From parcel delivery to vacuum cleaners to financial management, it seems like robots are here to stay. With the NASDAQ finally breaching its previous all-time high, led there of course by the technology giants, there’s no doubt that robots and gadgets are powering the drive. For many online discount brokerages confronting this brave new world, […]

April showers are supposed to bring May flowers, but this past week, it’s been the discount brokerages who’ve been making it rain. In particular, it was the heavy hitting bank-owned brokerages that dominated the news feeds with feature enhancements, deals and more. While it may not have been quite as epic as Toronto Blue Jays […]

As it turns out, the launch of Game of Thrones season 5 isn’t the only epic battle around this April. While there won’t be the same kind of over-the-top fight scenes, gore or unending-memes, Canadian discount brokerages appear to be gearing up for their own fight for supremacy. In this week’s roundup, we take a […]

While markets shut down early for the Easter weekend, those in the markets are all too familiar with the feeling of hunting for the analogous Easter eggs and being careful with how many they have in any one basket. Interestingly, the prizes and family time that have come to characterize Easter also seem to have […]

Updated April 17 At the outset of April, there’s lots of deals and promotions activity to report on. Like most people, Canadian discount brokerages have done quite a bit of ‘Spring cleaning’ with their deals. For those looking to open an online trading account, this month has a number of interesting offers to consider. RSP […]

The award for the biggest comeback this week is not for interest rates. In what can only be described with the best hyperbole ever, it was announced earlier this week that X-files will be coming back, albeit briefly, for a six episode run. Perhaps the famous agents Mulder and Scully have been pulled in to […]

This past week heralded the strangest and rarest of events. No, it wasn’t the solar eclipse or an upset in the NCAA basketball tournament; it was actually the arrival of Spring – in theory.  It was fitting that the lead up into Spring saw a celebration of green for St. Paddy’s day at the beginning […]

It’s Friday the 13th. Tomorrow is Pi Day (3/14). As Jerry Seinfeld might irrationally proclaim, what is the deal with all these numbers? For DIY investors, however, keeping track of numbers is an integral part online investing.  And, with income tax filing deadlines around the corner, now is time of year that many folks will […]

With daylight savings coming to an end, it’s time to spring forward.  Time is definitely on the minds of many this weekend as we let our smart devices put our microwaves and wall clocks to shame by self-updating, but also because of Apple’s big iWatch reveal on Monday.  Speaking of time, Canadian discount brokerages now […]

Updated March 21 March is finally here, and for many it couldn’t be here soon enough.  With it comes the promise of Spring, a time for change and new beginnings.  In an interesting twist, the Canadian discount brokerage deals and promotions landscape seems to be mirroring this phenomenon. Heading into March, there are a number […]

Even though it’s still technically winter, it feels like a ‘white dress vs blue dress’ moment. Sure the calendar says it’s the end of February but there’s a major difference between what winter looks like in Vancouver vs Toronto. Regardless of which version of winter DIY investors are riding out, there’s something that everyone can […]

It’s not often that a haircut makes the news. For a change, however, it isn’t the haircut that Greece’s debt holders are going to take – this one comes from North Korea’s Kim Jung Un. So, what does a head of hair from a head of state have to do with Canadian discount brokerages (you […]

If Friday the 13th was supposed to be an unlucky day, somebody forgot to tell stock markets.  Heading into Valentine’s Day weekend bullish investors saw fifty shades of green as they pushed markets to a record high close, yet again. Fittingly, Canadian discount brokerages were also out looking for love from DIY investors offering up […]

The big story for Canadian online brokerages in 2014 was undoubtedly lower commission pricing. For 2015, however, it appears that Desjardins Online Brokerage has clearly cast user experience and design into the spotlight as they prepare for the launch of their newly redesigned website. SparxTrading.com was fortunate enough to get an exclusive first look at […]

Canadian discount brokerages are hitting February at full speed. With a slew of deals, events and the roll out of new features it doesn’t appear like very much will be slowing down the activity at Canada’s brokerages. In this week’s roundup we cover the ramping up of the new feature launch at one of Canada’s […]

Update Feb. 16/2015 It’s fitting that on Superbowl weekend that we launch into one of the most competitive discount brokerage promotions months on record. After all, for football teams and fans alike this is the biggest weekend of the season. For brokerages heading into RSP season the sentiment is somewhat similar.  How can we be […]

It looks like football players aren’t the only ones trying to score big this weekend. Burgers, fries and Candadian discount brokerages are also in the mix. With the frenzy of offers rounding out January, we’re heading into February with over 22 deals and promotions for anyone looking to open up an online trading account. That’s […]

For Canadian discount brokerages, the idea of providing great client service is a moving target. Not too long ago service used to refer to the ‘offline’ world and meant having a face-to-face interaction at a branch. That gave way to the telephone, and the telephone to email, and email to web chat and web chat […]

If you’re feeling as deflated as Patriot’s football this week, hopefully the fact that markets ended the week on a bit of a positive note is enough to cheer Friday. And, if recent market movements haven’t got you puzzled enough, at least Miss Universe Canada’s costume has got pundits and social media focusing on something […]

For traders who had grown ‘complacent’ over the lack of market volatility in 2014, the adage of ‘be careful what you wish for’ seems a bit prescient. Whether it was the unexpected move on the Swiss Franc, squashed rumours of a Blackberry buyout, Bombardier grounding their Learjet program or the continued fallout from tanking oil […]