Introduction In the first part of our special series on discount brokerage rankings and reviews, we take a look at one of the most popular consumer research organizations, J.D. Power and Associates, and their annual survey of self-directed investors’ impressions of Canadian discount brokerages known as the Investor Satisfaction survey.  The results from this survey […]

As part of a special series on the comparison of Canadian discount brokerages, we’re taking a look at some of the major providers of this information so that self-directed investors and those interested in researching Canadian discount brokerages can gain a better understanding of the types of research that is done, what the results of […]

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 […]

For bargain hunters, “Black Friday” has become synonymous with big crowds and massive deals.  Retailers, forever trying to get an edge on one another, have also bought into (and fed) the mania that has now come to be known as the biggest pre-Christmas shopping bonanza of the year.  Is there an equivalent “discount season” for […]

Highlights of Chapter 1 – The Mindless Investor In the introductory chapter of The Mindless Investor, Tyler Bollhorn sets up several important ideas and goes through some common pitfalls of most self-directed investors. Here are three key points from chapter 1. Key Point #1: Most Stocks Don’t Beat the Market The first and most important […]

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, […]

We spotted the latest deal offered by Questrade – and it is a big one.  On the heels of Scotia iTrade’s offer of 100 days of unlimited trading, Questrade has responded by offering up to 3 months with unlimited trades.  While a slightly less amount of time than Scotia iTrade’s deal (100 davs vs ~90 […]

Canadian discount brokerages seem to be busy in their workshops planning what to unveil for next year.  Many of the major financial institutions have their financial year end at October 31st which means they’re setting budgets and planning marketing campaigns for 2013.  Because of the upcoming Globe and Mail discount brokerage rankings due out next […]

The big news from the Canadian discount brokerage industry this week was the huge announcement that OptionsXpress will no longer be available in Canada.  Virtual Brokers will be acquiring all of the OptionsXpress Canada accounts as of December 1st pending regulatory approval. This now narrows the number of Canadian discount brokerages that provide a powerful […]

The Canadian discount brokerage market this week saw one of the players officially exit by selling their Canadian operations.  Virtual Brokers announced today that they will be buying out OptionsXpress Canada effectively signaling the end of OptionsXpress in Canada and shrinking the number of big discount brokerages by one.  The business agreement is set to […]

FCAC – Savings & Investment Section In this section of the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada website, (FCAC) you can find a wealth (pun intended) of information on getting started with investing. Through this page you can learn about: Setting your saving and investing goals Government saving and investment plans Investing: understanding the basics Common […]

Discount Brokerage Weekly Roundup There were a couple of really big events that took place this past week including the impact of Hurricane Sandy, TD Waterhouse Discount Brokerage’s Direct Investing Expo and Tyler Bollhorn’s soft launch of his new book, “The Mindless Investor”.  Also November is Financial Literacy Month, be sure to pay extra attention […]

TD Waterhouse Discount Brokerage Direct Investing Expo Review (part 2) To view part 1, click here. Options basics – using covered calls After a long break for lunch, attendees were treated to a session from Investools, an investor education company that was purchased by TD Ameritrade in 2009.  Even though Investools isn’t available to Canadians […]

Fall is the time of year across Canada where we get to see leaves change from green to red.  In order to avoid your going in the same direction as the leaves, enhancing your financial literacy is something all Canadians can benefit from.  November is financial literacy month and through it we will be posting […]

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 […]

The Vancouver Direct Investing Expo organized by TD Waterhouse provided self-directed investors the chance to learn about macroeconomic trends and issues coming in 2013, tips on technical analysis, exchange traded funds and several options trading strategies. This day-long event featured top-tier speakers such as Bob Gorman, TD’s Chief Portfolio Strategist, as well as a line-up […]

Stock market education videos was the theme of today’s online hunt and we found a great educational resource for investors on the TD Ameritrade website. There are just over 40 videos on topics for beginner, intermediate and advanced investors. In addition to videos, however, there are links to over 80 webcasts, various articles, courses and […]

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 […]

In his soon to be released book, The Mindless Investor, Tyler Bollhorn goes ‘head to head’ with the biggest enemy of most stock traders: their common sense. According to the main theme of the book, if you try to use your head you won’t get ahead and that is because, as Tyler puts it, “without […]

Today’s daily stumble landed an interesting article about the “complicated” stock market order types and the alleged preferential order routing taking place by institutional traders for preferred clients.  While this would be another bombshell if it is true, I would question whether it is entirely surprising. The reality of stock markets is that they are […]