Tag: Qtrade Direct Investing

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Discount Brokerage Deals & Promotions – January 2013

ArchivedDealsHappy New Year to all of our deal hunting readers and welcome to another edition of Discount Brokerage Deals & Promotions. One of the most popular New Year’s resolutions for folks is to slim down. As it turns out, the number of deals being offered by discount brokerages has also slimmed down.  Right out of the gate, we noticed that a couple of discount brokerages did not update their deals section (Scotia iTrade and Virtual Brokers) and still had posted deals that expired on December 31st, 2012.  We’ve since let them know and will update our deals section when we hear back from them. Update: as of January 7th, it appears that Scotia iTrade has updated their promotions page and extended out their 100 days of free trading offer to March 31st, 2013. Virtual Brokers has yet to update their promotional offer.

Those discount brokerages that did start off 2013 on the right foot were CIBC Investor’s Edge and Disnat, both of whom have extended out their respective promotional offers well into 2013 (and had their sites updated by Jan 1, 2013).   Interestingly, BMO Investorline‘s 150 trade offer expires on January 3rd so we’ll also be on the look out for the update on whether this deal is extended out or replaced. Update: As of January 4th, BMO Investorline has launched a new deal offering 250 free trades or 250 free trades + $250 depending on whether you deposit $100,000 or $250,000 respectively. Their advertisement might be a bit confusing as it advertises 90 days of free trades, however the fine print reveals that is actually 90 days to use up to 250 trades. It is NOT an unlimited trading offer. Be sure to read the fine print carefully as there are a number of conditions attached to this offer.

One of the big deals we’re tracking is Questrade‘s unlimited trading offer which is due to expire in mid-January.  As we mentioned in our outlook for 2013, we think that there will be more discount brokerage deals coming down the road especially now that TFSA contribution limits have been raised and because we’re headed into RRSP season.

Check back here throughout January as we get some more visibility on upcoming discount brokerage deals, promos and special offers for 2013.

Discount Brokerage Deals & Promos

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Commission/Cash Offer 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 Jitney and receive access to their preferred pricing package and a massive 45% discount on the Real Tick trading platform. n/a Discounted Commission Rates none For more details click here none
Open a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) and receive $50 commission credit . Use promo code: kdkfnbbc $1,000 $50 commission credit none none none
Open and fund a new registered, margin or TFSA account and fund it within 30 days with either A)$1,000 B )$25,000 or C)$50,000 and you will be eligible to receive either unlimited free trading for A) 1 month, B) 2 months or C) 3 months depending on your deposit amounts. You must the code INFINITE to qualify. This is open to new and existing clients. There’s lots of fine print so be sure to read the details link. A) $1,000 B) $25,000 C) $30,000 Unlimited trading (No commissions charged on any trades placed) A) 31 days B) 62 days C) 90 days Unlimited Free Trades Promotion January 15th, 2013
Refer a friend to Questrade and when they open an account you receive $100 and they receive $50. To receive this deal you must be an existing client with an equity account and refer a person that does not reside with you and who has not previously opened a Questrade account. $1,000 $50 commission credit (friend) $100 commission credit (referrer bonus) 60 days Refer a friend none
Get up to 100 free trades when you fund an account with a minimum of $10,000. You must open this account by November 15th, 2012 and fund it with $10 000 within 30 days of account activation to qualify. You must enter promo code “100FREEQ”. There are quite a few other details, including a minimum balance requirement, so be sure to check the details link. $10,000 100 free trades ($495 value @ cheapest commission rate) 60 days 100 Free Trades January 15, 2013
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:$199.80) B) You(referrer): $100 cash or 50 free trades; Your “Friend”: $100 cash or 50 free trades (max total value: $999) 60 days Refer A Friend to Scotia iTrade February 28, 2013
Scotia iTrade Open and fund a new Scotia iTRADE account with at least $25,000 before December 31, 2012 and the commissions associated with your first 100 trades placed within 60 days of the date the account is activated and funded. Also, the new FlightDesk platform is being offered for free for 60 days. Use promo code WAC13-EN. See details link for further terms and conditions. $25,000 100 free trades ($999 value @ $9.99 commission rate) 60 days Scotia iTrade 100 free trades + FlightDesk March 31, 2013
TD Waterhouse Open an account with $25,000 or more and receive 10 free trades. This offer is only valid at the downtown Vancouver TD Waterhouse Investor Centre. 10 trades must be completed within 6 months of account opening; reimbursement based on $9.99 commission rate. $25,000 10 free trades ($99.99 value at stated commission rate) 6 months scanned photo of flyer none
Open and fund a new account with National Bank Direct Brokerage with $25 000 or more, and your commission rate for 6 months will be $6.95 Flat. $25,000 $6.95 Flat commission rate 6 months Take Control of the Markets Promo February 28, 2013
Open an account with either: A) $25,000 or more and receive a $100 cash credit and 25 free equity trades. or B) $50,000 or more to receive $200 cash back and 50 free equity trades. A) $25,000 B) $50,000+ A) $100 cash credit + 25 free equity trades ($823.75 (min)total value @ standard equity rate $28.95) B) $200 Cash credit +50 free equity trades ($697.50 total value @ active trader rate $9.95) 60 days Cash back offer March 1, 2013
Disnat Disnat is celebrating its 30th anniversary by offering new & existing clients $300 in commission credits which can be used for up to 6 months. To be eligible, new/existing clients need to deposit $50,000 into a Disnat account. You’ll have to call 1 800 268-8471 and mention promo code Disnat30. See details link for more info. $50,000 $300 commission credit 6 months Disnat 30th Anniversary Promo February 1, 2013
BMO InvestorLine Open a new account with $100,000 or more (or for existing clients make a deposit of $100,000 or more) and get $150 cash back and 150 free trades. Use the promo code BONUS when opening a new account (or when making a new deposit of $100,000 or more). See the details link for qualifying account types and conditions. $100,000 $150 cash 150 free trades ($1492.50 value) 60 days Path to Online Investing Promotion January 3, 2013 [EXPIRED]
BMO InvestorLine Open a new account or upgrade an existing account with either A) $100,000 or B)$250,000 to receive 250 trades (for those who deposit $100K) or 250 trades + $250 (for those who deposit $250K). Use Promo Code: RSP2013. NOTE: There are lots of details/important conditions attached to this promotion. Be sure to read the terms and conditions carefully. A) $100,000 B) $250,000 A) 250 Free Trades ($2497.50 value @ $9.99/trade) B) 250 Free Trades + $250 ( $2747.50 value @$9.99/trade) 90 days Path to Online Investing Promotion March 4, 2013

