extended just a little while longer.

Extended Offers

No offers were extended as of the beginning of May.

New Offers

*Update May 29 – After an interesting little blip in the deals section, National Bank Direct Brokerage is back once again with their commission-free trade offer.

The deal, which is interestingly not posted on their promotions section or in their header slider, is being advertised (and was discovered) on Facebook. In any case, there is a live link to the offer that we’ve included in the table below.

This new offer is similar previous commission-free trade deal of 25 trades which are good for one year except there is also promotional pricing of $6.95 per trade when the 25 trades are used up. This is actually quite a compelling offer for anyone interested in trying out NBDB because they are lowering their standard commission pricing down from $9.95 to where CIBC Investor’s Edge pricing is on a standard basis. So, although this discounted pricing is temporary, it definitely means National Bank Direct Brokerage has one of the most competitive offers out there.

See table below for more information.*

*Update May 7 – After a long absence from the commission-free trade section of the deals section, RBC Direct Investing is stepping back into the mix with a new offer of 20 commission-free trades which are good for up to one year. This is likely to be a popular offer in the category for several reasons. First, the hurdle to qualify for this offer is incredibly low – the minimum deposit required is only $5,000. Second, RBC Direct Investing is part of Canada’s largest bank, which means there’s lots of attention this offer will garner from DIY investors. Last (but not least), there are fewer players on the deals field at the moment which necessarily means this offer will get more exposure. Scroll down to read additional details.*

No new offers to announce at the outset of May.

Discount Brokerage Deals

  1. Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions
  2. Referral Promotions
  3. Transfer Fee Promotions
  4. Contests & Other Offers
  5. Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Commission/Cash Offer/Promotion Type Time Limit to Use Commission/Cash Offer Details Link Deadline
Jitney Trade A Sparx Trading exclusive offer! Use the promo code “Sparx Trading” when signing up for a new account with Jitneytrade and receive access to their preferred pricing package. n/a Discounted Commission Rates none For more details click here none
Open and fund a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) with at least $1,000 and you may be eligible to receive $88 in commission credits (up to 17 commission-free trades). Use promo code SPARX88 when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions carefully. $1,000 $88 commission credit 60 days Access this offer by clicking here: $88 commission-credit offer . For full terms and conditions, click here. none
Open and fund a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) with at least $1,000 and you may be eligible to receive 5 commission-free trades. Use promo code 5FREETRADES when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions carefully. $1,000 5 commission-free trades 60 days 5 commission-free trade offer December 31, 2018
Open a new account at National Bank Direct Brokerage with at least 5,000 and you may be eligible to receive up to 25 commission-free trades, good for up to one year. There is also a promotional discounted commission-pricing available within the first year to individuals who use up their 25 trades; trading commissions for the first year are $6.95. Use promo code SPRING 2018 when signing up to be eligible for this offer. This offer is also available to existing clients. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. $5,000 25 commission-free trades + $6.95 commission per trade pricing 365 days National Bank Spring Offer July 6, 2018
Open and fund a new account at RBC Direct Investing with at least $5,000 in net new assets and you may be eligible to receive up to 20 commission-free equity trades which are good for up to one year. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. $5,000 20 commission-free trades 365 days RBC Direct Investing Commission-free Trades Promotion June 14, 2018
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage is offering new clients 1% of assets transferred into the new account in the form of commission credits (to a maximum value of $1,000). Minimum qualifying deposit is $10,000. To qualify, individuals will have to call 1-866-873-7103 and mention promo code DisnatTransfer or email: [email protected]. See details link for more info. $10,000 1% of assets transferred in the form of commission-credits (max credits: $1,000) 6 months Disnat 1% Commission Credit Promo May 31, 2018
Open and fund a new qualifying account with at least $25,000 and you may qualify for one month of unlimited commission-free trades and up to one month free of an advanced data package. Use promo code ADVANTAGE14 when opening a new account. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. $25,000 commission-free trades for 1 month + 1 month of advanced data. 1 month Active Trader Program December 31, 2018
BMO InvestorLine Open a new qualifying account with BMO InvestorLine or fund a qualifying existing account, with at least A) $50,000; B) $100,000 or C) $300,000+ in net new assets and you may be eligible to receive up to 20 commission-free equity trades plus A) $50 cash back; B) $150 cash back or C) $500 cash back. Commission-free trades are good for up to two months. In addition, eligible individuals can receive an extra $50 as part of the refer a friend program. Use promo code SPRING when signing up. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for more details on the offer. A) $50,000 B) $100,000 C) $300,000 20 commission-free equity trades AND A) $50; B) $150 C) $500. Commission-free equity trades are good for up to two months. Cash back will be deposited the week of January 21, 2019. BMO InvestorLine Spring 2018 Campaign May 31, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: May 29, 2018 10:15 PT

Referral Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Incentive Structure Time Limit to Use Commission/Cash Offer Deposit Details Link Deadline
Refer a friend to Questrade and when they open an account you receive $25 cash back and they receive either A) $25; B) $50; C) $75; D) $100; or E) $250 depending on the amount deposited amount. Enter code: 476104302388759 during account sign up to qualify. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for eligibility and additional bonus payment structure and minimum balance requirements. A) $1,000 B) $10,000 C) $25,000 D) $50,000 E) $100,000+ $25 cash back (for referrer per referral; $50 bonus cash back for every 3rd referral) For referred individuals: A) $25 cash back B) $50 cash back C) $75 cash back D) $100 cash back E) $250 cash back Cash deposited into Questrade billing account within 7 days after funding period ends (90 days) Refer a friend terms and conditions Code Number: 476104302388759 none
Scotia iTrade 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 tbd
BMO InvestorLine If you (an existing BMO InvestorLine client) refer a new client to BMO InvestorLine and they open an account with at least $50,000 the referrer and the referee may both be eligible to receive $50 cash. To qualify the referee must use the email of the referrer that is linked to their BMO InvestorLine account. See terms and conditions for full details. $50,000 You(referrer): $50; Your Friend(referee): $50 Payout occurs 45 days after minimum 90 day holding period(subject to conditions). BMO InvestorLine Refer-a-Friend October 31, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: May 1, 2018 22:45 PT

Transfer Fee Promotions

Company Brief Description Maximum Transfer Fee Coverage Amount Minimum Deposit Amount for Transfer Fee Eligibility Details Link Deadline
Transfer $15,000 or more to Qtrade Investor from another brokerage and Qtrade Investor may cover up to $150 in transfer fees. See terms and conditions for more details. $150 $15,000 Transfer Fee Rebate none
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
Transfer $20,000 or more to a National Bank Direct Brokerage account and they will pay up to $135 plus taxes in transfer fees. $135 $20,000 Transfer Fee Rebate none
Transfer $25,000 or more from another brokerage and Credential Direct will cover up to $150 in transfer fees. Use promo code SWITCHME when signing up to qualify for the transfer promotion. $150 $25,000 Credential Direct Transfer Fee Rebate 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 or more in new assets to TD Direct Investing when opening a new account and you may qualify to have transfer fees reimbursed up to $150. Be sure to contact TD Direct Investing for further details. $150 $25,000 Contact client service for more information (1-800-465-5463). none
Transfer $25,000 or more into a CIBC Investor’s Edge account and they will reimburse up to $135 in brokerage transfer fees. Clients must call customer service to request rebate after transfer made. $135 $25,000 Confirmed with reps. Contact client service for more information (1-800-567-3343). none
Disnat 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 1-866-873-7103 and mention promo code DisnatTransfer. See details link for more info. $150 $50,000 Disnat 1% Commission Credit Promo May 31, 2018
BMO InvestorLine Open a new qualifying account with BMO InvestorLine or fund a qualifying existing account, by transferring in at least $200,000+ in net new assets and you may be eligible to have transfer fees covered up to $200. Use promo code SPRING when signing up. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for more details on the offer. $200 $200,000 BMO InvestorLine Spring 2018 Campaign May 31, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: May. 1, 22:35 PT

Other Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Required Details Link Deadline
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage, in conjunction with MoneyTalks, is offering 3 months of the “Inside Edge” investor information service to Desjardins Online Brokerage clients. Use promo code DESJ2016 during checkout to qualify. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for more information. n/a MoneyTalks Inside Edge Discount none
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage is offering $50 in commission credits for new Disnat Classic clients depositing at least $1,000. See terms and conditions for full details. $1,000 Broker@ge 18-30 Promotion none
Scotia iTrade Scotiabank StartRight customers can receive 10 commission-free trades when investing $1,000 or more in a new Scotia iTrade account. Trades are good for use for up to 1 year from the date the account is funded. Use promo code SRPE15 when applying (in English) or SRPF15 when applying in French. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for full details. $1,000 StartRight Free Trade offer none

Expired Offers
Last Updated: May. 1, 2018 22:35 PT

Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

Robo-advisor / Digital advisor Offer Type Offer Description Min. Deposit Reward / Promotion Promo Code Expiry Date Link
Discounted Management Open and fund a new Questrade Portfolio IQ account with a deposit of at least $1,000 and the first month of management will be free. For more information on Portfolio IQ, click the product link. $1000 1st month no management fees KDKFNBBC None Questrade Portfolio IQ Promo Offer
Discounted Management Open a new account with BMO SmartFolio and receive one year of management of up to $15,000 free. See offer terms and conditions for more details. $1,000 1 year no management fees STSF April 1, 2018 SmartFolio New Account Promotion
Cash Back – Referral BMO SmartFolio clients will receive $50 cash back for every friend or family member who opens and funds a new SmartFolio account. Friends and family referred to SmartFolio will receive $50 cash back for opening and funding an account, plus automatic enrollment into SmartFolio’s mass offer in market at the time. See offer terms and conditions for more details. $1,000 $50 cash back (referrer) $50 cash back (referee) Unique link generated from SmartFolio required. None SmartFolio Website
Transfer Fee Coverage Transfer at least $25,000 into Virtual Wealth when opening a new account and you may be eligible to have up to $150 in transfer fees covered by Virtual Wealth. $25,000 up to $150 in transfer fees covered None None Contact customer service directly for more information.
Last Updated: May 1, 2018 22:45 PT
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Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup – April 6, 2018

Welcome to April 2018, where the invisible hand has taken to typing away tweets to move markets. The power of digital platforms and the importance of making deals coincidentally happen to be two important themes that Canadian online brokerages are also picking up on, although in a far less blustery manner.

In this edition of the roundup, we take a look at the bullish indicators to come out of the latest online brokerage promotions numbers. From there, we take a deep dive into one bank-owned brokerage’s timely refresh of a website which could be a savvy move to attract active investors seeking to participate in market volatility. And, speaking of volatility, there were some very intriguing tweets from DIY investors about what’s happening in the discount brokerage space as well as some great posts on the investor forums.

Deals Update

Despite the turmoil and uncertainty in the stock market, the Canadian discount brokerage deal offers continue to look bullish for DIY investors.

The latest snapshot of deals for new online investing accounts is now live and this month’s action saw two online brokerages extend offers that were set to expire at the end of March as well as the release of a rare cash back and commission-free trade offer.

Starting first with the extensions, HSBC InvestDirect and Desjardins Online Brokerage both pushed the deadline for their offers out to April 30th and May 31st respectively. What is especially interesting about the HSBC InvestDirect renewal is that it is a cash back offer and now one of only two cash-back offers (the other is from BMO InvestorLine) that DIY investors can choose from that is not part of a refer-a-friend program. Given the attention DIY investor deal hunters place on cash back offers, the absence of competition in this offer segment works out well for both bank-owned online brokers.

The other bullish indicator was the latest offer from BMO InvestorLine, which went live shortly after the roll out of their new front-end website. This latest offer is a rare cash back AND commission-free equity trade promotion that combines a tiered cash bonus and up to 20 commission-free equity trades, which are good for up to two months.  Conveniently, this kind of offer doesn’t force users to choose between either a cash bonus or commission free trade, which is nice, and the cash offer itself is fairly competitive alongside the current cash offers. Also interesting to observe was the minimum deposit amount to qualify for the promotion is $50,000, which is lower than the typical threshold of $100K+.

Once again, it appears that transfer fee promotions have stepped back into the lead as the most common offer available at just about every Canadian online brokerage. As we noted last month, Qtrade Investor now sits atop this list since they lowered their deposit threshold to $15,000 from the common watermark of $25,000. It will be interesting to see which online brokerage decides to match this offer – especially Credential Direct and/or Desjardins Online Brokerage as they move through the process of merging together with Qtrade Investor.

The only deal that didn’t make it through to the end of March was the discounted trading commission offer from Virtual Brokers. Not known for staying on the promotions sidelines for too long, Virtual Brokers may already be cooking something up for the not too distant future.

In fact, we’ll be watching to see what unfolds in April. As stock market turmoil heats up, online brokerages may have to turn to some very creative offers and incentives to encourage investors to open an online investing account rather than sitting out the Twitter storm and market volatility.

BMO InvestorLine Rolls Out New Website

The reality for brands to be online today requires staying fresh to stay interesting. For financial service providers, this presents a unique challenge.

On the one hand, financial services rely heavily on conveying trust, reliability and consistency and as a result, keeping changes to a minimum. On the other, considerations such as user experience and design elements are being considered as metrics of trust now more than ever before in the organization and delivery of online brokerage websites.

Screenshot of new website for BMO InvestorLine

It is against this backdrop, as well as an ongoing evolution in digital strategy, that BMO InvestorLine’s recent website refresh highlights some important trends in design and communicates some key stakeholders BMO InvestorLine is looking to reach.

Although there is lots to dive into, three of the most interesting components of the website refresh fit neatly into the following categories: personas, perks and platforms.

Fair warning, talking about website design might seem overly technical, but when competition between providers is so close, this refresh serves as an example that small changes can make a big difference in how easily users find information and how useful it is when they find it.

Personas

One of the more noticeable changes on the new BMO InvestorLine website is the space dedicated to investor ‘personas’ – or depictions of typical kinds investors. While personas are not new, it is interesting to see the variation in how they’re used. In a refresh that Credential Direct undertook last year, for example, personas were an important part of how the content on the website connected more meaningfully with website visitors.

With BMO InvestorLine’s new layout, these personas feature prominently and use an interesting combination of pictures of individuals as well as text to explain the features/benefits of the category of investor each persona is meant to represent. For example, in terms of writing style, the language used more directly addresses the reader or an approximation of the reader’s investing experience level (e.g. ‘you’ve got the basics and now want more insights…”). It is a subtle thing but as mentioned earlier, it also helps to connect a little more directly with a reader.

Screenshot of investor persona types described by BMO InvestorLine

Another interesting visual element is how DIY investors are portrayed.

