Questrade is a competitive financial service provider with an online stock trading platform for its Canadian-based investors. The broker specializes in ease of use and low trades. It has been in business since 1999.
Here is a quick review of Questrade in different aspects:
Pricing
Questrade offers very competitive prices and you won’t have to worry about hidden charges. The platform offers $4.95 trading fees for trades with 495 shares or less – maximum $9.95 fees for trades with more shares. They do not charge the usual $29 commission that other online brokerages charge. In addition to that, you can also trade ETFs for free.
It can hold USD in RRSP, Open, RESP and RRIF accounts. Indeed, Questrade is the only brokerage in Canada that accepts USD in registered accounts. Funding your account is pretty straightforward and intuitive. You simply need to set up a “bill payment” from your online banking account, which will take between 1-3 days. And transferring securities and cash in-kind is also smooth.
You also don’t have to worry about any account fees. And the minimum account balance required to open an account is only $1000, with only $250 needed to keep an account open.
Platform
It’s also a good trading platform. It’s very simple and easy to comprehend. As a matter of fact, Questrade allots time to update and upgrade its trading platform in order to improve its service to its clients. Now, investors can already use the web, desktop and mobile for trading.
However, while the platform pleases most traders, there are investors who are critical of the platform. This is because the broker’s target audience is composed of the traders and not investors. Some investors claim that the free webtrading platform is difficult to navigate and a bit “wonky” at times.
Also, having an account with Questrade means that you have to remember three passwords: one each for MyQuestrade, WebTrader and Penson Financial.
Service
With this broker, you can easily set up accounts and do trades, move money and other functions. You can access both the U.S. and Canadian stock markets without any hassle.
Another advantage is it offers a Live Chat medium that is available for extended help hours. With this option, you can immediately get responses on your queries without having to wait for extended hours or minutes before you can get a customer representative to attend to your need. Aside from commendable responsiveness, most of the issues that customers raise are immediately settled.
However, despite its overwhelming benefits, there are also disadvantages to the service. For instance, the broker does not offer EFT transfer for USD funds. As a matter of fact, in order to move USD funds, you have to write a cheque that takes as long as 20 days to clear.
Overall, Questrade is a very good option for an online brokerage. Its low commission rates are an ultimate enticer. And it also does not charge exorbitant fees. Take a second look at Questrade and check the reviews of its competitors. With that, you can assess the best discount broker that could serve your needs.