Transfer Fee Deals

Below are the discount brokerages deals that cover transfer out fees from other discount brokerages.

Company Brief Description Maximum Transfer Fee Coverage Amount Deposit Amount for Transfer Fee Eligibility Details Link Deadline
Qtrade Investor Qtrade Investor will reimburse your transfer fee up to $125 when transferring a balance of $25,000 or more. For reimbursement, please mail or fax a copy of your statement from the transferring institution that shows the transfer charge to Qtrade Investor at 604.484.2627 and indicate your Qtrade Investor account number. $125 $10,000 Transfer Fee Promo March 31, 2013
Move your brokerage account to Questrade and they’ll cover the transfer-out fee up to $150. $150 $25,000 Transfer Fee Promo none
TD Waterhouse Open a TD Direct Investing account with a minimum of $25,000 by March 1, 2013, and get up to $150 to cover your account transfer fees. $150 $25,000 Switch for free March 31, 2013
Transfer $25,000 or more to a National Bank Direct Brokerage account and they will pay up to $135 plus taxes in transfer fees $135 $25,000 Transfer Fee Rebate none
Disnat Disnat is celebrating its 30th anniversary by offering up to $150 to cover the cost of transfer fees from another institution. To be eligible, new/existing clients need to deposit $50,000 into a Disnat account. You’ll have to call 1 800 268-8471 and mention promo code Disnat30. See details link for more info. $150 $50,000 Disnat 30th Anniversary Promo February 1, 2013
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Special Series: J.D. Power & Associates – Discount Brokerage Rankings Data Visualized

How to use the Visual Discount Brokerage Rankings Table

We’ve collected the results from the J.D. Power and Associates Investor Satisfaction survey from 2012 (Table 1) as well as historical results from 2009-2012 (Table 2).  To help visualize how the different discount brokerages have performed on the surveys relative to other discount brokerages, we’ve created small graphs called “sparxlines”.  Each graph shows a series of dots that represent the order in which a company ranked according to the survey results and ordered from left to right (with 1st being on the far left).  A red dot on each graph corresponds to the company referenced in the same row.  The average for the industry is presented on the graph for a point of reference to identify which companies are at, above or below average.  Lastly the scores are provided for a numerical reference point.   To find out more about a particular discount brokerage, simply click on the logo of the company to be taken to the brokerage profile.

 

Table 1: J.D. Power and Associates 2012 Investor Satisfaction Results

Sparxline Company Investor Satisfaction Survey Score Rating
768 5/5
720 4/5
719 4/5
707 3/5
690 3/5
687 3/5
686 3/5
686 3/5
678 3/5
656 2/5

Source: J.D. Power and Associates 2012 Discount Brokerage Investor Satisfaction Study

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Special Series: J.D. Power & Associates – Discount Brokerage Rankings Explained Part 2

JD-Power-Data-Ranking - Discount Brokerage Rankings

If you missed the first part of our J.D. Power & Associates Discount Brokerage Rankings series, read it here.

The two main objectives of this section are to provide readers with:

  1. A look at the overall discount brokerage marketplace to see what, if any trends in investor satisfaction there are that matter to consumers
  2. A detailed look at the company results in the survey to see how each company has performed over time so that consumers get an idea of the responsiveness of a particular discount brokerage to the needs of investors

When choosing a discount brokerage, you can either “go it alone” and find out for yourself what a discount brokerage is like or you can turn to the opinions of other self-directed investors to help you decide. Even though both approaches exist, surveys of Canadian investors have shown that many of them like to do research, turning to friends or family for recommendations, as well as third party reviews and research, before making a choice to go with a particular discount broker. While external opinions are valuable sources of information to help avoid potentially costly or unpleasant experiences they can also help to find a service provider that can hopefully keep you a satisfied customer.

Looking at what thousands of other self-directed investors have said about their experiences can certainly shed light on what you’re likely to encounter with a particular discount brokerage and at the very least help to provide some context around informal discussions with friends or family. There are some questions, however, you may want to consider when looking to these sources. Questions such as:

  • How well does the source I’m looking at consider and describe my needs?
  • If they are a friend, family member or opinion in a forum, how long has this person been a client with the company and
  • What, if any, issues have they encountered with the service/experience along the way?