Historically, investors have typically been portrayed as older men, however the choices of imagery selected here clearly communicate that DIY investors are more diverse. This trend towards greater diversity and inclusivity is not unique to BMO InvestorLine but reflective of a larger trend in financial services providers doing a more effective job of representing the diverse nature of the Canadian population.

Further, the pictures chosen are of individuals staring into the camera and smiling – not reading a screen or doing some other stereotypical “investing” activity. This was an interesting and powerful choice as it psychologically connects viewers with the person in the image, and communicates safety and satisfaction (as opposed to communicating, “this is what investors look like when they’re investing”).

Perks

Another interesting angle on the new page is how promotional offers as well as “perks” are featured.

BMO InvestorLine is one of a handful of Canadian online brokerages that consistently puts forward promotional offers (see below for more on the new InvestorLine promotion) throughout the year, so promotions are an important part of the brand offering.

Also intriguing was the positioning of added features as “perks”. This is somewhat rare as other online brokerages generally don’t refer to the features associated with either increased trading activity or larger account sizes as perks (or if they do, it’s certainly more muted), but labeling these features in this way enhances the feeling of receiving a bonus. It may be a small change but it is an important one as it makes the idea of getting something seem a bit more special. And, after all, who doesn’t like ‘perks’?

Platforms

A third interesting feature on the new BMO InvestorLine website is the increased prominence of their active trading platform, BMO Market Pro.

Screenshot of active trader platform offering (BMO MarketPro).

This trading platform offers an enhanced trading experience with charting tools, alerts, streaming data, order entry and watchlists. Active traders might be interested to know that the bar to qualify for access to Market Pro is 30 trades per quarter or at least $250,000 in assets with BMO InvestorLine. Interestingly, while the threshold to qualify for this advanced platform (30 trades per quarter) is standard at peer bank-owned brokerages, BMO Market Pro also includes level 2 streaming quotes for TSX-Venture-listed stocks. This data stream generally costs extra (between $25 to $50/mo) on active/advanced platforms (e.g. Scotia iTRADE and TD Direct Investing charge for this) so having it included is a plus for active investors interested in trading small cap stocks.

The competition between online brokerages extends beyond just pricing and features. As the latest refresh from BMO InvestorLine’s website shows, it also is now in the digital experience arena. Ultimately for the site to be a step forward, it needs to improve how quickly individuals locate the information online that they are looking for.

When looking at the ‘big picture’, the new website shows an interesting shift toward highlighting the ‘platform’ and ‘tools’ offered by InvestorLine, as well as feature-rich offerings like the Market Pro platform and 5-star program. Is it a coincidence that with the market volatility picking up, the messaging is turning more to trading rather than buy-and-hold? Perhaps. But for BMO InvestorLine, it’s certainly good timing to be broadcasting their active trader features.

For DIY investors comparing online brokerages, the key takeaways from this website refresh are that BMO InvestorLine is not standing still when it comes to staying current with online experiences – a metric that is increasingly becoming the standard by which brokerages are going to be judged on. Also, there appears to be a greater emphasis on letting the active traders out there know that BMO InvestorLine has a feature set that they might find worthy of a test-drive.

Discount Brokerage Tweets of the Week

There were a number of interesting tweets from DIY investors this week. Among the items people were talking about (beyond technical difficulties) were revisions to terms of service, new features with yahoo and money disappearing from an account (not from trading). Mentioned this week were BMO InvestorLine, Questrade, RBC Direct Investing, Scotia iTRADE, and TD Direct Investing.

 

From the Forums

Insight-er Trading

Every so often when an online investor turns to the internet for help, there’s a great resource that emerges. In this post from the reddit Personal Finance Canada thread, one user was experiencing some frustration getting an RDSP setup properly. Fortunately, there was a happy ending and an incredibly thoughtful post that helped walk through the experience of setting up a self-directed RDSP at TD Direct Investing.

Ticked Tax

When it comes to getting documents ready for tax filing, nothing gets DIY investors agitated like delays in receiving tax forms. In this post, from reddit’s Personal Finance Canada thread, we spotted a few users waiting for Questrade forms to filter in.

Into the Close

That’s a wrap for this week. While the traders playing volatility had a fun week, there were lots of moments that made it feel like Friday could come fast enough. Of course, there’s probably a soundtrack on Spotify available for those traders out there trying to get out in front of the hot mess that is the news cycle. Wherever the weekend takes you, hopefully it is filled with better news than what’s trending online! In the meantime, here’s a little something to end the week on a fun note.

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Discount Brokerage Deals & Promotions – April 2018

*Updated April 2* Spring is officially here and for DIY investor’s it’s already off to a great start. To begin with, there was a bullish sign heading into April as two online brokerages, Desjardins Online Brokerage and HSBC InvestDirect, elected to extend offers that were scheduled to expire at the end of March.

Discount Brokerage Deals Quick Nav

  1. Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions
  2. Referral Promotions
  3. Transfer Fee Promotions
  4. Contests & Other Offers
  5. Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

In fact, of the four deals set to expire at the end of March, two have already been extended and at least one more, from BMO InvestorLine, is on the way to replace the deal that officially expires on April 1st (it is still live at the time of publication). The only offer that is officially expired at the time of publication is from Virtual Brokers, however there is a strong likelihood that they will not be out of the promotions section for very long.

So, at the kick off to April, there are still two cash back offers on the board, and if the referral promotions are included in there, technically there are five offers on the deals board that DIY investors could use to get a cash bonus upon getting into a new account.

The category with the most offers, by far, is transfer fee coverage offers. As we observed last month, Qtrade Investor lowered the required minimum for investors to qualify from $25,000 to $15,000 and as such, are one of the most competitive offers of the group.

Investors looking for a trading commission-related offer – such as commission free trades or a discounted commission rate, have seven offers to choose from (not including referral offers) so there’s a healthy mix of bank-owned or independent brokerages to choose from in this category.

As always, if there are any other offers that we’ve not listed that might be of interest to other readers, feel free to leave a comment below.

Top cash back promotions at Canadian discount brokerages - April 2018
Top cash back promotions at Canadian discount brokerages – April 2018

Expired Offers

At the time of publication, Virtual Brokers’ discounted commission promotion offer expired.

Extended Offers

HSBC InvestDirect, which is normally somewhat selective in timing offers through the year, elected to extend their cash-back promotion making it and BMO InvestorLine the only two cash-back offers available to all investors.

Also extended was Desjardins Online Brokerage’s popular 1% commission credit offer. The timing coincides with the launch of their new logo as well – a positive sign they’re positioning for interesting activities to come.

New Offers

*Updated April 2: BMO InvestorLine just launched their latest promotion and it is an interesting one! Starting today (April 2nd) and going until May 31st, BMO InvestorLine is offering a cash back and commission-free trade combination promotion. This tiered deposit promotion offers between $50 and $500 for deposits ranging from $50,000 to $300,000+ as well as up to 20 additional commission-free trades which are good for 2 months. Combo offers are rare and the relatively close expiry date signal something very interesting for DIY investors looking for an online trading account to consider. See table below for more details.*

There were no new offers to report at the time of publication, however we’re on the lookout for possible offers coming soon from BMO InvestorLine.

Discount Brokerage Deals

  1. Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions
  2. Referral Promotions
  3. Transfer Fee Promotions
  4. Contests & Other Offers
  5. Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Commission/Cash Offer/Promotion Type Time Limit to Use Commission/Cash Offer Details Link Deadline
Jitney Trade A Sparx Trading exclusive offer! Use the promo code “Sparx Trading” when signing up for a new account with Jitneytrade and receive access to their preferred pricing package. n/a Discounted Commission Rates none For more details click here none
Open and fund a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) with at least $1,000 and you may be eligible to receive $88 in commission credits (up to 17 commission-free trades). Use promo code SPARX88 when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions carefully. $1,000 $88 commission credit 60 days Access this offer by clicking here: $88 commission-credit offer . For full terms and conditions, click here. none
Open and fund a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) with at least $1,000 and you may be eligible to receive 5 commission-free trades. Use promo code 5FREETRADES when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions carefully. $1,000 5 commission-free trades 60 days 5 commission-free trade offer December 31, 2018
Open and fund a new account with Virtual Brokers with at least $5,000 and you may be eligible to receive up to two months of trading at $4.99 per trade (maximum of 15 trades per month). Use promo code 499COM2017 when signing up to qualify. See terms and conditions for full details. $5,000 Up to 2 months of trading at $4.99 per trade (max 15 trades per month) Commissions will be reimbursed after June 30, 2018. For more details, click here March 31, 2018
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage is offering new clients 1% of assets transferred into the new account in the form of commission credits (to a maximum value of $1,000). Minimum qualifying deposit is $10,000. To qualify, individuals will have to call 1-866-873-7103 and mention promo code DisnatTransfer or email: [email protected]. See details link for more info. $10,000 1% of assets transferred in the form of commission-credits (max credits: $1,000) 6 months Disnat 1% Commission Credit Promo May 31, 2018
Open a new account at National Bank Direct Brokerage with at least a) $10,000 or B) $20,000+, and you may be eligible to receive up to A) 10 or B) 25 commission-free trades. For the 10 free trades offer, enter promo code FREE10 and for the 25 free trades offer enter promo code FREE25. This offer is also available to existing clients. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $10,000 B) $20,000+ A) 10 commission-free trades B) 25 commission-free trades 12 months Free Trades Campaign April 30, 2018
Open a new account with HSBC InvestDirect by transferring in at least A) $25,000; B) $100,000; C) $250,000; D) $500,000 or E) $1,000,000 or more from another Canadian financial institution and execute at least three commission-generating trades by April 30th, 2018, and you may be eligible to receive a cash bonus of up to A) $88; B) $188; C) $288; D) $688 or E) $988. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $25,000 B) $100,000 C) $250,000 D) $500,000 E) $1M+ A) $88 B) $188 C) $288 D) $688 E) $988 Transfer-in bonus will be deposited by November 30, 2018. Winter Offer – Transfer-In Bonus April 30, 2018
Open and fund a new qualifying account with at least $25,000 and you may qualify for one month of unlimited commission-free trades and up to one month free of an advanced data package. Use promo code ADVANTAGE14 when opening a new account. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. $25,000 commission-free trades for 1 month + 1 month of advanced data. 1 month Active Trader Program December 31, 2018
BMO InvestorLine Open a new qualifying account with BMO InvestorLine or fund a qualifying existing account, with at least A) $50,000; B) $100,000 or C) $300,000+ in net new assets and you may be eligible to receive up to 20 commission-free equity trades plus A) $50 cash back; B) $150 cash back or C) $500 cash back. Commission-free trades are good for up to two months. In addition, eligible individuals can receive an extra $50 as part of the refer a friend program. Use promo code SPRING when signing up. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for more details on the offer. A) $50,000 B) $100,000 C) $300,000 20 commission-free equity trades AND A) $50; B) $150 C) $500. Commission-free equity trades are good for up to two months. Cash back will be deposited the week of January 21, 2019. BMO InvestorLine Spring 2018 Campaign May 31, 2018

Expired Offers
BMO InvestorLine Open a new qualifying account with BMO InvestorLine or fund a qualifying existing account, with at least A) $100,000; B) $200,000 or C) $300,000+ in net new assets and you may be eligible to receive up to A) $200 or 20 commission-free equity trades; B) $400 or 40 commission-free equity trades; or C) $750 cash back or 75 commission-free equity trades. Commission-free trades are good for up to two months. In addition, eligible individuals can receive an extra $50 as part of the refer a friend program. Use promo code SPARXCASH when signing up for the cash back offer or SPARXTRADES when signing up for the commission-free equity trade bonus. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for more details on the offer. A) $100,000 B) $200,000 C) $300,000 A) $200 or 20 commission-free equity trades. B) $400 or 40 commission-free equity trades. C) $750 or 75 commission-free equity trades. Cash back will be deposited the week of Nov. 12, 2018. Commission-free equity trades are good for up to two months. BMO InvestorLine Winter 2018 Campaign April 1, 2018
Last Updated: Apr. 2, 2018 21:45 PT

Referral Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Incentive Structure Time Limit to Use Commission/Cash Offer Deposit Details Link Deadline
Refer a friend to Questrade and when they open an account you receive $25 cash back and they receive either A) $25; B) $50; C) $75; D) $100; or E) $250 depending on the amount deposited amount. Enter code: 476104302388759 during account sign up to qualify. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for eligibility and additional bonus payment structure and minimum balance requirements. A) $1,000 B) $10,000 C) $25,000 D) $50,000 E) $100,000+ $25 cash back (for referrer per referral; $50 bonus cash back for every 3rd referral) For referred individuals: A) $25 cash back B) $50 cash back C) $75 cash back D) $100 cash back E) $250 cash back Cash deposited into Questrade billing account within 7 days after funding period ends (90 days) Refer a friend terms and conditions Code Number: 476104302388759 none
Scotia iTrade 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 tbd
BMO InvestorLine If you (an existing BMO InvestorLine client) refer a new client to BMO InvestorLine and they open an account with at least $50,000 the referrer and the referee may both be eligible to receive $50 cash. To qualify the referee must use the email of the referrer that is linked to their BMO InvestorLine account. See terms and conditions for full details. $50,000 You(referrer): $50; Your Friend(referee): $50 Payout occurs 45 days after minimum 90 day holding period(subject to conditions). BMO InvestorLine Refer-a-Friend October 31, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Apr. 1, 2018 18:45 PT

Transfer Fee Promotions

Company Brief Description Maximum Transfer Fee Coverage Amount Minimum Deposit Amount for Transfer Fee Eligibility Details Link Deadline
Transfer $15,000 or more to Qtrade Investor from another brokerage and Qtrade Investor may cover up to $150 in transfer fees. See terms and conditions for more details. $150 $15,000 Transfer Fee Rebate none
Transfer $15,000 or more to HSBC InvestDirect, and they will pay up to $150 in transfer fees. $150 $15,000 2018 Winter Offer – Transfer-In Bonus April 30, 2018
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
Transfer $20,000 or more to a National Bank Direct Brokerage account and they will pay up to $135 plus taxes in transfer fees. $135 $20,000 Transfer Fee Rebate none
Transfer $25,000 or more from another brokerage and Credential Direct will cover up to $150 in transfer fees. Use promo code SWITCHME when signing up to qualify for the transfer promotion. $150 $25,000 Credential Direct Transfer Fee Rebate 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 or more in new assets to TD Direct Investing when opening a new account and you may qualify to have transfer fees reimbursed up to $150. Be sure to contact TD Direct Investing for further details. $150 $25,000 Contact client service for more information (1-800-465-5463). none
Transfer $25,000 or more to Virtual Brokers and they may cover up to $150 in transfer fees. $150 $25,000 Transfer Fee promo April 30, 2018
Transfer $25,000 or more into a CIBC Investor’s Edge account and they will reimburse up to $135 in brokerage transfer fees. Clients must call customer service to request rebate after transfer made. $135 $25,000 Confirmed with reps. Contact client service for more information (1-800-567-3343). none
Disnat 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 1-866-873-7103 and mention promo code DisnatTransfer. See details link for more info. $150 $50,000 Disnat 1% Commission Credit Promo May 31, 2018
BMO InvestorLine Open a new qualifying account with BMO InvestorLine or fund a qualifying existing account, by transferring in at least $200,000+ in net new assets and you may be eligible to have transfer fees covered up to $200. Use promo code SPARXCASH when signing up to also be eligible for cash back offer or SPARXTRADES to be eligible for the commission-free trade offer. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for more details on the offer. $200 $200,000 BMO InvestorLine Winter 2018 Campaign April 1, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Apr. 1, 18:45 PT

