(Updated: Sept. 15/14) Although it’s hard to believe, September is already here. For many it is a signal that Fall (and the cooler weather that comes with it) is just around the corner. Canadian online brokerages have had quite the summer and as they enter September the deals landscape seems to be cooling off – […]

Greetings roundup readers. This pre-long weekend version of the discount brokerage roundup is coming to your from none other than the ‘fabulous’ Las Vegas. Against the backdrop of opulent hotels, sunny skies and seemingly endless “premium” brands, an interesting takeaway from Vegas is just how tricky competition makes things for brands. Sidestepping the association between […]

[Updated: August 9, 2014] Coming into August, it’s hard to tell what’s hotter – the summer sun or the activity at Canadian discount brokerages. This summer, online brokerages have been busy adding new features or tweaking their pricing structures and, we believe, the fall is when brokerages will be working hard to showcase these updates. […]

In a landscape littered with commission price drops, lowering price can only go so far in winning the attention and loyalty of potential and existing DIY investor clients. So, what is the secret ingredient Canadian online brokerages need in order to win the attention of self-directed investors? It’s no secret actually – build something really […]

[Updated: July 18, 2014] July is here and while sidewalks and barbeques might be sizzling, deals at Canada’s online brokerages at the outset of the month are quite a bit cooler. That said, if history is any predictor, we don’t expect that situation to persist for too long. As was the case last month, the […]

We kick off this week’s discount brokerage roundup with a little investing inspiration from the beautiful game. The inspiration is not that one can stare at a screen for hours only to see nothing change (hint hint to the traders out there) but rather that when things are fiercely competitive, don’t put it past opponents […]

[Updated July 10, 2014] With summer just around the corner, June is an interesting month for Canadian discount brokerage deals. On the one hand, there are six offers that are scheduled to expire at the end of the month. On the other hand, history has shown that Canadian brokerages don’t like to be left out […]

Even though there was a shortened work week after the Victoria Day holiday, neither the Canadian discount brokerages nor those in the SparxTrading camp wasted any time bouncing back into the action. In this week’s roundup, we’ll reveal the big news about an exciting feature we’ve been working on. We weren’t the only ones with […]

[Updated: July 10, 2014] While many in the markets might be thinking of  May as the time to head for the exits, it is interesting to see what is or isn’t being offered by Canadian discount brokerages in terms of deals and promotions. Heading into a new month, there were a few deals from April […]

[Updated 4/15/14] There are noticeably fewer discount brokerage deals & promotions at the start of April than at the same time last month. That said, this is spring and there are any number of surprises that can pop up. While the month starts off on a slightly leaner note than month’s past there were a […]

As March comes to a close, winter still seem reluctant to leave so many Canadians. Even so, spring is in the air and it is bringing with it some surprises from online brokerages which will hopefully leave DIY investors with more green in their accounts. In this week’s discount brokerage roundup we cover the news […]

The beginning of March has seen a frenzied week across international markets and here at home in the discount brokerage space.  While the world is watching to see what unfolds between the Ukraine and Russia, markets paused only briefly on the news but then continued to push higher into new all-time highs (for the S&P […]

Updated March 28/2014 The deals and promotions offered by Canadian discount brokerages at the outset of March are largely unchanged from February.  While the the deals may be starting March looking one way,  there’s a good chance that the end of March will look very different.  Of the 18 offers currently available, 12 are set […]

On this Valentine’s Day edition of the discount brokerage weekly roundup, romance is definitely the air for many folks.  Yes, it appears more bank-owned discount brokerages are lining up to show just how much they love their self-directed investor clients by offering lower commissions.   Courting self-directed investors, however, is going to take more than just […]

Updated Feb. 27th 2014 Now that February is here, the RSP contribution deadline (March 3rd) is in the crosshairs of many investors.  Canadian discount brokerages have already stepped up the deals & promotions activities with last month seeing over 20 deals offered.   The most active of all the discount brokerages was Questrade followed by BMO […]

If there’s any good news to be found in the junior mining sector, it’s that those companies struggling to stay afloat are still around to struggle.  While the weight of negative news and uncertain forecasts still weighed on investors, this year’s Vancouver Resource Investment Conference (VRIC) nonetheless contained an interesting cross section of attitudes about […]

For individual investors, shopping for an online trading account often requires doing a fair amount of research and comparison between brokerages.  While commissions & fees are the most important factor investors consider when choosing an account, what it’s like to be a client of a particular brokerage is also something many investors are often curious […]

[Updated: Jan 31/2014] While we thought the beginning of January would be a busy time for deals, we didn’t know it would be THIS crazy. Since the beginning of the month there have been quite a few big announcements. Read below for more details Welcome to the first discount brokerage deals post of 2014! 2013 […]

Updated 12/27/13 It had to happen sometime – Questrade has now become the first Canadian discount brokerage to offer a Boxing Day promotion.  The deal being offered is 25 commission-free trades that do not expire until the end of 2014 for a minimum deposit of $25,000.  Like any good Boxing Day deal, this offer is […]

The big news everywhere this week was the Twitter IPO.  For many individual investors, accessing the Twitter IPO ahead of public trading meant having to meet specific account requirements laid out by their discount brokerages.  Once TWTR did go live though, the frenzy of buyers helped to propel the opening day price up from $26 […]