Also, because numbers and statistics often get presented to support marketing and sales, we thought it prudent to state several “qualifiers” readers need to consider about such numbers up front instead of at the end. First, it’s worth stating that the range of data this section references covers four years of results of the investor satisfaction survey. This four year time period is a small time frame, especially since the interval that the survey is conducted on is annual. Second, the number of companies in the ‘pool’ is fairly small so we must be cautious about inferring too much about the performance numbers and possible trends of the industry as a whole. Instead, looking at a particular company’s change in performance over time is probably more reliable an approach than comparing companies to one another. Lastly, not every year had the same number of discount brokerages covered. In 2009 and 2010 for example, the number of discount brokerages covered by this survey was 6 and 8 respectively. Smaller or newer discount brokerages, therefore, are less likely to appear on the survey and so the inferences made about “the industry” actually apply to the discount brokerages covered in this list.

Investor satisfaction with the overall discount brokerage industry in Canada

Over the four years the investor satisfaction survey has been conducted, more than eleven and a half thousand individuals have been consulted about discount brokerage services in Canada.

Canadian Discount Brokerage Industry - Investor Satisfaction Scores 2009-2012
Figure 1: Canadian Discount Brokerage Investor Satisfaction Scores from 2009-2012

When looking at the four year picture, the average industry satisfaction scores have fluctuated year over year, bouncing between a low of 679 in 2011 and a high of 707 in 2010. The four year average score for the industry is 696 (out of 1000) with an average standard deviation of 27.5 points. When graphed, it is clear that as a group no clear industry-wide trends in the satisfaction of Canadian discount brokerage investors are visible.

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Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup – Nov 30th 2012

On the heels of the results from the annual Globe and Mail Canadian Discount Brokerage rankings, the 2012 Morningstar Canadian Investment Awards were handed out on November 28th and included a “Best Discount Brokerage” category.  While not nearly as well known as the J.D. Power and Associates award for Investor Satisfaction, the Morningstar Awards offer discount brokerages the chance to submit themselves (for a fee) for consideration by a panel of judges for the title of “Best Discount Broker.”  This year, Qtrade took top spot and maintained their three year reign as the title holder of this award.   Certainly it’s a bright spot for them after recently having been displaced from the top of the Globe and Mail rankings by Virtual Brokers. To learn more about the Morningstar methodology for “Best Discount Broker” click here. BMO Investorline’s  “Advice Direct” also earned recognition for “Best Use of Technology” (another category for which entrants had to submit a fee to be considered).  Unfortunately, neither the list of candidates nor the scores were published so we are not sure how many discount brokerages participated in this year’s submission.

Another big piece of news for self-directed investors came in the form of an increased contribution limit to tax-free savings accounts (TFSAs).  Most Canadian discount brokerages offer TFSAs so for those who choose to invest via their TFSAs, the news is definitely welcomed.  Starting in January 2013 Canadians will be allowed to contribute a maximum of $5500 dollars (instead of the previous limit of $5000 per year).  To learn more about which discount brokerages offer TFSAs, click here.

If you want to learn more about TFSAs themselves, check our special “The Mighty TFSA.”

Event Horizon

As we turn the corner into December, an interesting opportunity for individuals to sit and discuss some investing related topics is being held at the TD Waterhouse Discount Brokerage centre in downtown Vancouver.  The event, entitled “stock chatter” will take place on December 5th from 1:30 PM to 3:00 PM.

Best Discount Brokerage Tweet of the Week

This past week saw the finale of Financial Literacy Month but also it was the conclusion of the now infamous “Mo-vember”.  @Jitneytrade deserves a tip of the hat for getting their team on board and actively participating in this great event.  Check out their tweet here which has the link to their movember ‘stache pics.

The People Have Spoken

Questrade is one of the most active discount brokerages when it comes to offering discounts and promotions.  Recently they’ve offered individuals either an iPad mini if they transfer in $100K or a chance to win one of 10 ipad minis for a smaller deposit.   The retail value of an ipad mini is $329.  In our discount broker deals section, we’ve seen deal “value” far higher for smaller deposit sizes, and so it piqued our curiosity – what do others think of this Questrade promotion? Is an iPad mini enough value to deposit $100,000?  Sure enough, the Questrade promotion caught the attention of some folks on the following Red Flag Deals forum.

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Discount Brokerage Deals & Promotions – December 2012

For self-directed investors, it seems like the gift of discount brokerage deals has already been given in November. As it stands, the deals offered by discount brokerages into the end of the year are largely carried over from last month.

The most noteworthy deal announced mid-November was the unlimited trading offer by Questrade. Similar to the Scotia iTrade offer, these deals offer unlimited trading but for a limited time. If you’re looking for promos that have a much longer time frame to use up those free commissions, the deal by Disnat (celebrating their 30th year) gives investors up to 6 months. National Bank Direct Brokerage is offering its best rate on commissions for 6 months.

A number of deals (six by our count) will be expiring in December. These deals include the Scotia iTrade unlimited trading offer for 100 days which expires December 14th and deals from CIBC Investor’s Edge, Disnat, BMO Investorline, Virtual Brokers, Scotia iTrade and Credential Direct coming to an end by the end of December.