Other Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Required Details Link Deadline
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage, in conjunction with MoneyTalks, is offering 3 months of the “Inside Edge” investor information service to Desjardins Online Brokerage clients. Use promo code DESJ2016 during checkout to qualify. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for more information. n/a MoneyTalks Inside Edge Discount none
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage is offering $50 in commission credits for new Disnat Classic clients depositing at least $1,000. See terms and conditions for full details. $1,000 Broker@ge 18-30 Promotion none
Scotia iTrade Scotiabank StartRight customers can receive 10 commission-free trades when investing $1,000 or more in a new Scotia iTrade account. Trades are good for use for up to 1 year from the date the account is funded. Use promo code SRPE15 when applying (in English) or SRPF15 when applying in French. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for full details. $1,000 StartRight Free Trade offer none

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Apr. 1, 2018 18:45 PT

Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

Robo-advisor / Digital advisor Offer Type Offer Description Min. Deposit Reward / Promotion Promo Code Expiry Date Link
Discounted Management Open and fund a new Questrade Portfolio IQ account with a deposit of at least $1,000 and the first month of management will be free. For more information on Portfolio IQ, click the product link. $1000 1st month no management fees KDKFNBBC None Questrade Portfolio IQ Promo Offer
Discounted Management Open a new account with BMO SmartFolio and receive one year of management of up to $15,000 free. See offer terms and conditions for more details. $1,000 1 year no management fees STSF April 1, 2018 SmartFolio New Account Promotion
Cash Back – Referral BMO SmartFolio clients will receive $50 cash back for every friend or family member who opens and funds a new SmartFolio account. Friends and family referred to SmartFolio will receive $50 cash back for opening and funding an account, plus automatic enrollment into SmartFolio’s mass offer in market at the time. See offer terms and conditions for more details. $1,000 $50 cash back (referrer) $50 cash back (referee) Unique link generated from SmartFolio required. None SmartFolio Website
Transfer Fee Coverage Transfer at least $25,000 into Virtual Wealth when opening a new account and you may be eligible to have up to $150 in transfer fees covered by Virtual Wealth. $25,000 up to $150 in transfer fees covered None None Contact customer service directly for more information.
Last Updated: Apr. 1, 2018 18:45 PT
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Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup – March 23, 2018

Now that spring has sprung, it’s time to dive right into the next season head first. For online brokerages, after RRSP season comes tax return season. Judging by the response so far to the next busiest time of the year after RSPs, it seems like most Canadian discount brokerages are now shifting gears to figure out their next moves.

We kick off this edition of the roundup with a review of the deals and promotions scheduled to expire at the end of the month. From there we highlight some interesting email newsletters from a pair of online brokerages that prove that e-mail can still hold its own in a social media world. Next, we profile an important strategy document released by one of Canada’s regulators that maps out how to better protect senior investors. Finally, we close out the roundup with a review of the buzz on Twitter and in the DIY investor forums.

Deals Melting Away

The end of March is just around the corner. And, while it signals a positive sign for warmer weather, it won’t only be snow that’s melting away. At the end of March, there are three discount brokerage promotions that are set to expire as well as one from BMO InvestorLine at the beginning of April. Desjardins Online Brokerage did have their commission-free trade credit offer set to expire at the end of March however it has been extended out to May 31st.

That will take the total number of advertised offers down to 19 if there are no replacement offers planned.

Here’s a list of deals that are set to expire at the end of March:

  • HSBC InvestDirect Cash Bonus & Transfer Fee Coverage (expires March 30)
  • Virtual Brokers Discounted Commissions (expires March 31)
  • BMO InvestorLine Cash Bonus & Transfer Fee Coverage (offer expires April 1)

Interestingly, our internal data reveal that online investors are very interested in offers from Canada’s bank-owned online brokerages.  The two bank-owned online brokerages with current offers that are attracting attention from visitors are BMO InvestorLine and National Bank Direct Brokerage.

We’ll be watching to see what, if any, offers are replaced or extended heading into April.

It’s a good sign for DIY investors that Desjardins Online Brokerage has already extended their signature commission-free trade offer through to the end of May and, based on the data from early 2018, there’s a good chance that more extensions and new offers will not be far behind next month.

Trade the News-letter

Interactive Brokers Mines Shareholders for Clients

This week there were two interesting email newsletters from online brokerages that proved email marketing is still a viable method of reaching out to online investors, even in a world cluttered by social media feeds and fragmented sources of information.

The first interesting development was observed in a shareholder letter/newsletter from Interactive Brokers in which a letter from founder and CEO, Thomas Peterffy, provided some unique insight into why Interactive Brokers sought to go public.

According to the letter, Peterffy stated “We went public to raise our profile and as an adjunct to our marketing efforts, in the hope of gaining more customers who would help us become better at servicing them.” It does take quite a bit of effort and consumes resources to go public as well as maintain a listing – reasons perhaps why some of Canada’s non-bank-owned brokerages never saw the need to follow suit. What was particularly noteworthy about this e-mail, however is the direct appeal to become a client before considering to be a shareholder – which is a particularly bold move and perhaps very savvy marketing move.

Source: Excerpt from Interactive Brokers shareholder letter

For all sorts of reasons, the ability to reach out to shareholders is a clever marketing tactic that appeals, likely, to individuals who invest, who know the brand, who are willing to read the notice and who stand to benefit themselves if they also become clients. In terms of marketing and sales, this is a huge coup since the cost of trying to reach, let alone convert, online investors in the US market is quite high. So, not only did Interactive Brokers benefit from being able to raise their profile by being in public markets as a publicly traded firm, this also enabled them the opportunity to market directly to shareholders – many of whom would be ideal target clients and users of their service.

And, whatever Interactive Brokers is doing, seems to be paying off as they were also just crowned the best online brokerage in the US by Barron’s annual ranking of US online brokers.

As with all developments in the US online brokerage space, we often wonder whether something similar could happen with an online brokerage here in Canada.

Could an independent online brokerage like Questrade, for example, simultaneously tap the public markets by going public themselves and open up an entirely new and low-cost marketing channel by advertising directly to shareholders?

Whether or not they need or could efficiently deploy any capital raised from public markets is a separate question altogether, but the benefit of the capital would certainly help fund the scale required to compete against larger peers. And, if Interactive Brokers is any indicator, being public has enabled them to transparently showcase their success quarter after quarter which is the kind of marketing that investors of all stripes can get behind.

Scotia iTRADE Pushes Education

Also spotted in our inboxes this week was a newsletter from Scotia iTRADE which highlighted their shift to focusing more attention on their help/support and educational resources. In the world of DIY investor education, we typically break things down into two major categories of investor education, so it has been interesting to observe Scotia iTRADE build resource and capacity in the ‘education’ space.

The first type of ‘education’ is product orientation, which, simply put, helps clients understand how to use the tools, platforms and features of a particular online brokerage’s service offering. The second category is information about investing itself. So, this latter category refers to topics such as technical analysis, how ETFs or options trading might work etc.

In last week’s roundup, we mentioned that there has been a shift in the way DIY investor education has been delivered by Canada’s online brokerages. In many respects, there’s been a pullback in the resources online brokerages are allocating to orientation and education, and the kind of resources now available are typically video recordings or documents rather than live help sessions or in-person seminars.

As such, it was interesting to see Scotia iTRADE’s latest newsletter on investor education as it is a clear signal that unlike many of their peers, they are continuing to invest in marketing their educational offering as a cornerstone feature to their brand.

In both instances with Interactive Brokers and Scotia iTRADE, it’s clear that email communication with clients is still very much alive and well as a channel to choose from however (and this applies to social media too) being consistent and reliable with producing this content isn’t easy. Scotia iTRADE is making strides in the right direction when it comes to marketing itself and highlighting some of their key differentiators. For their existing clients, this is an important thing to do to keep clients from peering over the fence at what other brokerages are doing. More interesting for Scotia iTRADE, however, is for those clients who do have additional accounts elsewhere to see how competent and interesting Scotia iTRADE might be at delivering updates and talking about feature enhancements.

Strategy for Senior Investors

This past week, the Ontario Securities Commission published its Seniors Strategy (OSC Staff Notice 11-779) that outlines the securities regulator’s vision for evolving the regulatory landscape to better service a growing segment of the Ontario (and Canadian) population – older adults.

The strategy document is fairly comprehensive in its approach, drawing on extensive research of literature and best practices from countries around the world, as well as from research conducted in Canada on the financial profile of older and aging Canadians and by consulting with many experts and seniors advocacy groups. The result of this work is a lengthy but important document that will help to inform the approach of securities regulators and the financial services sector in Canada in doing more to provide important safeguards for older investors.

Some of the concrete steps recommended in this report include:

  1. Requiring that registered firms and their representatives make reasonable efforts to obtain the name and contact information for a client’s trusted contact person if there’s a concern about a client’s behaviour or transactions in a client’s account;
  2. Enabling registered firms and their representatives to place a temporary hold on disbursements from a client’s account.
  3. Enhancing outreach activities to provide tools and resources for older investors, their families and caregivers who support them.

Importantly the report recognized that labels such as ‘seniors’ aren’t reflective of a homogeneous set of attributes and there is a lot of complexity that accompanies the intersection of aging and financial well-being.

It was an interesting week for this report to get published as this week also saw the publication of a somewhat scathing report from the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) regarding the lack of sufficient controls at Canada’s biggest banks to ensure clients are getting their best interests served ahead of the banks that the front line employees represent.

This is especially important given some of the data published in the report, in particular that:

“Low financial knowledge makes the roles of registered firms and their representatives even more important to helping older Canadians meet their financial goals. Investing As We Age found that a majority of investors aged 65 and older work with at least one registered firm; research has also found that registered firms and their representatives have a significant influence on their clients’ investment choices, and that investors working with a registered firm place significant trust and confidence in that firm and its representatives.” P17

For Canada’s online brokerages, it is an interesting prospect to consider how they can more effectively and appropriately consider serving older adult clients.

For starters, understanding that clients have differing needs means that the attributes of a clients will factor more prominently into how services are delivered and potentially what kinds of products or services individuals may have sent to them (e.g. via marketing emails).  Additionally, how materials are prepared, the user experience in the online platforms, the statements and account performance summaries and potentially even the stock screeners, picks and trades that individuals can execute (or allow to be executed on their behalf) could see changes made based, in part, on the findings and recommendations from this study. Could ‘safety’ settings, for example, be in place on stock screeners or cautionary labels be put in place that would apply specifically to older investors?

For DIY investors, the strongest recommendation still continues to be caveat emptor when it comes to choosing an online brokerage. While some folks take the position that there isn’t that big of a difference between online brokerages to entail worrying over which one is the best, the data show that the ‘right’ brokerage is one that meets an investor’s needs rather than one that tries to sell a client on features they do not.

As such, an important step in the DIY investor journey is to determine what those needs are prior to signing up for an account. The forum post below provides an interesting example of this for one DIY investor looking to switch online brokers. For observers, the difference between online brokerages might not be important today, however as this report outlines, as needs change, it is important to be with a service provider that can keep up and keep the client in mind.

Discount Brokerage Tweets of the Week

With tax season now upon us, there was an uptick in tweets about getting accounts and documentation in order. Mentioned this week by Canadian DIY investors were BMO InvestorLine, CIBC Investor’s Edge, Questrade, RBC Direct Investing, Scotia iTRADE, TD Direct Investing and Virtual Brokers.

From the Forums

Market Order

Many investors firmly believe that buying the basket of stocks listed on major indices, such the S&P 500, is an easier approach than trying to pick individual stocks. Of course, picking individual brokerages might not be as easy. One way to figure out which one discount brokerage to choose when attempting this strategy is to crowdsource. This post, from reddit’s Personal Finance Canada thread, highlights several discount brokerages online investors use to keep fees low when buying the market.

Investor Scorned

There are threads about choosing an online brokerage, and then there are threads about choosing an online brokerage. This post, from the Financial Wisdom Forum, offers a fascinating look at how experienced and knowledgeable DIY investors undertake the process of moving brokerages. There’s actually so much information in this post that it is well worth the time to read. It’s especially informative to see that even long-time service providers can fumble the ball to the point that a client wants to try something different.

Into the Close

So, with all that’s going on in the news and markets now trying to price in a number of different, challenging scenarios, Friday really couldn’t come fast enough. That said, there’s really no rhyme or reason for the Trump media train to stop or slow down. It is already turning into another incendiary weekend so don’t forget to ignore the doom and gloom and try to enjoy the weekend. Spring is here after all.

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Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup – March 2, 2018

Whether or not we like it, we can’t seem to avoid politics drifting into markets. One thing there is no shortage of, however, is controversy. This week is no exception. With uncertainty creeping into markets, how online brokerages are navigating their way through a very dynamic situation is both exciting and, at times, nerve wracking.

With the start of a new month, we kick off this week’s roundup with a look at the latest action on the deals front and what one Canadian online brokerage appears to be doing to stand out from the crowd. Next we take a look at the return of volatility to the trading markets as well as the return, in a big way, of DIY investors. Also on the docket, a very interesting article that once again raises the specter or hope of a world in which DIY investors don’t pay any trading commissions. We’ll cap off the roundup with a look at what DIY investors were saying on Twitter and in the investor forums.

Deals March On

With the rush of the RSP contribution deadline now behind everyone, Canadian online brokerages are taking a bit of a pause to crunch the numbers on their efforts to attract new clients and deposits into RRSP accounts.

While we wait for the dust to settle on February, early action from the deals and promotions side heading into March point to a pullback in the number of cash back offers as well as an interesting maneuver by Qtrade Investor to incentivize DIY investors to consider making a switch.

Starting first with a quick overview, in this month’s deals & promotions, we noted that with the expiry of cash back offers from Qtrade Investor, TD Direct Investing, CIBC Investor’s Edge and Scotia iTRADE, the field of providers who currently offer the most cash back bonus at a given deposit tier is very diverse.