For those looking for a deal, it is an interesting time of year because on the one hand there are some compelling offers, but on the other, the busy season for attracting new customers (i.e. RRSP season) is right around the corner and so there is likely something in the works with most discount brokerages.

With the introduction of unlimited trading, the bar for discount brokerage deals has definitely been raised by Questrade and Scotia iTrade. Whether or not that is enough of an incentive to get consumers to choose a discount brokerage based on this kind of promo, however, is something we’ll find out if these offers persist. One thing is certain going into the holidays, those discount brokerages not willing to give deals or promos are also those less likely to receive the business of self-directed investors looking for a little holiday cheer.

Discount Brokerage Deals & Promos

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Commission/Cash Offer 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 Jitney and receive access to their preferred pricing package and a massive 45% discount on the Real Tick trading platform. n/a Discounted Commission Rates none For more details click here none
Open a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) and receive $50 commission credit . Use promo code: kdkfnbbc $1,000 $50 commission credit none none none
Open and fund a new registered, margin or TFSA account and fund it within 30 days with either A)$1,000 B )$25,000 or C)$50,000 and you will be eligible to receive either unlimited free trading for A) 1 month, B) 2 months or C) 3 months depending on your deposit amounts. You must the code INFINITE to qualify. This is open to new and existing clients. There’s lots of fine print so be sure to read the details link. A) $1,000 B) $25,000 C) $30,000 Unlimited trading (No commissions charged on any trades placed) A) 31 days B) 62 days C) 90 days Unlimited Free Trades Promotion January 15th, 2013
Refer a friend to Questrade and when they open an account you receive $100 and they receive $50. To receive this deal you must be an existing client with an equity account and refer a person that does not reside with you and who has not previously opened a Questrade account. $1,000 $50 commission credit (friend) $100 commission credit (referrer bonus) 60 days Refer a friend none
Credential Direct If you are a client of North Shore Credit Union, you can qualify for 5 free trades as well as a $125 transfer fee credit to cover transfer fees from another discount brokerage ($10,000 minimum transfer in value). To qualify, you must enter NSCU-05Trades on your application. $10,000 5 free trades must use trades by Feb. 28/2013 North Shore Credit Union Promo December 31, 2012
Get up to 100 free trades when you fund an account with a minimum of $10,000. You must open this account by November 15th, 2012 and fund it with $10 000 within 30 days of account activation to qualify. You must enter promo code “100FREEQ”. There are quite a few other details, including a minimum balance requirement, so be sure to check the details link. $10,000 100 free trades ($495 value @ cheapest commission rate) 60 days 100 Free Trades January 15, 2013
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:$199.80) B) You(referrer): $100 cash or 50 free trades; Your “Friend”: $100 cash or 50 free trades (max total value: $999) 60 days Refer A Friend to Scotia iTrade February 28, 2013
TD Waterhouse Open an account with $25,000 or more and receive 10 free trades. This offer is only valid at the downtown Vancouver TD Waterhouse Investor Centre. 10 trades must be completed within 6 months of account opening; reimbursement based on $9.99 commission rate. $25,000 10 free trades 6 months scanned photo of flyer none
Scotia iTrade Open and fund a new Scotia iTRADE account with at least $25,000 before December 31, 2012 and the commissions associated with your first 100 trades placed within 60 days of the date the account is activated and funded. Also, the new FlightDesk platform is being offered for free for 60 days. See details link for further terms and conditions. $25,000 100 free trades ($999 value @ $9.99 commission rate) 60 days Scotia iTrade 100 free trades + FlightDesk December 31, 2012
Open a new account with $25,000 before December 31st, 2012 and receive 150 trades free. (Applies to the first 150 trades placed within 60 days of account opening at a maximum of $6.49 per trade with a total maximum value of $973) $25,000 150 free trades ($973 value @ $6.49 commission rate) 60 days New Account Promo December 31, 2012
Open and fund a new account with National Bank Direct Brokerage with $25 000 or more, and your commission rate for 6 months will be $6.95 Flat. $25,000 $6.95 Flat commission rate 6 months Take Control of the Markets Promo February 28, 2013
Open an account with either: A) $25,000 or more and receive a $100 cash credit and 25 free equity trades. or B) $50,000 or more to receive $200 cash back and 50 free equity trades. A) $25,000 B) $50,000+ A) $100 cash credit + 25 free equity trades ($823.75 (min)total value @ standard equity rate $28.95) B) $200 Cash credit +50 free equity trades ($697.50 total value @ active trader rate $9.95) 60 days Cash back offer December 31, 2012
BMO InvestorLine Existing BMO Investorline clients who refer a ‘friend’ who then opens an account, (and the “friend” too) can qualify for a cash bonus, depending on the deposit amount. For deposits of between $50,000 and $249,999, the referral bonus is $200 and the “friend” receives $50; for deposits of over $250,000 the referral bonus is $300 the “friend” receives $100. To qualify for the deal, the referral reference code needs to be included in the application – see the details link for terms and conditions. $50,000 $50 cash (friend) $200 cash (referrer bonus) 60 days (see details) Refer a Friend Promo December 31, 2012
Scotia iTrade Open one or more new Scotia iTrade account(s) by November 16, 2012 with at least $50,000 in cash or net equity and receive 100 days of commission free trades. Also, you get to try FlightDesk free for100 days. To qualify you must enter promo code ” F’12 OFFER” when submitting new account application. See details link for more information. $50,000 unlimited free trades 100 days 100 Days Commission-Free December 14, 2012
Disnat Disnat is celebrating its 30th anniversary by offering new & existing clients $300 in commission credits which can be used for up to 6 months. To be eligible, new/existing clients need to deposit $50,000 into a Disnat account. You’ll have to call 1 800 268-8471 and mention promo code Disnat30. See details link for more info. $50,000 $300 commission credit 6 months Disnat 30th Anniversary Promo December 31, 2012
BMO InvestorLine Open a new account with $100,000 or more (or for existing clients make a deposit of $100,000 or more) and get $150 cash back and 150 free trades. Use the promo code BONUS when opening a new account (or when making a new deposit of $100,000 or more). See the details link for qualifying account types and conditions. $100,000 $150 cash 150 free trades ($1492.50 value 60 days Path to Online Investing Promotion January 3, 2013

Transfer Fee Deals

Below are the discount brokerages that are offering deals that cover transfer out fees from other discount brokerages.

Company Brief Description Maximum Transfer Fee Coverage Amount Deposit Amount for Transfer Fee Eligibility Details Link Deadline
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 $25,000 or more to a National Bank Direct Brokerage account and they will pay up to $135 plus taxes in transfer fees $135 $25,000 Transfer Fee Rebate none
Virtual Brokers will cover transfer fees from your transferring institution to a maximum of $150 per account. This offer is only applicable to accounts opened with at least $25,000 in equity before December 31, 2012. $150 $25,000 Transfer Fee Promo December 31, 2012
Qtrade Investor Qtrade Investor will reimburse your transfer fee up to $125 when transferring a balance of $25,000 or more. For reimbursement, please mail or fax a copy of your statement from the transferring institution that shows the transfer charge to Qtrade Investor at 604.484.2627 and indicate your Qtrade Investor account number. $125 $25,000 Transfer Fee Promo none
Disnat Disnat is celebrating its 30th anniversary by offering up to $150 to cover the cost of transfer fees from another institution. To be eligible, new/existing clients need to deposit $50,000 into a Disnat account. You’ll have to call 1 800 268-8471 and mention promo code Disnat30. See details link for more info. $150 $50,000 Disnat 30th Anniversary Promo December 31, 2012
Credential Direct If you are a client of North Shore Credit Union, you can qualify for a $125 transfer fee credit to cover transfer fees from another discount brokerage ($10,000 minimum transfer in value). To qualify, you must enter NSCU-05Trades on your application. $125 $10,000 North Shore Credit Union Promo December 31, 2012

 

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Discount Brokerage Weekly Round Up – Nov. 23rd 2012

This week the biggest news for discount brokerages came in the form of the 2012 Globe and Mail Canadian discount brokerage rankings.  Rob Carrick’s annual survey of the Canadian discount brokerage industry looked at 12 firms this year. The top spot went to Virtual Brokers which narrowly edged out the six year champ, Qtrade while the bottom ranking company was HSBC InvestDirect.  The average score (out of 100) was 61.2% (with a standard deviation of 10.0 for those who mind the stats).   What was interesting about looking at the stats was how most of the companies performed about the same (statistically speaking) except for Virtual Brokers and Qtrade.  What this means for self-directed investors is that the difference between 3rd and 12th is not that significant and that even 1st and 2nd are only slightly more distinguishable than the rest.  To read more about the rankings and our analysis, click here.  Also, we put together a sortable version of the table of this year’s results to help make it easier to compare.

Another very big piece of news from discount brokerage deals section was the announcement by Questrade of the unlimited trading promotion.  Scotia iTrade was the first to offer unlimited trading for 100 days, however like all innovations in this very competitive market, there’s a good chance that others will try to do the same. What sets this deal apart from the one offered by Scotia iTrade is that Questrade is offering unlimited trading for account deposits  as low as $1,000 and $25,000 whereas Scotia iTrade’s deal requires a minimum deposit of $50,000. Not all self-directed investors really need or want unlimited trades, especially if it is only for one or two months, but for some it is one more reason to lean towards Questrade.

Event Horizon

The upcoming week in events is a bit light as we come to the close of November and financial literacy month.  One interesting looking seminar that is coming up this week is geared towards options trading.  The TMX group will be presenting via Scotia iTrade, Understanding the Collar Strategy.

Best Canadian Discount Brokerage Tweet of the Week

This week’s best discount brokerage tweet again comes from the affiliate of Disnat Direct,  @DesjardinsGroup.  We saw this week’s tweet as a way to spread a little goodness for a worthy cause.  Desjardins will be donating $50,000 to cancer research across three organizations that gets the most votes here.

The People Have Spoken

It was a very big week for the Canadian discount brokerage space with the release of the 2012 Globe and Mail brokerage rankings.  A lot of buzz was created around whether these were actually seen as valuable or not.  This thread in the Red Flag Deals personal finance forum was a particularly heated conversation.

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Globe and Mail 2012 Canadian Discount Brokerage Rankings Review

Virtual Brokers Takes Top Spot

The 2012 Globe and Mail Canadian discount brokerage rankings are out as of today with Virtual Brokers claiming the top spot and displacing the 6 year “reigning champ” of this survey, Qtrade (which came in second), by a razor thin margin.

Becoming Globe and Mail’s top ranked brokerage, albeit barely, was a pretty lofty achievement for Virtual Brokers for a number of reasons, not the least of which is because they were sitting at the bottom of the ranking back in 2010. This year (2012) marks only the third year in which Virtual Brokers has been included in the ranking, so for such a recent entrant into the ranking pool to move up so quickly is certainly noteworthy.