As the chart above shows, Questrade’s referral cash bonus offer stands out in the <$10K range and surfaces again in the $100K to $200K deposit level. BMO InvestorLine, whose offer does not apply to TFSA accounts, dominates between $200K and $999K. Perhaps a bit of a surprise name on this list is Credential Direct whose offer at the $1M+ level is currently the highest, but also at the $15K to $25K level and between $50K and $100K. Another surprising name is HSBC InvestDirect which happens to have the top offer in the $25K to $50K deposit range however to qualify for that offer, investors need to execute at least three commissionable trades.

Fortunately, there are still many commission-free trade offers which aren’t scheduled to expire just yet, so for some investors, there’s still some value to be had on the way into a new brokerage account.

Of course, making the switch to Qtrade Investor just became a little easier this week. Their new transfer fee reimbursement threshold has been moved down from $25,000 to $15,000. Historically this has been a limited time option and part of a special promotional offer however the website offer details (see below) don’t attach a timeframe to the offer. They do state that the offer can be revoked at any time, however this seems like it might be the new normal. If it is, then Qtrade Investor’s transfer fee coverage becomes one of the most competitive currently in the market.

It’s remarkable how consistent the transfer fee reimbursement is across brokerages. The minimum deposit of $25,000 is pretty much par for the course and for the handful of brokerages (National Bank Direct Brokerage, RBC Direct Investing, HSBC InvestDirect) whose deposit requirements are under $25,000, it is very interesting to observe that Qtrade Investor is the only non-bank-owned brokerage of that bunch.  Strategically, this helps Qtrade Investor stand out quite prominently – they stand out against almost everyone else, and they stand out against bank-owned online brokerages. In addition, the recent Globe and Mail online brokerage rankings will also help amplify their position in the market place.

The good news for DIY investors, in spite of the cash back retracement, is that there are still a number of competitive offers out there. The next big push will be for the tax refund pool before things potentially either taper off for the summer or ratchet up significantly as marijuana legalization comes back into the spotlight, and with it, attention on the cannabis stocks. Of course, volatility in either direction is usually a boon for online brokerages, which just so happens to be a great segue  into the trading stats reported by Interactive Brokers for February.

Guess Who’s Back?

The big V in February this year was not Valentine’s but rather Volatility. After all but disappearing for the better part of five years, uncertainty has crept back into the markets. What the catalyst was is itself the cause of speculation however the bet against volatility seems to be on its way out.

An interesting interview that Chairman and CEO of Interactive Brokers, Thomas Peterffy, had with CNBC pointed to a storm brewing as traders look to unwind bets and are largely at the mercy of the market to do so. Why this matters for investors is because it represents a shift in trading strategies – certainly for options traders – that will no doubt take time to adjust to. Secondarily however, volatility is great for traders and even more beneficial for online brokerages.

The stats from Interactive Brokers’ February 2018 trading metrics also clearly point to volatility pushing up trading activity. The number of Daily Average Revenue Trades (DARTs) is a whopping 50% higher on a year over year basis and 13% higher than already volatile January.

Another stat that stands out at Interactive Brokers is their continued account growth. It’s genuinely hard to argue with their growth in accounts however as good as they were in February, we’re keen to see what rival E*Trade comes out with. In January, they reported an incredible year over year increase of 149% in net new brokerage accounts (factoring in those who joined and those who left). Whether that momentum, largely driven by a frenzy in cryptocurrency, can serve as a catalyst or if it is just a blip that will revert over the next few months, there is clearly a case for volatility to stick around with many more investors jumping into the markets.

Another Final Countdown

Readers of the roundup will no doubt pick up on the reference to the song which capped off last week’s roundup. Admittedly it may have found its way onto my workout playlist however it deserves mention again this week because of an interesting article that surfaced on Seeking Alpha.

The article, which raised the specter of zero-commission trading, focused on whether Interactive Brokers could survive in the ‘post-apocalyptic’ online trading environment of commission-free trading. It is a great question which is even more interesting to ask of Canadian online brokerages whose primary business is order execution.

As technology becomes increasingly sophisticated, order execution should become frictionless, instant and essentially without cost. That, at least, is the business case of online brokerage Robinhood, which now boasts commission-free trading of stocks and options. Here in Canada, commission-free ETF trading already exists at National Bank Direct Brokerage and it will be an incredibly transformative moment should any of the major online brokerages decide to plumb the depths of sub-$5 per trade as a standard rate. Based on what’s happening in the US, it’s a matter of when, not if.

For DIY investors looking for a break, the catalyst to the move down in pricing may come sooner rather than later. After all, strategically all Canadian brokerages have to confront the same reality. The brokerage with the largest amount of assets under management has the best odds of financially weather the zero-commission reckoning. Whoever does it first in Canada will get the biggest headlines, will likely see a flood of assets and will get a very big head start on firms planning for this (and a very big head start on those who deny it could happen here).

Perhaps that catalyst may come from an unlikely place. The Canadian Securities Exchange is rolling out a blockchain platform for instant clearing and settlement of securities, something that the newest and most ‘buzzworthy’ stocks would conceivably want to take advantage of.

By reducing the time it takes to clear and settle a trade to zero, there’s a lot of friction (and cost) to the transaction of trading a stock that can be eliminated, which again makes the case for commission prices to go lower and for the monetization strategy for online brokerages to shift away from charging such high fees per trade.

So, while patience has definitely been a virtue to investors, it seems like the days of trading commissions are finally numbered, and that is definitely worth waiting for.

Discount Brokerage Tweets of the Week

We’ve hit a technical hiccup in grabbing the tweets this week. Stay tuned as we investigate this further. In the meantime, here’s a selection of what we’ve gathered so far.

From the Forums

Connections and Transfers

Getting an effortless investing strategy up and running can sometimes take quite a bit of effort. This post from reddit’s Personal Finance Canada section highlights some account funding issues that cropped up for one investor trying to fund a TFSA.

Art of the Deal

With deals on everyone’s mind, it doesn’t hurt to wonder what kind of pricing improvement could be obtained by bargaining with an online brokerage. Find out the experience of one investor who was interested in bargaining down an online brokerage on commission fees in this reddit post here.

Into the Close

That’s a wrap on a week that featured hypersonic nuclear weapons, trade wars and markets still hanging in there. I guess if there is no market to wake up to then the world has bigger problems. On that rosy note, for Toronto investors interested in the rebounding mining sector, be sure to check out the PDAC convention to get an ‘on the ground’ sense of companies who deal ‘underground’. Yours truly will be there so be sure to tune into the SparxTrading Twitter feed for highlights. #HaveAGreatWeekend

 

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Discount Brokerage Deals & Promotions – March 2018

*Updated Mar. 19* With so much activity and anticipation leading up to the RSP contribution deadline for the 2017 tax year, the rollover into March 1st feels a little like the start of a new year.

Discount Brokerage Deals Quick Nav

  1. Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions
  2. Referral Promotions
  3. Transfer Fee Promotions
  4. Contests & Other Offers
  5. Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

This past RSP season was one of the busiest in recent memory with almost all of Canada’s discount brokerages offering up some kind of deal or promotion to open a new account. Not only has the calendar rolled over, but also a few offers from Canada’s online brokerages have also turned a corner.

In the weekly roundup preceding the launch of this deals update, we also broke down how savvy DIY investors can get more mileage out the current discount brokerage deals by considering multiple brokerages instead of just one. Another important point from that post was that the details of the offer also matter, so be sure to understand the terms and conditions of the offer before agreeing to sign up.

So, with the rest of 2018 now ahead of us, the deals crop at the start of March looks healthy, clocking in at least 24 offers for DIY investors to choose from. We’ve crunched the numbers on the current cash back offers to list the ones that offer the biggest rewards at each deposit tier currently being advertised by all online brokerages. With the exit of TD Direct Investing and Scotia iTRADE, the standout cash back bonus offer field now includes Credential Direct and HSBC InvestDirect – at least for a portion of March.

As always, if there are any offers that you know about that other readers might find helpful, please feel free to share them in the comment section below.

Canadian discount brokerage promotions - cash back offers
Cash back bonus offers for Canadian discount brokerages (As of Mar. 19, 2018)

Expired Offers

Starting first with the promotions that expired heading into March. Qtrade Investor’s cash back promotion officially expired at the end of February as did Scotia iTRADE’s cash back bonus and the transfer offer which accompanied it. At the time of writing, offers from TD Direct Investing and CIBC Investor’s Edge are set to expire at 11:59pm ET on March 1st.

Extended Offers

BMO SmartFolio extended its offer of one year with no management fees. The new deadline to take advantage of this offer is now April 1st.

New Deals

The newest offer to cross the tape for DIY investors is from Qtrade Investor. The transfer fee “promotion” lowers the deposit level to qualify for a $150 fee rebate from $25,000 to $15,000. It is not the first time this offer has been run by Qtrade Investor however it is interesting to note that there is no deadline associated with this offer suggesting this might now become a standard offering. Also interesting is the timing given the wave of contributions to RRSPs that has just taken place. The deposit amount looks like it will be friendly to younger investors and beginner investors with modest portfolio sizes as well as those who are looking for an inexpensive way to “try out” Qtrade Investor.

Discount Brokerage Deals

  1. Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions
  2. Referral Promotions
  3. Transfer Fee Promotions
  4. Contests & Other Offers
  5. Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Commission/Cash Offer/Promotion Type Time Limit to Use Commission/Cash Offer Details Link Deadline
Jitney Trade A Sparx Trading exclusive offer! Use the promo code “Sparx Trading” when signing up for a new account with Jitneytrade and receive access to their preferred pricing package. n/a Discounted Commission Rates none For more details click here none
Open and fund a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) with at least $1,000 and you may be eligible to receive $88 in commission credits (up to 17 commission-free trades). Use promo code SPARX88 when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions carefully. $1,000 $88 commission credit 60 days Access this offer by clicking here: $88 commission-credit offer . For full terms and conditions, click here. none
Open and fund a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) with at least $1,000 and you may be eligible to receive 5 commission-free trades. Use promo code 5FREETRADES when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions carefully. $1,000 5 commission-free trades 60 days 5 commission-free trade offer December 31, 2018
Open and fund a new account with Virtual Brokers with at least $5,000 and you may be eligible to receive up to two months of trading at $4.99 per trade (maximum of 15 trades per month). Use promo code 499COM2017 when signing up to qualify. See terms and conditions for full details. $5,000 Up to 2 months of trading at $4.99 per trade (max 15 trades per month) Commissions will be reimbursed after June 30, 2018. For more details, click here March 31, 2018
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage is offering new clients 1% of assets transferred into the new account in the form of commission credits (to a maximum value of $1,000). Minimum qualifying deposit is $10,000. To qualify, individuals will have to call 1-866-873-7103 and mention promo code DisnatTransfer or email: [email protected]. See details link for more info. $10,000 1% of assets transferred in the form of commission-credits (max credits: $1,000) 6 months Disnat 1% Commission Credit Promo March 31, 2018
Open a new account at National Bank Direct Brokerage with at least a) $10,000 or B) $20,000+, and you may be eligible to receive up to A) 10 or B) 25 commission-free trades. For the 10 free trades offer, enter promo code FREE10 and for the 25 free trades offer enter promo code FREE25. This offer is also available to existing clients. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $10,000 B) $20,000+ A) 10 commission-free trades B) 25 commission-free trades 12 months Free Trades Campaign April 30, 2018
Open a new account with HSBC InvestDirect by transferring in at least A) $25,000; B) $100,000; C) $250,000; D) $500,000 or E) $1,000,000 or more from another Canadian financial institution and execute at least three commission-generating trades by April 30th, 2018, and you may be eligible to receive a cash bonus of up to A) $88; B) $188; C) $288; D) $688 or E) $988. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $25,000 B) $100,000 C) $250,000 D) $500,000 E) $1M+ A) $88 B) $188 C) $288 D) $688 E) $988 Transfer-in bonus will be deposited by November 30, 2018. Winter Offer – Transfer-In Bonus March 30, 2018
Open and fund a new qualifying account with at least $25,000 and you may qualify for one month of unlimited commission-free trades and up to one month free of an advanced data package. Use promo code ADVANTAGE14 when opening a new account. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. $25,000 commission-free trades for 1 month + 1 month of advanced data. 1 month Active Trader Program December 31, 2018
BMO InvestorLine Open a new qualifying account with BMO InvestorLine or fund a qualifying existing account, with at least A) $100,000; B) $200,000 or C) $300,000+ in net new assets and you may be eligible to receive up to A) $200 or 20 commission-free equity trades; B) $400 or 40 commission-free equity trades; or C) $750 cash back or 75 commission-free equity trades. Commission-free trades are good for up to two months. In addition, eligible individuals can receive an extra $50 as part of the refer a friend program. Use promo code SPARXCASH when signing up for the cash back offer or SPARXTRADES when signing up for the commission-free equity trade bonus. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for more details on the offer. A) $100,000 B) $200,000 C) $300,000 A) $200 or 20 commission-free equity trades. B) $400 or 40 commission-free equity trades. C) $750 or 75 commission-free equity trades. Cash back will be deposited the week of Nov. 12, 2018. Commission-free equity trades are good for up to two months. BMO InvestorLine Winter 2018 Campaign April 1, 2018

Expired Offers
Open and fund a qualifying account with TD Direct Investing with at least A) $10,000; B) $50,000; C) $100,000; D) $250,000 or E) $500,000+ and place at least 5 commissionable trades within 90 days of account opening and you may be eligible to receive either A) $100; B) $200; C) $300; D) $500 or E) $1,000 in cash back. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for eligibility for this offer. A) $10,000 B) $50,000 C) $100,000 D) $250,000 E) $500,000+ A) $100 B) $200 C) $300 D) $500 E) $1,000 Cash award will be paid to the client before the last day of the month following the conclusion of the qualification period (90 days). #RetireReady Promotion March 1, 2018
Transfer at least A) $25,000; B) $50,000; or C) $100,000 into a new or existing RRSP, spousal RRSP or TFSA at CIBC Investor’s Edge before March 1, 2018 and you may be eligible for a cash back offer of A) $100; B) $200 or C) $400. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $25,000 B) $50,000 C) $100,000 A) $100 B) $200 C) $400 Cash back will be deposited the week of May 4, 2018 (for transfers received by Dec. 31, 2017) or July 3, 2018 (for transfers received after Dec. 31, 2017). CIBC Investor’s Edge Cash Back Promo March 1, 2018
Open a new account or fund an existing account at Credential Direct with at least A) $15,000; B) $50,000; C) $150,000; D) $500,000 or E) $1M+ and you may be eligible to receive a cash bonus of A) $75; B) $125; C) $200; D) $500 or E) $1,000. For new clients, use promo code CASH2018RSP when applying. Existing clients can access this promotion from the promotions page available on the account backend. A donation equivalent to 10% of the bonus payout will also be made by Credential Direct to Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $15,000 B) $50,000 C) $150,000 D) $500,000 E) $1M+ A) $75 B) $125 C) $200 D) $500 E) $1000 Cash will be credited to qualifying investor accounts the week of August 20, 2018 Winter Offer 2018 March 16, 2018
Last Updated: Mar. 19, 2018 15:50 PT