So what took Virtual Brokers from the bottom of the pack in 2010 to being crowned the best Canadian discount broker for 2012?  Certainly credit is deserved where credit is due.  Virtual Brokers has aggressively priced their services far lower than many of their peers and started to match the types of services found at their competitors.  Of course, it also helps to understand how the types of categories that went into this ranking could impact the outcome. In order to understand what being the “best discount brokerage” really means, we took a closer look at the rating system used by the Globe and Mail’s Rob Carrick.

Looking at the Ranking Structure

The following five sections (and the percent they play in the scoring) are used in the Globe and Mail discount brokerage ranking to assess each Canadian discount brokerage:

  1. Costs – 25%
  2. Account Information – 25%
  3. Trading – 20%
  4. Tools – 20%
  5. Innovation -10%

For this ranking, the two factors that heavily influence the overall ranking are costs and account information (combined they form 50% of the score).  The last three categories of trading, tools and innovation combine to form the other 50% of the ranking.  Interestingly, when looking at the definition of innovation: “Which firms are leaders in terms of cutting prices and introducing new services, and which are followers?” price comes in again.

Thus, the prices that a brokerage charges for its services end up having a bigger influence in the overall score relative to any other single component.  Virtual Brokers had the strongest showing on fees and innovation and tied for first in the “trading” category which likely gave it the edge it needed to squeak out ahead of Qtrade.  Qtrade shone brightest in the “account info” category.  Sometimes the overall ranking can mask some particularly noteworthy performances.  On the good side, buried in the results is an impressive perfect 20 out of 20 that TD Waterhouse managed to achieve in the Tools category (even though they were ranked 6th overall).  Conversely, the lowest ranking was given to HSBC InvestDirect which ‘earned’ a particularly biting comment: “They win in one respect – most annoying log-in process.”

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Discount Brokerage Deals & Promotions – November 2012

November’s lineup of discount brokerage deals and promotions features many of the same players from last month, except with some minor changes to dates and amounts.

Starting first with the newest deals. National Bank Direct Brokerage is running the “Take Control of the Markets!” promo where they’re offering new clients who open an account with $25,000 or more $6.95 flat fee pricing on equity trades for six months. This deal replaces two of their previous promotions, the “Commission Holiday” and “refer-a-friend”.

BMO Investorline is running the “Path to Online Investing Promotion” starting this month.  The bonus offer for this promotion is 150 free trades (which you have 60 days to use) and $150 cash back and is basically a repackaging of the 150/150 promotion (which expired at the end of October) with the main difference being that the “Path to Online Investing Promotion” requires a deposit of $100,000.

Questrade has interestingly extended one of its existing 100 free trade deals into mid-November. The expiry of Questrade’s deal seems to fall at the same time as the expiry of Scotia iTrade’s huge unlimited trades promo.

Those Canadian discount brokerages that are in a bit of a holding pattern from last month include Virtual Brokers, Scotia iTrade, Credential Direct and CIBC Investors Edge.  The transfer fee deals being offered are the same as last month and include Questrade, National Bank Direct Brokerage, Virtual Brokers, Qtrade, Disnat Direct and Credential Direct who are willing to kick in between $125-$150 to help with transfer out fees.

As they have been for some time, Jitneytrade’s exclusive offer for SparxTrading.com’s visitors is still in full effect and worth looking into for the active traders looking for a break on pricing and platforms.

Discount Brokerage Deals & Promos

Company Brief Description Minimum Deposit Amount Commission/Cash Offer 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 Jitney and receive access to their preferred pricing package and a massive 45% discount on the Real Tick trading platform. n/a Discounted Commission Rates none For more details click here none
Open a new account (TFSA, Margin or RRSP) and receive $50 commission credit . Use promo code: kdkfnbbc $1,000 $50 commission credit none none none
Open and fund a new registered, margin or TFSA account and fund it within 30 days with either A)$1,000 B )$25,000 or C)$50,000 and you will be eligible to receive either unlimited free trading for A) 1 month, B) 2 months or C) 3 months depending on your deposit amounts. You must the code INFINITE to qualify. This is open to new and existing clients. There’s lots of fine print so be sure to read the details link. A) $1,000 B) $25,000 C) $30,000 Unlimited trading (No commissions charged on any trades placed) A) 31 days B) 62 days C) 90 days Unlimited Free Trades Promotion January 15th, 2013
Refer a friend to Questrade and when they open an account you receive $100 and they receive $50. To receive this deal you must be an existing client with an equity account and refer a person that does not reside with you and who has not previously opened a Questrade account. $1,000 $50 commission credit (friend) $100 commission credit (referrer bonus) 60 days Refer a friend none
Credential Direct If you are a client of North Shore Credit Union, you can qualify for 5 free trades as well as a $125 transfer fee credit to cover transfer fees from another discount brokerage ($10,000 minimum transfer in value). To qualify, you must enter NSCU-05Trades on your application. $10,000 5 free trades must use trades by Feb. 28/2013 North Shore Credit Union Promo December 31, 2012
Get up to 100 free trades when you fund an account with a minimum of $10,000. You must open this account by November 15th, 2012 and fund it with $10 000 within 30 days of account activation to qualify. You must enter promo code “100FREEQ”. There are quite a few other details, including a minimum balance requirement, so be sure to check the details link. $10,000 100 free trades ($495 value @ cheapest commission rate) 60 days 100 Free Trades January 15, 2013
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:$199.80) B) You(referrer): $100 cash or 50 free trades; Your “Friend”: $100 cash or 50 free trades (max total value: $999) 60 days Refer A Friend to Scotia iTrade February 28, 2013
TD Waterhouse Open an account with $25,000 or more and receive 10 free trades. This offer is only valid at the downtown Vancouver TD Waterhouse Investor Centre. 10 trades must be completed within 6 months of account opening; reimbursement based on $9.99 commission rate. $25,000 10 free trades 6 months scanned photo of flyer none
Scotia iTrade Open and fund a new Scotia iTRADE account with at least $25,000 before December 31, 2012 and the commissions associated with your first 100 trades placed within 60 days of the date the account is activated and funded. Also, the new FlightDesk platform is being offered for free for 60 days. See details link for further terms and conditions. $25,000 100 free trades ($999 value @ $9.99 commission rate) 60 days Scotia iTrade 100 free trades + FlightDesk December 31, 2012
Open a new account with $25,000 before November 30th, 2012 and receive 150 trades free. (Applies to the first 150 trades placed within 60 days of account opening at a maximum of $6.49 per trade with a total maximum value of $973) $25,000 150 free trades ($973 value @ $6.49 commission rate) 60 days New Account Promo November 30, 2012
Open and fund a new account with National Bank Direct Brokerage with $25 000 or more, and your commission rate for 6 months will be $6.95 Flat. $25,000 $6.95 Flat commission rate 6 months Take Control of the Markets Promo February 28, 2013
Open an account with either: A) $25,000 or more and receive a $100 cash credit and 25 free equity trades. or B) $50,000 or more to receive $200 cash back and 50 free equity trades. A) $25,000 B) $50,000+ A) $100 cash credit + 25 free equity trades ($823.75 (min)total value @ standard equity rate $28.95) B) $200 Cash credit +50 free equity trades ($697.50 total value @ active trader rate $9.95) 60 days Cash back offer December 31, 2012
BMO InvestorLine Existing BMO Investorline clients who refer a ‘friend’ who then opens an account, (and the “friend” too) can qualify for a cash bonus, depending on the deposit amount. For deposits of between $50,000 and $249,999, the referral bonus is $200 and the “friend” receives $50; for deposits of over $250,000 the referral bonus is $300 the “friend” receives $100. To qualify for the deal, the referral reference code needs to be included in the application – see the details link for terms and conditions. $50,000 $50 cash (friend) $200 cash (referrer bonus) 60 days (see details) Refer a Friend Promo December 31, 2012
Scotia iTrade Open one or more new Scotia iTrade account(s) by November 16, 2012 with at least $50,000 in cash or net equity and receive 100 days of commission free trades. Also, you get to try FlightDesk free for100 days. To qualify you must enter promo code ” F’12 OFFER” when submitting new account application. See details link for more information. $50,000 unlimited free trades 100 days 100 Days Commission-Free December 14, 2012
Disnat Disnat is celebrating its 30th anniversary by offering new & existing clients $300 in commission credits which can be used for up to 6 months. To be eligible, new/existing clients need to deposit $50,000 into a Disnat account. You’ll have to call 1 800 268-8471 and mention promo code Disnat30. See details link for more info. $50,000 $300 commission credit 6 months Disnat 30th Anniversary Promo December 31, 2012
BMO InvestorLine Open a new account with $100,000 or more (or for existing clients make a deposit of $100,000 or more) and get $150 cash back and 150 free trades. Use the promo code BONUS when opening a new account (or when making a new deposit of $100,000 or more). See the details link for qualifying account types and conditions. $100,000 $150 cash 150 free trades ($1492.50 value 60 days Path to Online Investing Promotion January 3, 2013

 

Transfer Fee Deals

Below are the discount brokerages that are offering deals that cover transfer out fees from other discount brokerages.

[table id=42/]

 

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Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup – Oct. 26th 2012

Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup

This week provided an interesting lesson in activity fees handed out to one RBC Direct Investing client, covered via Global News here.  If you’ve got an account open that you’ve forgotten about, you may want to look closely at what you’re being charged by keeping the account open (you can check out our fee comparison page here).  We looked at the latest news story evolving in markets, complicated orders, and the bigger issue of ‘fairness’ to all players the market.  An interesting twist to this comes from the exchange traded fund (ETF) industry and how major stock exchanges, such as the NASDAQ, are considering allowing a particular order type specifically for ETFs.  This latest turn might be an effort to restore waning investor confidence in stock markets and investing.

Lastly, just before press, there was a great piece published by Rob Carrick in the Globe and Mail (Three smart ways to find an online broker) in which SparxTrading.com gets mentioned.  Also included in this article are a couple of other sites to do some of your research on.

Best Canadian Discount Brokerage Tweet of the Week:

The best discount brokerage tweet for this week comes from @Jitneytrade for passing along a colorful article by author Michael Sincere explaining what options are.  You can read the tweet here.

Event Horizon

As mentioned in our last edition of the roundup, this Saturday October 27th (tomorrow) TD Waterhouse Discount Brokerage will be putting on its Direct Investing Expo in Vancouver. There will be a number of speakers including Bob Gorman, Chief Portfolio Strategist for TD Waterhouse.  For more details click here.