Referral Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Incentive Structure Time Limit to Use Commission/Cash Offer Deposit Details Link Deadline
Refer a friend to Questrade and when they open an account you receive $25 cash back and they receive either A) $25; B) $50; C) $75; D) $100; or E) $250 depending on the amount deposited amount. Enter code: 476104302388759 during account sign up to qualify. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for eligibility and additional bonus payment structure and minimum balance requirements. A) $1,000 B) $10,000 C) $25,000 D) $50,000 E) $100,000+ $25 cash back (for referrer per referral; $50 bonus cash back for every 3rd referral) For referred individuals: A) $25 cash back B) $50 cash back C) $75 cash back D) $100 cash back E) $250 cash back Cash deposited into Questrade billing account within 7 days after funding period ends (90 days) Refer a friend terms and conditions Code Number: 476104302388759 none
Scotia iTrade 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 tbd
BMO InvestorLine If you (an existing BMO InvestorLine client) refer a new client to BMO InvestorLine and they open an account with at least $50,000 the referrer and the referee may both be eligible to receive $50 cash. To qualify the referee must use the email of the referrer that is linked to their BMO InvestorLine account. See terms and conditions for full details. $50,000 You(referrer): $50; Your Friend(referee): $50 Payout occurs 45 days after minimum 90 day holding period(subject to conditions). BMO InvestorLine Refer-a-Friend October 31, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Mar. 1, 2018 19:00 PT

Transfer Fee Promotions

Company Brief Description Maximum Transfer Fee Coverage Amount Minimum Deposit Amount for Transfer Fee Eligibility Details Link Deadline
Transfer $15,000 or more to Qtrade Investor from another brokerage and Qtrade Investor may cover up to $150 in transfer fees. See terms and conditions for more details. $150 $15,000 Transfer Fee Rebate none
Transfer $15,000 or more to HSBC InvestDirect, and they will pay up to $150 in transfer fees. $150 $15,000 2018 Winter Offer – Transfer-In Bonus March 30, 2018
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
Transfer $20,000 or more to a National Bank Direct Brokerage account and they will pay up to $135 plus taxes in transfer fees. $135 $20,000 Transfer Fee Rebate none
Transfer $25,000 or more from another brokerage and Credential Direct will cover up to $150 in transfer fees. Use promo code SWITCHME when signing up to qualify for the transfer promotion. $150 $25,000 Credential Direct Transfer Fee Rebate 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 or more in new assets to TD Direct Investing when opening a new account and you may qualify to have transfer fees reimbursed up to $150. Be sure to contact TD Direct Investing for further details. $150 $25,000 Contact client service for more information (1-800-465-5463). none
Transfer $25,000 or more to Virtual Brokers and they may cover up to $150 in transfer fees. $150 $25,000 Transfer Fee promo April 30, 2018
Transfer $25,000 or more into a CIBC Investor’s Edge account and they will reimburse up to $135 in brokerage transfer fees. Clients must call customer service to request rebate after transfer made. $135 $25,000 Confirmed with reps. Contact client service for more information (1-800-567-3343). none
Disnat 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 1-866-873-7103 and mention promo code DisnatTransfer. See details link for more info. $150 $50,000 Disnat 1% Commission Credit Promo March 31, 2018
BMO InvestorLine Open a new qualifying account with BMO InvestorLine or fund a qualifying existing account, by transferring in at least $200,000+ in net new assets and you may be eligible to have transfer fees covered up to $200. Use promo code SPARXCASH when signing up to also be eligible for cash back offer or SPARXTRADES to be eligible for the commission-free trade offer. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for more details on the offer. $200 $200,000 BMO InvestorLine Winter 2018 Campaign April 1, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Mar. 1, 19:00 PT

Other Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Required Details Link Deadline
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage, in conjunction with MoneyTalks, is offering 3 months of the “Inside Edge” investor information service to Desjardins Online Brokerage clients. Use promo code DESJ2016 during checkout to qualify. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for more information. n/a MoneyTalks Inside Edge Discount none
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage is offering $50 in commission credits for new Disnat Classic clients depositing at least $1,000. See terms and conditions for full details. $1,000 Broker@ge 18-30 Promotion none
Scotia iTrade Scotiabank StartRight customers can receive 10 commission-free trades when investing $1,000 or more in a new Scotia iTrade account. Trades are good for use for up to 1 year from the date the account is funded. Use promo code SRPE15 when applying (in English) or SRPF15 when applying in French. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for full details. $1,000 StartRight Free Trade offer none

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Mar. 1, 2018 19:00 PT

Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

Robo-advisor / Digital advisor Offer Type Offer Description Min. Deposit Reward / Promotion Promo Code Expiry Date Link
Discounted Management Open and fund a new Questrade Portfolio IQ account with a deposit of at least $1,000 and the first month of management will be free. For more information on Portfolio IQ, click the product link. $1000 1st month no management fees KDKFNBBC None Questrade Portfolio IQ Promo Offer
Discounted Management Open a new account with BMO SmartFolio and receive one year of management of up to $15,000 free. See offer terms and conditions for more details. $1,000 1 year no management fees STSF April 1, 2018 SmartFolio New Account Promotion
Cash Back – Referral BMO SmartFolio clients will receive $50 cash back for every friend or family member who opens and funds a new SmartFolio account. Friends and family referred to SmartFolio will receive $50 cash back for opening and funding an account, plus automatic enrollment into SmartFolio’s mass offer in market at the time. See offer terms and conditions for more details. $1,000 $50 cash back (referrer) $50 cash back (referee) Unique link generated from SmartFolio required. None SmartFolio Website
Transfer Fee Coverage Transfer at least $25,000 into Virtual Wealth when opening a new account and you may be eligible to have up to $150 in transfer fees covered by Virtual Wealth. $25,000 up to $150 in transfer fees covered None None Contact customer service directly for more information.
Last Updated: Mar. 1, 2018 19:00 PT
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Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup – February 23, 2018

It’s hard to believe but time flies when you’re winning medals. Team Canada has had a great run at these Olympic games and not too long after the games are over so too will some online brokerage deals and promos as well as the chance to contribute to RSPs for the 2017 tax year.

With the RSP contribution deadline looming, this week’s roundup is a blend of news centred around the RSP deadline and what that means for Canadian discount brokerages and DIY investors. First, we take a look at how the clear winner in the rankings race this past year has made some championship moves in promoting their win. Next break down the math on some online brokerage offers to show how savvy investors can get creative with deals and save/receive even more. As usual, we’ll also check in on Twitter to recap the latest chatter from investors and showcase a pair of posts highlighting what folks were talking about in the forums.

Making A Splash

The ripple effect of the online brokerage rankings continued to permeate the news with online investors this week. For those who missed last week’s roundup, Qtrade Investor took top spot in the Globe and Mail online brokerage rankings and in doing so ranked at the top of or near the top of all the major online brokerage rankings for 2017.

This week, Qtrade Investor officially published a news release announcing their win but, in an even more interesting maneuver, also published the full online brokerage rankings article on a cleverly crafted page with the url: join.qtrade.ca. This year’s online brokerage rankings were made available only to subscribers of the Globe and Mail, so on a number of levels, Qtrade Investor publishing the article in its entirety (with permission from the Globe and Mail) means that curious readers can find the full text of the rankings without having to pay for a Globe and Mail subscription. Well played Qtrade.

With just a week to go until the RRSP contribution deadline, there will likely be many last-minute DIY investors who will be looking to get their contributions in for the 2017 tax year. So, it’s game on for Canada’s online brokerages to do their best to land new assets before the RSP buzzer hits.

As we noted last week and yet again, online brokerages like Interactive Brokers and Scotia iTRADE are pushing the advertising button with some unmissable campaigns on BNN.

And, speaking of BNN, this week there was also a segment on choosing an online brokerage in which Glenn LaCoste of Surviscor offered up some perspective on Canadian online brokers as well as provided some tips on choosing an online brokerage.

Tips from Surviscor’s Glenn LaCoste on Choosing an Online Brokerage.

This interview provided an interesting perspective about how online investors could approach shopping for a new online brokerage provider, namely that rather than just stick to one online brokerage, that DIY investors try going to several brokerages to see what might work. Ultimately, LaCoste recommends the ‘try before you buy’ approach with the value proposition for each particular online brokerage really coming down to the convenience and relevance of features that investors use.

Clearly, choosing an online brokerage is on the minds of many investors heading into the RSP deadline. And, as luck would have it, this year there is also a bumper crop of deals and promotions to choose from for either switching online brokerages or for choosing an online brokerage for the first time.  Keep reading for highlights of the offers set to expire at the RSP contribution deadline.

An I-deal Combination

This year’s RSP contribution deadline offers more than just stress to some procrastinators – it also offers the prospect of a deal or promotion for opening up an online investing account. There are lots of great deals and promotions to choose from however time is running out on a few promotions timed to expire at or just ahead of the March 1st deadline. When we reviewed the offers that were set to expire by March 1st, an interesting pattern jumped out – namely that they were all cash back bonuses and that most of these were being offered by big bank-owned brokerages. So, in typical fashion, we thought it might be interesting to compare these offers and to also see how DIY investors can get the best return on their business with some creative shopping.

First, a quick recap of all the open cash-back offers at Canadian discount brokerages shows that there are numerous offers for investors to choose from. To help make shopping a little easier, we’ve colour coded the highest cash back offer in each deposit range with green being the highest and red being the lowest.

Now, as with all things, the details are important to pay attention to when looking at these offers. Specifically, for two online brokerages, HSBC InvestDirect and TD Direct Investing, in order to qualify for the offers, a certain number of trades must be placed. Also, the offer by BMO InvestorLine does not include TFSA accounts while the offer by CIBC Investor’s Edge is only for registered accounts (TFSA and RRSP accounts). Still, for anyone shopping for an RRSP online investing account, there is a lot of choice.

Of the offers mentioned above, the following four offers are set to expire at or just before the contribution deadline of March 1st.

 Online Brokerage Expiry Date Cash Back Range Deposit Range Special Conditions
CIBC Investor’s Edge 3/1/18 $100 – $400 $25,000 – $100K+ TFSA, RRSP only
Qtrade Investor 2/28/18 $50 – $1,000 $50,000 – $1M+ None
TD Direct Investing 3/1/18 $100 – $1000 $10,000 – $500K+ Need to make 5 trades to receive bonus
Scotia iTRADE 3/1/18 $50 – $1200 $25,000 – $1M+ Pre-paid Visa gift card

For some investors, the decision about which online brokerage to choose won’t necessarily be dictated by what promotions are being offered, however savvy and experienced investors do pay attention to, and occasionally are swayed by, the offers being advertised.

Of course, for DIY investors that are looking to maximize the return on the opening of a new account, they may use the deal amount to be the deciding factor when trying to pick between two closely related online brokerages.  For example, an investor with $100K to invest in an RRSP could land $400 from CIBC Investor’s Edge instead of $188 for going with HSBC InvestDirect.

In most instances, DIY investors will only want to open one account and doing so would net the best offer anyway, however in a handful of instances, investors with higher portfolio amounts and a real desire to maximize their returns could also consider opening up multiple accounts.

Consider the following. With a $400K portfolio the best offer at a single institution is $750 (at BMO InvestorLine). If, however, that same $400K is divided up across four offers at the $100K deposit level at four different brokerages, the reward jumps to $1,150 (and it goes to $1200 if taking advantage of stackable refer-a-friend offers).

This is really interesting when one considers that the maximum cash bonus being offered for deposits is $1200 which requires $1M+ at Scotia iTRADE. In fact, it “only” takes $400K to get more cash back than with a deposit of $1M+ at all of the other brokerages (except iTRADE).

Yes, it is more work (some might argue more work than it’s worth) however for higher portfolio amounts, this strategy can yield some intriguing results. The savvy investor with a $1M portfolio can actually land $2050 in cash bonus back rather than $1200 by opening up five online brokerage accounts instead of just one.

Aside from just trying to chase bonuses, there are other advantages to diversifying between brokerage accounts, namely that investors can get access to features that are unique to each (e.g. research).

This year there are a lot of offers and choices for DIY investors to consider and ultimately benefit from when opening an online trading account. For the extreme deal seekers, this also creates some interesting opportunities to sample several brokerages and get paid a little more for the effort of doing so.

Discount Brokerage Tweets of the Week

Lots of chatter about registered accounts, new account openings and some garden variety technical difficulties. Mentioned by Canadian DIY investors were BMO InvestorLine, CIBC Investor’s Edge, Questrade, RBC Direct Investing, Scotia iTRADE, and TD Direct Investing.

From the Forums

Comparing Questrade and BMO InvestorLine

Fine tuning a passive investing portfolio is always interesting for DIY investors. In this post from reddit’s Personal Finance Canada section, one user is looking to get some commentary on Questrade and BMO InvestorLine for maintaining a couch potato approach.

Better Terms

One of the goals of SparxTrading.com is to provide DIY investors with better information and better value when hunting for and opening online investing accounts. It was an interesting observation on referral offers in this post from reddit’s Personal Finance Canada that calls out some important details about the way in which referral offers work. Good to read for individuals interested in the Questrade referral code offer which is widely published.

Into the Close

That’s a wrap for this week. While our closing won’t be as elaborate as the closing ceremonies for the Winter Olympics we can toss in some appropriately themed music to take DIY investors into the week before the RSP deadline. Stay warm (especially the Vancouverites!) and enjoy the festivities – team Canada has lots to celebrate this year!

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Discount Brokerage Deals & Promotions – February 2018

*Update: Feb. 2/18* The deals and promotions activity at Canadian discount brokerages is almost at full throttle this month.With over 30 advertised deals for DIY investors to choose from, there is no shortage of incentives from brokerages big and small, each trying to sweeten the deal for DIY investors.

Discount Brokerage Deals Quick Nav

  1. Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions
  2. Referral Promotions
  3. Transfer Fee Promotions
  4. Contests & Other Offers
  5. Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

And, while there were no new deals out of the gate in February, January did welcome to the deals stage offers from Credential Direct, HSBC InvestDirect, National Bank Direct Brokerage and Qtrade Investor. Of particular interest for DIY investors, the cash back, commission-free trade and discounted commission deals are the most popular category of deal being put forward.

With so many offers now available, we summarized which online brokerages were offering the most cash back for registered (TFSA or RRSP) accounts at all Canadian online brokerages. It bears repeating however that most of Canada’s largest bank-owned brokerages are offering more, in dollar terms, than the non-bank owned brokerages are.

Also, interesting from looking at the above breakdown, is that although there is considerable overlap, different Canadian bank-owned online brokerages are clearly targeting specific deposit segments of the DIY investor market.

The bottom line, however, is that this month may be the best time for any DIY investor looking to open an online investing account. While a promotion may not be the primary reason for choosing an online brokerage, the good news is that there is likely to be a bit of a bonus no matter where you choose (almost).

As always, if there are offers that we’ve missed that might be of benefit to Canadian DIY investors, please share in the comments section below.

Expired Offers

*Update: Feb. 2/18: Desjardins Online Brokerage’s 1% commission credit offer has been extended to March 31st, 2018.*

There was only one promotional offer that technically did expire at the end of January and for which the terms and conditions page on the website was not updated at the time of publishing of this post. Desjardins Online Brokerage’s long standing 1% commission credit offer technically expired at the beginning of February. We’ll continue to monitor to see if the official terms of this offer are updated or if a new offer appears in its place. Stay tuned.

Extended Offers

*Update: Feb. 2/18: Desjardins Online Brokerage’s 1% commission credit offer has been extended to March 31st, 2018.*

There were no extensions to report at the outset of the month.

New Deals

There were no new promotions at the outset of February, however there were several offers that came to market through the month of January. Credential Direct and Qtrade Investor both launched cash bonus offers for new and existing clients. Also launching a cash back offer was HSBC InvestDirect. National Bank Direct Brokerage joined the promotional race later in the month with an interesting commission-free trade offer, notable because the timeframe to use the free trades is a lengthy one year.

Discount Brokerage Deals

  1. Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions
  2. Referral Promotions
  3. Transfer Fee Promotions
  4. Contests & Other Offers
  5. Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions 

Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Commission/Cash Offer/Promotion Type Time Limit to Use Commission/Cash Offer Details Link Deadline
Jitney Trade A Sparx Trading exclusive offer! Use the promo code “Sparx Trading” when signing up for a new account with Jitneytrade and receive access to their preferred pricing package. n/a Discounted Commission Rates none For more details click here none
Open and fund a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) with at least $1,000 and you may be eligible to receive $88 in commission credits (up to 17 commission-free trades). Use promo code SPARX88 when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions carefully. $1,000 $88 commission credit 60 days Access this offer by clicking here: $88 commission-credit offer . For full terms and conditions, click here. none
Open and fund a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) with at least $1,000 and you may be eligible to receive 5 commission-free trades. Use promo code 5FREETRADES when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions carefully. $1,000 5 commission-free trades 60 days 5 commission-free trade offer December 31, 2018
Open and fund a new account with Virtual Brokers with at least $5,000 and you may be eligible to receive up to two months of trading at $4.99 per trade (maximum of 15 trades per month). Use promo code 499COM2017 when signing up to qualify. See terms and conditions for full details. $5,000 Up to 2 months of trading at $4.99 per trade (max 15 trades per month) Commissions will be reimbursed after June 30, 2018. For more details, click here March 31, 2018
Open and fund a qualifying account with TD Direct Investing with at least A) $10,000; B) $50,000; C) $100,000; D) $250,000 or E) $500,000+ and place at least 5 commissionable trades within 90 days of account opening and you may be eligible to receive either A) $100; B) $200; C) $300; D) $500 or E) $1,000 in cash back. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for eligibility for this offer. A) $10,000 B) $50,000 C) $100,000 D) $250,000 E) $500,000+ A) $100 B) $200 C) $300 D) $500 E) $1,000 Cash award will be paid to the client before the last day of the month following the conclusion of the qualification period (90 days). #RetireReady Promotion March 1, 2018
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage is offering new clients 1% of assets transferred into the new account in the form of commission credits (to a maximum value of $1,000). Minimum qualifying deposit is $10,000. To qualify, individuals will have to call 1-866-873-7103 and mention promo code DisnatTransfer or email: [email protected]. See details link for more info. $10,000 1% of assets transferred in the form of commission-credits (max credits: $1,000) 6 months Disnat 1% Commission Credit Promo March 31, 2018
Open a new account at National Bank Direct Brokerage with at least a) $10,000 or B) $20,000+, and you may be eligible to receive up to A) 10 or B) 25 commission-free trades. For the 10 free trades offer, enter promo code FREE10 and for the 25 free trades offer enter promo code FREE25. This offer is also available to existing clients. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $10,000 B) $20,000+ A) 10 commission-free trades B) 25 commission-free trades 12 months Free Trades Campaign April 30, 2018
Open a new account or fund an existing account at Credential Direct with at least A) $15,000; B) $50,000; C) $150,000; D) $500,000 or E) $1M+ and you may be eligible to receive a cash bonus of A) $75; B) $125; C) $200; D) $500 or E) $1,000. For new clients, use promo code CASH2018RSP when applying. Existing clients can access this promotion from the promotions page available on the account backend. A donation equivalent to 10% of the bonus payout will also be made by Credential Direct to Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $15,000 B) $50,000 C) $150,000 D) $500,000 E) $1M+ A) $75 B) $125 C) $200 D) $500 E) $1000 Cash will be credited to qualifying investor accounts the week of August 20, 2018 Winter Offer 2018 March 16, 2018
Transfer at least A) $25,000; B) $50,000; or C) $100,000 into a new or existing RRSP, spousal RRSP or TFSA at CIBC Investor’s Edge before March 1, 2018 and you may be eligible for a cash back offer of A) $100; B) $200 or C) $400. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $25,000 B) $50,000 C) $100,000 A) $100 B) $200 C) $400 Cash back will be deposited the week of May 4, 2018 (for transfers received by Dec. 31, 2017) or July 3, 2018 (for transfers received after Dec. 31, 2017). CIBC Investor’s Edge Cash Back Promo March 1, 2018
Open a new account with HSBC InvestDirect by transferring in at least A) $25,000; B) $100,000; C) $250,000; D) $500,000 or E) $1,000,000 or more from another Canadian financial institution and execute at least three commission-generating trades by April 30th, 2018, and you may be eligible to receive a cash bonus of up to A) $88; B) $188; C) $288; D) $688 or E) $988. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $25,000 B) $100,000 C) $250,000 D) $500,000 E) $1M+ A) $88 B) $188 C) $288 D) $688 E) $988 Transfer-in bonus will be deposited by November 30, 2018. Winter Offer – Transfer-In Bonus March 30, 2018
Scotia iTrade Open and fund a new account with Scotia iTRADE with at least A) $25,000; B) $50,000; C) $100,000; D) $250,000; E) $500,000 or F) $1M+ and you may be eligible to receive a pre-paid Visa gift card worth A) $50; B) $100, C) $200; D) $300; E) $600 or F) $1200. Use code VISA18 when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $25,000 B) $50,000 C) $100,000 D) $250,000 E) $500,000 F) $1M+ A) $50 B) $100 C) $200 D) $300 E) $600 F) $1200 pre-paid card should arrive by July 31st 2018 Scotia iTRADE offer March 1, 2018
Open and fund a new qualifying account with at least $25,000 and you may qualify for one month of unlimited commission-free trades and up to one month free of an advanced data package. Use promo code ADVANTAGE14 when opening a new account. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. $25,000 commission-free trades for 1 month + 1 month of advanced data. 1 month Active Trader Program December 31, 2018
Open a new account or fund an existing account with Qtrade Investor with at least A) $50,000; B) $100,000; C) $250,000; D) $500,000 or E) $1M+ and you may be eligible to receive A) $50; B) $100; C) $250; D) $500 or E) $1,000. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $50,000 B) $100,000 C) $250,000 D) $500,000 E) $1M+ A) $50 B) $100 C) $250 D) $500 E) $1,000 Cash back will be credited by July 31, 2018. Cash back offer February 28, 2018
BMO InvestorLine Open a new qualifying account with BMO InvestorLine or fund a qualifying existing account, with at least A) $100,000; B) $200,000 or C) $300,000+ in net new assets and you may be eligible to receive up to A) $200 or 20 commission-free equity trades; B) $400 or 40 commission-free equity trades; or C) $750 cash back or 75 commission-free equity trades. Commission-free trades are good for up to two months. In addition, eligible individuals can receive an extra $50 as part of the refer a friend program. Use promo code SPARXCASH when signing up for the cash back offer or SPARXTRADES when signing up for the commission-free equity trade bonus. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for more details on the offer. A) $100,000 B) $200,000 C) $300,000 A) $200 or 20 commission-free equity trades. B) $400 or 40 commission-free equity trades. C) $750 or 75 commission-free equity trades. Cash back will be deposited the week of Nov. 12, 2018. Commission-free equity trades are good for up to two months. BMO InvestorLine Winter 2018 Campaign April 1, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Feb. 2, 2018 08:30 PT

Referral Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Incentive Structure Time Limit to Use Commission/Cash Offer Deposit Details Link Deadline
Refer a friend to Questrade and when they open an account you receive $25 cash back and they receive either A) $25; B) $50; C) $75; D) $100; or E) $250 depending on the amount deposited amount. Enter code: 476104302388759 during account sign up to qualify. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for eligibility and additional bonus payment structure and minimum balance requirements. A) $1,000 B) $10,000 C) $25,000 D) $50,000 E) $100,000+ $25 cash back (for referrer per referral; $50 bonus cash back for every 3rd referral) For referred individuals: A) $25 cash back B) $50 cash back C) $75 cash back D) $100 cash back E) $250 cash back Cash deposited into Questrade billing account within 7 days after funding period ends (90 days) Refer a friend terms and conditions Code Number: 476104302388759 none
Scotia iTrade 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 tbd
BMO InvestorLine If you (an existing BMO InvestorLine client) refer a new client to BMO InvestorLine and they open an account with at least $50,000 the referrer and the referee may both be eligible to receive $50 cash. To qualify the referee must use the email of the referrer that is linked to their BMO InvestorLine account. See terms and conditions for full details. $50,000 You(referrer): $50; Your Friend(referee): $50 Payout occurs 45 days after minimum 90 day holding period(subject to conditions). BMO InvestorLine Refer-a-Friend October 31, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Feb. 17, 2018 18:30 PT

Transfer Fee Promotions

Company Brief Description Maximum Transfer Fee Coverage Amount Minimum Deposit Amount for Transfer Fee Eligibility Details Link Deadline
Transfer $15,000 or more to HSBC InvestDirect, and they will pay up to $150 in transfer fees. $150 $15,000 2018 Winter Offer – Transfer-In Bonus March 30, 2018
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
Transfer $20,000 or more to a National Bank Direct Brokerage account and they will pay up to $135 plus taxes in transfer fees. $135 $20,000 Transfer Fee Rebate none
Transfer $25,000 or more from another brokerage and Credential Direct will cover up to $150 in transfer fees. Use promo code SWITCHME when signing up to qualify for the transfer promotion. $150 $25,000 Credential Direct Transfer Fee Rebate none
Transfer $25,000 or more to Qtrade Investor from another brokerage and Qtrade Investor may cover up to $150 in transfer fees. See terms and conditions for more details. $150 $25,000 Transfer Fee Rebate 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 or more in new assets to TD Direct Investing when opening a new account and you may qualify to have transfer fees reimbursed up to $150. Be sure to contact TD Direct Investing for further details. $150 $25,000 Contact client service for more information (1-800-465-5463). none
Transfer $25,000 or more to Virtual Brokers and they may cover up to $150 in transfer fees. $150 $25,000 Transfer Fee promo April 30, 2018
Transfer $25,0000 or more to Scotia iTRADE and they cover up to $150 in transfer fees. $150 $25,000 Transfer Fee promo March 1, 2018
Transfer $25,000 or more into a CIBC Investor’s Edge account and they will reimburse up to $135 in brokerage transfer fees. Clients must call customer service to request rebate after transfer made. $135 $25,000 Confirmed with reps. Contact client service for more information (1-800-567-3343). none
Disnat 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 1-866-873-7103 and mention promo code DisnatTransfer. See details link for more info. $150 $50,000 Disnat 1% Commission Credit Promo March 31, 2018
BMO InvestorLine Open a new qualifying account with BMO InvestorLine or fund a qualifying existing account, by transferring in at least $200,000+ in net new assets and you may be eligible to have transfer fees covered up to $200. Use promo code SPARXCASH when signing up to also be eligible for cash back offer or SPARXTRADES to be eligible for the commission-free trade offer. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for more details on the offer. $200 $200,000 BMO InvestorLine Winter 2018 Campaign April 1, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Feb. 17, 18:40 PT

Other Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Required Details Link Deadline
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage, in conjunction with MoneyTalks, is offering 3 months of the “Inside Edge” investor information service to Desjardins Online Brokerage clients. Use promo code DESJ2016 during checkout to qualify. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for more information. n/a MoneyTalks Inside Edge Discount none
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage is offering $50 in commission credits for new Disnat Classic clients depositing at least $1,000. See terms and conditions for full details. $1,000 Broker@ge 18-30 Promotion none
Scotia iTrade Scotiabank StartRight customers can receive 10 commission-free trades when investing $1,000 or more in a new Scotia iTrade account. Trades are good for use for up to 1 year from the date the account is funded. Use promo code SRPE15 when applying (in English) or SRPF15 when applying in French. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for full details. $1,000 StartRight Free Trade offer none

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Feb. 1, 2018 22:00 PT

Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

Robo-advisor / Digital advisor Offer Type Offer Description Min. Deposit Reward / Promotion Promo Code Expiry Date Link
Discounted Management Open and fund a new Questrade Portfolio IQ account with a deposit of at least $1,000 and the first month of management will be free. For more information on Portfolio IQ, click the product link. $1000 1st month no management fees KDKFNBBC None Questrade Portfolio IQ Promo Offer
Discounted Management Open a new account with BMO SmartFolio and receive one year of management of up to $15,000 free. See offer terms and conditions for more details. $1,000 1 year no management fees STSF February 28, 2018 SmartFolio New Account Promotion
Cash Back – Referral BMO SmartFolio clients will receive $50 cash back for every friend or family member who opens and funds a new SmartFolio account. Friends and family referred to SmartFolio will receive $50 cash back for opening and funding an account, plus automatic enrollment into SmartFolio’s mass offer in market at the time. See offer terms and conditions for more details. $1,000 $50 cash back (referrer) $50 cash back (referee) Unique link generated from SmartFolio required. None SmartFolio Website
Transfer Fee Coverage Transfer at least $25,000 into Virtual Wealth when opening a new account and you may be eligible to have up to $150 in transfer fees covered by Virtual Wealth. $25,000 up to $150 in transfer fees covered None None Contact customer service directly for more information.
Last Updated: Feb. 1, 2018 22:00 PT
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Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup – January 12, 2018

Twitter is no stranger to controversy or strong language, however when it comes from the commander in grief, well it’s becoming strange to see exactly what shocks us anymore. Speaking of strong reactions on Twitter, several Canadian online brokerages have also been on the receiving end of some strongly worded feedback because of trading platform interruptions and customer service wait times which yet again dominated the DIY investor chatter this week.