Also, around the corner are a couple of other investment seminars, including an Evening with Michael Campbell featuring Tyler Bollhorn, taking place in Calgary (October 29th) and Vancouver (October 30th). Tyler will be talking about his new book, The Mindless Investor as well as giving signed copies of the book to attendees. The Small-Cap Conference (November 6th) in Vancouver just announced their speaker list and for those folks who pre-register via SparxTrading.com, they get a great bonus gift! For registration details, click here.

The People Have Spoken

The comments section on the Michael Sincere article mentioned in the Jitneytrade tweet also got some readers to chime in on whether or not options are easy as the article might suggest. Check out all the comments here.

Canadian Discount Brokerage Jobs

On the hiring front, there are a couple of more positions that Canadian discount brokerages are trying to fill. Sometimes the hiring pools can be indicative of things to come, as we see from the job positions popping up this week.

Qtrade recently announced that they’re looking to hire a Content Strategist and writer.  Qtrade has been  a bit quieter in the social media arena, but it looks like they’re prepping to step into it along with these other discount brokerages.

Questrade is looking for some extra hands in the form of New Accounts Specialists to help for the upcoming RSP rush (yup it’s around the corner).  If you’ve ever been curious to know what it’s like to work as a service agent for Questrade or what it is that they are tasked to do for you as a client, check out the posting we found here.

RBC Direct Investing is also looking to add an Assistant Manager to their Investor Centre staff in downtown.  Interestingly, according to the posting, “main objectives of this position and all activities conducted within the Investor Centres are to drive new client acquisition, consolidate assets from existing clients, and to increase the profitability of each client.”

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Questrade Inactivity Fees Take Effect

Halloween isn’t the only scary event to come along this October.  Beginning this month, Canadian discount broker Questrade officially starts charging for inactivity fees – $19.95 per quarter to be exact. Once billed as the “no fee” discount brokerage, Questrade faced a strong backlash from its client base on Canadian deal site RedFlagDeals.com back in May of this year when Questrade departed from their long held stance against inactivity fees and announced the introduction of these fees. Not long after this announcement, however, it became apparent Questrade’s clients were more than unhappy at the news. In a highly responsive move, Questrade’s Director of Communications Lynn Suderman responded to their customers on the forum with the following statement:

Thank you everyone for your feedback here in RedFlagDeals. We’ve read each of your comments, which led to a passionate discussion among our staff. Our CEO said it best: the real value of Questrade is our clients. Yes, we have to implement pricing changes to reflect the changing nature of this industry. But we have to do it without compromising our promise to you: provide all Canadians with cost-effective brokerage services.

I’d like to address the changing industry first. The costs of maintaining a brokerage account, active or not, are going up. Until now, and unlike the majority of brokerages, we’ve avoided inactivity or maintenance fees to pass on those costs. But this is no longer prudent. We are at the point where our more active clients will be subsidizing inactive clients. (You can find the full statement here)

As a consequence of the client feedback, Questrade moved its original implementation date back to October from July 2012.  In addition, Questrade offered a number of exceptions to the inactivity fee.  Account holders under the age of 25 and charitable organizations are exempt from getting charged the inactivity fees as are  Questrade clients with $5000 or more in combined equity across their accounts as well as those clients who place at least one “commissionable” trade per quarter.  Basically, the client that this fee impacts the most is the 25+ year old who does not make any trades in a quarter AND who has less than $5000 in combined equity across all of their Questrade accounts.  So what options does that person have to avoid the dreaded inactivity fee?

The first option is to top up their account with a deposit so that the total balance (across all accounts combined) equals $5000 or more. If making a deposit isn’t an option, they could place 1 trade per quarter for a year racking up a total bill of  anywhere between $19.80 to $39.80 per year in commission costs (plus what the trade itself costs).  If, however, they are bent on not making any trades whatsoever, that person could choose to pay $79.80 per year ($19.95 x 4) and remain inactive. Of course, as a last resort, they could close their account with Questrade altogether which is free to do.  With an inactivity fee of anywhere between $19.80 and $79.80 per year, however, Questrade could be the cheapest account of inactivity-fee charging brokerages to maintain or if not the cheapest, then certainly not the most expensive.

One silver lining of the Questrade approach to inactivity fees is that if you do happen to incur an inactivity fee in one quarter, Questrade will apply that $19.95 fee as a credit against any trades you make the following quarter. From a strategic perspective, if you have an investment account and you can’t find a trading opportunity (either a reason to buy anything, sell anything or re-balance your portfolio) within 3-6 months and your combined equity across comes in at less than $5000 you still might not be ready to take on investing quite yet.

For those consumers who absolutely must have a no inactivity option, however, there are still three Canadian discount brokerages: Virtual Brokers, Credential Direct and Qtrade who offer no inactivity fee accounts to their customers (optionsXpress is currently not accepting new Canadian accounts otherwise there would be four) , with Virtual Brokers having the cheapest commissions among the three.

While the move on Questrade’s part is a departure from their historical position as the “no fee” brokerage, their move into charging fees is certainly a measured one and they appear to be working hard to preserve the relationship with their customers.  As the Canadian discount brokerage landscape continues to get more competitive, only time will tell if other discount brokerages will lower or eliminate activity fees to grab market share or if other low-cost discount brokerages will start to implement activity fees to keep up.