Even though Groundhog Day is still some time away, this edition of the weekly roundup will feel a bit like the Bill Murray version (perhaps with less to laugh at). Up first will be an update on some good news for DIY investors – another bank-owned online brokerage stepping into the deals foray. From there we’ll update the latest developments on long telephone wait times and online trading platform outages that continued to plague DIY investors in week two of 2018. And yes, once again we’ll cap off the roundup with lots and lots and lots of DIY investor tweets about Canadian discount brokerages and sprinkle in a couple of forum posts for good measure.

Deals Action

While markets (at least in the US) continue to push to new highs, the momentum in the online brokerage promotions segment also appears to be strengthening heading into 2018. This week, we spotted HSBC InvestDirect jumping into the promotional offer pool with a new tiered cash-back bonus offer.

This latest offering is interesting for a couple of reasons. First, as a bank-owned online brokerage, HSBC InvestDirect is positioned, in theory, to be able to challenge its larger bank-owned brokerage peers.

With standard commission rates at $6.88, there is already financial incentive to consider HSBC InvestDirect and this latest offering only serves to strengthen the timing for those on the fence about HSBC InvestDirect. A promotional offer for anyone looking to open a new account or perhaps transfer an account from a bank-owned brokerage might find this to be just enough incentive to give HSBC InvestDirect a try.

Another interesting element to this offering is that in order to qualify for the cash bonus, one of the important conditions to fulfil is executing at least three commission generating trades. So, at a minimum, individuals will have to spend at least $20.64 ($6.88 x 3) to receive a cash bonus. That’s a steep dent (~23%) for the lowest tier which offers an $88 cash back bonus (which shakes out to a $67.36 bonus).

A final interesting thought on this latest move by HSBC InvestDirect is the timing.

With a firestorm of stories about unhappy clients, long wait times at larger bank-owned online brokerages as well as platform outage issues, HSBC InvestDirect’s latest promotional offer might end up landing them in the media spotlight.

After all, bigger online brokerages – especially the bank owned brokerages, pitch the ‘convenience’ and ‘security’ angle to win over new clients however HSBC InvestDirect can offer many similar banking and investment products and for DIY investing – especially those with relatively straightforward needs – it ultimately comes down to paying less for being able to trade. Offering a deal puts HSBC InvestDirect on our radar and certainly on the radar of anyone now in the market wondering about what else is out there.

Of course, the spotlight isn’t without its risks.

One of HSBC InvestDirect’s biggest differentiators in the online brokerage space in Canada is their ability to let clients trade international securities. And, while commission rates for trading internationally listed securities via HSBC InvestDirect are nowhere close to the cost to trade North American equities, it might be on the list of features that other online brokerages may want to consider introducing into their feature set.

Now that HSBC InvestDirect has stepped into the promotional pool offer heading into RRSP season, there are now only two bank-owned online brokerages that don’t have a special promotional offer on the table: RBC Direct Investing and National Bank Direct Brokerage (both do have transfer fee coverage offers, however).

Given the dynamics in the Canadian discount brokerage space right now, it’s hard to believe that either of these two firms will want to sit out the chance to get the attention of Canadian DIY investors by putting out a better offer than what’s currently available. We’ll be watching.

Outage & Outrage

The long wait times trying to reach Canadian online brokerages by phone continued this week and it appears that patience among DIY investors is wearing thin.

Time spent waiting on the phone to speak to client service representatives continued to be reported as being up to and even longer than an hour with frustrated users taking to social media to express their discontent – often with bitter disappointment and sometimes with screenshots and photos of just how long they’ve been waiting.

With clients from several different online brokerages reporting ultra-long wait times, it’s becoming clear that getting in touch with many online brokerages over the phone right now is going to be a challenge.

Of course, for some users, this is a challenge that they’ve now become accustomed to as phone service wait times appear, at least on the surface, to be woefully unprepared for groundswell of clients looking to have passwords reset, transfers made or other service enquiries handled on the phone at this time of year. Thank goodness the market isn’t crashing right now too.

Combined with the platform outages that occurred at the end of December and beginning of January, and that also appeared again at a couple of online brokerages this week, the customer experience stories are a PR firestorm for Canadian online brokerages.

It was interesting, therefore, to see how Canada’s online brokerages responded to this mini-crisis this past week. In addition to helping provide some answers as to what’s going on, the ways in which the situation has been managed by different online brokerages might actually serve as a proxy for how well-equipped each brokerage is to handle a crisis. Simply put, when things go awry, getting things back on track is an important marker of responsiveness.

Just Fix It

Before getting into what the online brokerages did this week in response to the crisis, it’s helpful to reflect on the sentiment expressed by DIY investors in the hundreds of Twitter message, forum posts and news article comments.

While not unique to online brokerages, job one when it comes to an outage, downtime or a service interruption or delay is to fix it. Bells and whistles come second – actual uptime and trade execution come first. When there’s money on the line, however, the stakes (and emotions) are much higher. History on social media shows that hell hath no fury like a trader scorned so the sooner things are fixed the better.

Fortunately for TD Direct Investing, it appears that WebBroker was more stable this past week however neither RBC Direct Investing nor Virtual Brokers were as fortunate. In the case of RBC Direct Investing, platform interruptions drew the ire of DIY investors on social media yet again.

And in the case of Virtual Brokers, it appears to be bad timing as all platforms are under a microscope and it so happened that Rob Carrick, one of the most influential voices in the online brokerage space in Canada, posted a tweet of VB’s trading interface essentially immobilized.

On the phone wait time front, things appeared this week to still be far from fixed.

Undoubtedly there are frantic conversations taking place about how best to address the telephone wait time issues, however DIY investors expectations are – for better or worse – that things should be fixed, and fast.

It is one thing that consumers may be forced to wait 15 or even 20 minutes however DIY investors on Twitter have reported wait times in the hours, sometimes even being disconnected or hung up on before an issue is resolved. It’s not hard to imagine the frustration levels rising for clients.

Unfortunately for Canada’s bank-owned brokerages, there is very little sympathy or goodwill to be found for these types of service interruptions or delays.

Almost nobody would argue that Canada’s largest banks – who own the online brokerages – don’t have the money to resource an exceptional client experience, or when problems occur that they can resolve them fast. So, it begs the question: how could both technology and wait times be vulnerable to the very thing that online brokerages set out to do, process trades online?

As pointed out time and again by clients, none of the reasons appear quite good enough. If customer service agents are overwhelmed, hire more. If compensation is an issue, pay client reps more and attract more staff.

How could online brokerages not see this kind of scenario coming?

Communicate in Real Time

Perhaps one of the most interesting elements to this outage and wait time story has been the absence of timely communication from online brokerages about what exactly has been happening and what was being done to fix it.

In the early moments of the outages, numerous online traders were asking aloud on Twitter as to what was happening. Unfortunately for many of them, there was radio silence from the brands or at best, scripted responses from client service reps about ‘higher than normal’ call volume or high trading volumes.

What ensued as a result was a tweetstorm of traders and investors who were fed up about being left in the dark. To draw attention to their plight, members of the media were being tagged to force some kind of communication out the online brokerages. From there things snowballed with major news outlets and BNN covering the status and talking about how trading platforms were down for a few days in a row.

While the news stories last week focused primarily on RBC Direct Investing and TD Direct Investing because of the platform outages, there have also been numerous reports of wait times for phone reps that seem off the charts at Scotia iTRADE. Regardless of the issue, however, it wasn’t really until this week that we heard from TD Direct Investing and RBC Direct Investing as to what exactly happened with the platform outages.

Showing Leadership by Taking Ownership

After receiving substantial negative press coverage as well as a firestorm on social media, Paul Clark, President of TD Direct Investing & EVP, TD Bank Group published a note this week apologizing to clients about the downtime on WebBroker essentially stating that trading systems were overwhelmed by the sheer volume of client activity.

Screenshot of message on WebBroker

Clark’s note also spoke to the wait times being encountered by clients attempting to call in to TD Direct Investing by phone, requesting ‘patience’ as TD works through resolving these issues.

What is particularly interesting about the note is firstly that the head of an online brokerage took the time to post a response, and secondly that there were important details on what went wrong, when they went wrong and that TD Direct Investing is working to address the issues.

Most importantly, there was also an apology and an expectation that things should be better.

It was an honest and earnest message that should only come from the top of the brand to let clients and investors know the person in charge is watching. Of course, it is up to clients to decide whether or not the words ring true or hollow, but at the very least the top brass stepped up.

Late Friday, RBC Direct Investing also posted a somewhat similar message, offering up some details on what happened and also apologizing to clients for not meeting the standard that clients expect of them.

Screenshot from RBC DI platform

In the online age, however, these communications have come much later than the events they describe.

The investment world hates uncertainty and so it is somewhat ironic to find the absence of more detailed and timely communication with clients about these issues by the online brokerages. The predictable result is that a lack of details introduces uncertainty as to whether a service provider to deliver on their brand’s promise.

In that light it is interesting that there haven’t been any details provided by Scotia iTRADE – similar to what has been done by TD Direct Investing and RBC Direct Investing – on what has been impacting wait times for clients and what may be in the works to fix it going forward.

What Happens Next?

Faced with the realities of tighter margins, brought on by competition and investor trends, Canadian online brokerages find themselves at a bit of a cross roads.

To compete and win, service, pricing and overall client experience – including the digital/online and telephone experiences, need to be excellent. To do that, they need money however with about a dozen or so online brokerages in Canada and only so many traders and active investors to go around, the margin for error is very small. Charging a premium price for commissions only to fall short when it comes to delivering on trading platform stability or customer service agent availability doesn’t measure up.

The biggest takeaway from these outages and wait times is that the entire space is under a microscope. There are now lots of eyeballs watching to see who slips up or doesn’t deliver and no shortage of outlets looking for a story in case those slip ups happen. It won’t just be DIY investors chiming in on social media anymore; mainstream media and business news outlets will be scrutinizing every step and misstep.

How many investors jump ship as a result of the service experience snafus is hard to say. Canadian DIY investors are patient, perhaps even willing to cut online brokerages some slack for occasional technology hiccups. The real question, however, is how long they’re willing to wait for things to improve before they’ll move? Judging by recent reactions, the answer seems to be not that long.

Discount Brokerage Tweets of the Week

No surprises here. Service delays, outages and frustration are on the menu. Viewer discretion is advised. Mentioned by Canadian DIY investors were BMO InvestorLine, CIBC Investor’s Edge, Questrade, RBC Direct Investing, Scotia iTRADE, and TD Direct Investing.

From the Forums

Promotions for switching brokerages?

Yup. Though this post on RedFlagDeals.com might be a tad bit self-serving, it was nonetheless interesting to see DIY investors make decisions on online brokerages based on incentives (and how we help make it easier!).

Banking on a better experience

When it comes to telling apart bank-owned online brokerages, sometimes small differences make big impacts. This post from RedFlagDeals.com generated an interesting discussion when comparing CIBC Investor’s Edge to BMO InvestorLine.

Into the Close

So despite all of the negative headlines from this past week, markets seem to be in rally mode – at least in the US. That’s pretty amazing stuff when you consider all that has been said. So, for the traders and investors out there, try to get some rest this weekend, you’re going to need your strength to hang on for the wild ride of the next few weeks. Of course if you’re looking for something really interesting to plan your future trades (and Christmas lists) around, here are some highlights from the recent CES show. Have a great weekend!

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Discount Brokerage Deals & Promotions – January 2018

*Update: 1/25* Happy New Year! It seems like the one place in Canada that is still hot this winter is the deals and promotions section for Canada’s discount brokerages. It’s a strong start to 2018 for Canadian discount brokerages, as the official race to the RSP contribution deadline is on.

Discount Brokerage Deals Quick Nav

  1. Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions
  2. Referral Promotions
  3. Transfer Fee Promotions
  4. Contests & Other Offers
  5. Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

With excitement about marijuana legalization, blockchain and crytptocurrencies as well as stock markets continuing to push higher, there are many reasons DIY investors would be looking into online trading accounts. Fortunately, for those in the market for an RSP or TFSA or even a cash/margin account, there are over two dozen offers now in play.

Leading off the deals news this month is BMO InvestorLine, who upped the ante in the promotional pool with a cash back/commission-free trade offer to start 2018. In addition, BMO’s SmartFolio has also lowered the minimum account deposit threshold to open an account (and thus to qualify) for their waived management fee promotion, from $5,000 to $1,000.

For the new year, almost all of Canada’s major online brokerages have a promotional offer in play. The most common offer online brokerages are putting forward are transfer-fee coverage offers that help pay for the cost of switching discount brokers.

Of course, the most popular category of offers for Canadian DIY investors is the cash back or commission-free trade offer type. Starting off in 2018 there are 9 of these offers to choose from. Four of Canada’s bank-owned online brokerages currently have promotions in this category, with TD Direct Investing having the lowest deposit threshold ($10,000) of this group to qualify for a cash-back promotion.

The best news, however, is that with a few more online brokerages still on the sidelines, there’s lots of momentum and incentive for them to jump into the fray. And, to ensure they get noticed, the deals will have to either stand out or match some of the more competitive offers currently out there.

As always, we’ll continue to monitor the deals activity, however if you find out about an offer that would be of value to our readers, feel free to post it in the comments below.

Expired Offers

There were a couple of offers that expired through December. The first was HSBC InvestDirect’s commission-free trade offer which expired Dec. 15th. The second offer that expired was BMO InvestorLine’s cash back promotion. Not to worry, however, as BMO launched a new deal to replace its outgoing offer (more details below).

Extended Offers

Good news for Questrade fans as an extension was granted for Questrade’s 5 commission-free trade offer to Dec. 31st 2018.

New Offers

*Update: 1/25 – National Bank Direct Brokerage has stepped into the deals and promotions race with an interesting commission-free trading offer. NBDB appears to be targeting investors with lower balances to qualify for this promotion with the first deposit tier (for 10 free trades) being $10,000 and the next tier (for 25 free trades) being $20,000. The bonus for this particular offer is that the commission-free trades are good for up to one year meaning there is no rush to use them up. See the table below for more information*

*Update: 1/17 – Just one day after Credential Direct launched a cash-back offer, Qtrade Investor also went live with a cash-back offer of their own. Qtrade Investor is offering up $50 (for deposits starting at $50,000) to $1,000 (for deposits of $1M+) cash back. This offer is running until Feb. 28th. See table below for more information.*

*Update: 1/16 – Credential Direct is the latest Canadian online brokerage to launch an offer for the RSP season. The promotion is a combination of a tiered cash back offering as well as a bonus of donating cash to a good cause (Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada). Qualifying deposits for this offer start at $15,000 (which offers $75 cash back) and go up to $1 million dollars (which offers $1,000 cash back). See table below for more information.*

*Update: 1/12 – HSBC InvestDirect joined the deals pool this month by launching a new cash back offer. Bonus amounts range from $88 (for a minimum deposit of $25,000) to $988 (for deposits of $1M or more).  The language of this offer is particularly interesting as it stresses the ‘transfer in’ of assets from another Canadian financial institution from “any type of account” – a sign that HSBC InvestDirect may be stepping up its campaign to win market share away from its bigger bank-owned brokerage competitors. See table below for more details.*

To kick off the new year, BMO InvestorLine has upped the ante by offering a cash back or commission-free trade promotion. As this is a tiered offer, the deposit levels start at $100,000 and go up to $300,000+ with the cash back bonuses ranging from $200 through to $750. See table below for more details.

Also worth noting was the introduction TD Direct Investing’s offer in early December. As one of Canada’s largest and most popular online brokerages, the actions of TD Direct Investing are influential in shaping what other online brokerages put forward.

Discount Brokerage Deals

  1. Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions
  2. Referral Promotions
  3. Transfer Fee Promotions
  4. Contests & Other Offers
  5. Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions (new!)

Cash Back/Free Trade/Product Offer Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Commission/Cash Offer/Promotion Type Time Limit to Use Commission/Cash Offer Details Link Deadline
Jitney Trade A Sparx Trading exclusive offer! Use the promo code “Sparx Trading” when signing up for a new account with Jitneytrade and receive access to their preferred pricing package. n/a Discounted Commission Rates none For more details click here none
Open and fund a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) with at least $1,000 and you may be eligible to receive $88 in commission credits (up to 17 commission-free trades). Use promo code SPARX88 when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions carefully. $1,000 $88 commission credit 60 days Access this offer by clicking here: $88 commission-credit offer . For full terms and conditions, click here. none
Open and fund a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) with at least $1,000 and you may be eligible to receive 5 commission-free trades. Use promo code 5FREETRADES when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions carefully. $1,000 5 commission-free trades 60 days 5 commission-free trade offer December 31, 2018
Open and fund a new account with Virtual Brokers with at least $5,000 and you may be eligible to receive up to two months of trading at $4.99 per trade (maximum of 15 trades per month). Use promo code 499COM2017 when signing up to qualify. See terms and conditions for full details. $5,000 Up to 2 months of trading at $4.99 per trade (max 15 trades per month) Commissions will be reimbursed after June 30, 2018. For more details, click here March 31, 2018
Open and fund a qualifying account with TD Direct Investing with at least A) $10,000; B) $50,000; C) $100,000; D) $250,000 or E) $500,000+ and place at least 5 commissionable trades within 90 days of account opening and you may be eligible to receive either A) $100; B) $200; C) $300; D) $500 or E) $1,000 in cash back. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for eligibility for this offer. A) $10,000 B) $50,000 C) $100,000 D) $250,000 E) $500,000+ A) $100 B) $200 C) $300 D) $500 E) $1,000 Cash award will be paid to the client before the last day of the month following the conclusion of the qualification period (90 days). #RetireReady Promotion March 1, 2018
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage is offering new clients 1% of assets transferred into the new account in the form of commission credits (to a maximum value of $1,000). Minimum qualifying deposit is $10,000. To qualify, individuals will have to call 1-866-873-7103 and mention promo code DisnatTransfer or email: [email protected]. See details link for more info. $10,000 1% of assets transferred in the form of commission-credits (max credits: $1,000) 6 months Disnat 1% Commission Credit Promo January 31, 2018
Open a new account at National Bank Direct Brokerage with at least a) $10,000 or B) $20,000+, and you may be eligible to receive up to A) 10 or B) 25 commission-free trades. For the 10 free trades offer, enter promo code FREE10 and for the 25 free trades offer enter promo code FREE25. This offer is also available to existing clients. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $10,000 B) $20,000+ A) 10 commission-free trades B) 25 commission-free trades 12 months Free Trades Campaign April 30, 2018
Open a new account or fund an existing account at Credential Direct with at least A) $15,000; B) $50,000; C) $150,000; D) $500,000 or E) $1M+ and you may be eligible to receive a cash bonus of A) $75; B) $125; C) $200; D) $500 or E) $1,000. For new clients, use promo code CASH2018RSP when applying. Existing clients can access this promotion from the promotions page available on the account backend. A donation equivalent to 10% of the bonus payout will also be made by Credential Direct to Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $15,000 B) $50,000 C) $150,000 D) $500,000 E) $1M+ A) $75 B) $125 C) $200 D) $500 E) $1000 Cash will be credited to qualifying investor accounts the week of August 20, 2018 Winter Offer 2018 March 16, 2018
Transfer at least A) $25,000; B) $50,000; or C) $100,000 into a new or existing RRSP, spousal RRSP or TFSA at CIBC Investor’s Edge before March 1, 2018 and you may be eligible for a cash back offer of A) $100; B) $200 or C) $400. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $25,000 B) $50,000 C) $100,000 A) $100 B) $200 C) $400 Cash back will be deposited the week of May 4, 2018 (for transfers received by Dec. 31, 2017) or July 3, 2018 (for transfers received after Dec. 31, 2017). CIBC Investor’s Edge Cash Back Promo March 1, 2018
Open a new account with HSBC InvestDirect by transferring in at least A) $25,000; B) $100,000; C) $250,000; D) $500,000 or E) $1,000,000 or more from another Canadian financial institution and execute at least three commission-generating trades by April 30th, 2018, and you may be eligible to receive a cash bonus of up to A) $88; B) $188; C) $288; D) $688 or E) $988. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $25,000 B) $100,000 C) $250,000 D) $500,000 E) $1M+ A) $88 B) $188 C) $288 D) $688 E) $988 Transfer-in bonus will be deposited by November 30, 2018. Winter Offer – Transfer-In Bonus March 30, 2018
Scotia iTrade Open and fund a new account with Scotia iTRADE with at least A) $25,000; B) $50,000; C) $100,000; D) $250,000; E) $500,000 or F) $1M+ and you may be eligible to receive a pre-paid Visa gift card worth A) $50; B) $100, C) $200; D) $300; E) $600 or F) $1200. Use code VISA18 when signing up. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $25,000 B) $50,000 C) $100,000 D) $250,000 E) $500,000 F) $1M+ A) $50 B) $100 C) $200 D) $300 E) $600 F) $1200 pre-paid card should arrive by July 31st 2018 Scotia iTRADE offer March 1, 2018
Open and fund a new qualifying account with at least $25,000 and you may qualify for one month of unlimited commission-free trades and up to one month free of an advanced data package. Use promo code ADVANTAGE14 when opening a new account. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. $25,000 commission-free trades for 1 month + 1 month of advanced data. 1 month Active Trader Program December 31, 2018
Open a new account or fund an existing account with Qtrade Investor with at least A) $50,000; B) $100,000; C) $250,000; D) $500,000 or E) $1M+ and you may be eligible to receive A) $50; B) $100; C) $250; D) $500 or E) $1,000. Be sure to read terms and conditions for full details. A) $50,000 B) $100,000 C) $250,000 D) $500,000 E) $1M+ A) $50 B) $100 C) $250 D) $500 E) $1,000 Cash back will be credited by July 31, 2018. Cash back offer February 28, 2018
BMO InvestorLine Open a new qualifying account with BMO InvestorLine or fund a qualifying existing account, with at least A) $100,000; B) $200,000 or C) $300,000+ in net new assets and you may be eligible to receive up to A) $200 or 20 commission-free equity trades; B) $400 or 40 commission-free equity trades; or C) $750 cash back or 75 commission-free equity trades. Commission-free trades are good for up to two months. In addition, eligible individuals can receive an extra $50 as part of the refer a friend program. Use promo code SPARXCASH when signing up for the cash back offer or SPARXTRADES when signing up for the commission-free equity trade bonus. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for more details on the offer. A) $100,000 B) $200,000 C) $300,000 A) $200 or 20 commission-free equity trades. B) $400 or 40 commission-free equity trades. C) $750 or 75 commission-free equity trades. Cash back will be deposited the week of Nov. 12, 2018. Commission-free equity trades are good for up to two months. BMO InvestorLine Winter 2018 Campaign April 1, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Jan. 25 2018 12:45 PT

Referral Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Incentive Structure Time Limit to Use Commission/Cash Offer Deposit Details Link Deadline
Refer a friend to Questrade and when they open an account you receive $25 cash back and they receive either A) $25; B) $50; C) $75; D) $100; or E) $250 depending on the amount deposited amount. Enter code: 476104302388759 during account sign up to qualify. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for eligibility and additional bonus payment structure and minimum balance requirements. A) $1,000 B) $10,000 C) $25,000 D) $50,000 E) $100,000+ $25 cash back (for referrer per referral; $50 bonus cash back for every 3rd referral) For referred individuals: A) $25 cash back B) $50 cash back C) $75 cash back D) $100 cash back E) $250 cash back Cash deposited into Questrade billing account within 7 days after funding period ends (90 days) Refer a friend terms and conditions Code Number: 476104302388759 none
Scotia iTrade 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 tbd
BMO InvestorLine If you (an existing BMO InvestorLine client) refer a new client to BMO InvestorLine and they open an account with at least $50,000 the referrer and the referee may both be eligible to receive $50 cash. To qualify the referee must use the email of the referrer that is linked to their BMO InvestorLine account. See terms and conditions for full details. $50,000 You(referrer): $50; Your Friend(referee): $50 Payout occurs 45 days after minimum 90 day holding period(subject to conditions). BMO InvestorLine Refer-a-Friend June 30, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Jan. 17 2018 15:30 PT

Transfer Fee Promotions

Company Brief Description Maximum Transfer Fee Coverage Amount Minimum Deposit Amount for Transfer Fee Eligibility Details Link Deadline
Transfer $15,000 or more to HSBC InvestDirect, and they will pay up to $150 in transfer fees. $150 $15,000 2018 Winter Offer – Transfer-In Bonus March 30, 2018
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
Transfer $20,000 or more to a National Bank Direct Brokerage account and they will pay up to $135 plus taxes in transfer fees. $135 $20,000 Transfer Fee Rebate none
Transfer $25,000 or more from another brokerage and Credential Direct will cover up to $150 in transfer fees. Use promo code SWITCHME when signing up to qualify for the transfer promotion. $150 $25,000 Credential Direct Transfer Fee Rebate none
Transfer $25,000 or more to Qtrade Investor from another brokerage and Qtrade Investor may cover up to $150 in transfer fees. See terms and conditions for more details. $150 $25,000 Transfer Fee Rebate 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 or more in new assets to TD Direct Investing when opening a new account and you may qualify to have transfer fees reimbursed up to $150. Be sure to contact TD Direct Investing for further details. $150 $25,000 Contact client service for more information (1-800-465-5463). none
Transfer $25,000 or more to Virtual Brokers and they may cover up to $150 in transfer fees. $150 $25,000 Transfer Fee promo tbd
Transfer $25,0000 or more to Scotia iTRADE and they cover up to $150 in transfer fees. $150 $25,000 Transfer Fee promo March 1, 2018
Transfer $25,000 or more into a CIBC Investor’s Edge account and they will reimburse up to $135 in brokerage transfer fees. Clients must call customer service to request rebate after transfer made. $135 $25,000 Confirmed with reps. Contact client service for more information (1-800-567-3343). none
Disnat 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 1-866-873-7103 and mention promo code DisnatTransfer. See details link for more info. $150 $50,000 Disnat 1% Commission Credit Promo January 31, 2018
BMO InvestorLine Open a new qualifying account with BMO InvestorLine or fund a qualifying existing account, by transferring in at least $200,000+ in net new assets and you may be eligible to have transfer fees covered up to $200. Use promo code SPARXCASH when signing up to also be eligible for cash back offer or SPARXTRADES to be eligible for the commission-free trade offer. Be sure to read the terms and conditions for more details on the offer. $200 $200,000 BMO InvestorLine Winter 2018 Campaign April 1, 2018

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Jan. 12 2018 13:00 PT

Other Promotions

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Required Details Link Deadline
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage, in conjunction with MoneyTalks, is offering 3 months of the “Inside Edge” investor information service to Desjardins Online Brokerage clients. Use promo code DESJ2016 during checkout to qualify. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for more information. n/a MoneyTalks Inside Edge Discount none
Disnat Desjardins Online Brokerage is offering $50 in commission credits for new Disnat Classic clients depositing at least $1,000. See terms and conditions for full details. $1,000 Broker@ge 18-30 Promotion none
Scotia iTrade Scotiabank StartRight customers can receive 10 commission-free trades when investing $1,000 or more in a new Scotia iTrade account. Trades are good for use for up to 1 year from the date the account is funded. Use promo code SRPE15 when applying (in English) or SRPF15 when applying in French. Be sure to read full terms and conditions for full details. $1,000 StartRight Free Trade offer none

Expired Offers
Last Updated: Jan. 2 2018 09:00 PT

Digital Advice + Roboadvisor Promotions

Robo-advisor / Digital advisor Offer Type Offer Description Min. Deposit Reward / Promotion Promo Code Expiry Date Link
Discounted Management Open and fund a new Questrade Portfolio IQ account with a deposit of at least $1,000 and the first month of management will be free. For more information on Portfolio IQ, click the product link. $1000 1st month no management fees KDKFNBBC None Questrade Portfolio IQ Promo Offer
Discounted Management Open a new account with BMO SmartFolio and receive one year of management of up to $15,000 free. See offer terms and conditions for more details. $1,000 1 year no management fees STSF February 28, 2018 SmartFolio New Account Promotion
Cash Back – Referral BMO SmartFolio clients will receive $50 cash back for every friend or family member who opens and funds a new SmartFolio account. Friends and family referred to SmartFolio will receive $50 cash back for opening and funding an account, plus automatic enrollment into SmartFolio’s mass offer in market at the time. See offer terms and conditions for more details. $1,000 $50 cash back (referrer) $50 cash back (referee) Unique link generated from SmartFolio required. None SmartFolio Website
Transfer Fee Coverage Transfer at least $25,000 into Virtual Wealth when opening a new account and you may be eligible to have up to $150 in transfer fees covered by Virtual Wealth. $25,000 up to $150 in transfer fees covered None None Contact customer service directly for more information.
Last Updated: Jan. 2 2018 11:45 PT