This is not a drill! A number of Canadian financial institutions are offering enticing bonus payments to regular investors like you and me – and all we have to do is transfer our investment accounts from our current brokerage to the next.
For example, as part of Wealthsimple’s (Un)Real Deal running until March 31st 2026, if you transfer over one or more investment accounts, Wealthsimple will match a percentage of the total account value, depending on which bonus option you choose.
You can transfer as many investing accounts as you’d like, as long the total is a minimum of 25k, with a maximum of $5 million. The funds must be institutional transfers of existing investments (non-registered, RRSP, TFSA, LIRA, etc.). Cash in a chequing or savings account doesn’t qualify.
The Wealthsimple bonus payment options are:
- A 1% match: paid monthly over 12 months (1-year hold period), OR
- A 2% match: paid monthly over 36 months (3-year hold period) OR
- A 3% match: paid monthly over 60 months (5-year hold period)
For example, if I transfer a TFSA account valued at 100k, depending on the option I choose, I will either get:
1% match ($1,000) paid out monthly for 1 year* = $83/month, OR
2% match ($2,000) paid out monthly for 3 years* = $55/month, OR
3% match ($3,000) paid out monthly for 5 years* = $50/month
$50 bucks a month for just transfering my account over? Not bad! Now let’s imagine for a second my entire portfolio is worth $1 million. If I transfer over my entire portfolio and choose the 3% match over 5 years, that will give me:
$1,000,000 x 3% = $30,000
$30,000 / 5 years = $6,000 per year
= $500/month in FREE MONEY, every month, for the next five years, just for filling out a some forms and clicking a few buttons!?
The money will go straight into my Wealthsimple chequing account, which means I can spend it or re-invest it as I please. There is no commitment to stay with Wealthsimple long-term. If I leave or make large withdrawals beyond 20% of my total net funding*, my future bonuses will be recalculated, but my money is not locked-in like with a GIC, nor are there any financial penalties or claw-backs on previous bonus payments.
Wealthsimple’s slick digital platform not your thing? Prefer to keep your investments with a traditional bank that still offers brick and mortar locations? Well TD is having a similar promotion, though not as robust, offering 2% cashback on registered accounts and 1% cashback on non-registered. And for those who want to shop around further to find the best possible offer, Questrade is offering 4% cash-back on non-registered accounts which may appeal to some.
With more competition than ever in Canada’s financial landscape, we appear to be entering a new era where financial institutions are finally paying us just for holding our investments with them! This is a refreshing change after decades of high bank and interest fees, and even more reason to keep building our portfolios of low-cost, dividend-churning index funds. The more our portfolios grow in time, the more our portfolios – and our loyalty – become an asset.
A few important notes:
- Before participating in these or any promotions, make sure your read and understand the Terms & Conditions thoroughly.
- Before transferring any accounts from one financial institution to the next I recommend transferring in-kind (meaning your shares will be transferred without having to sell anything). I recommend this for two reasons: 1. If I sell my index funds and the transfer takes a few weeks to complete, I will have been out of the market that whole time. I don’t want to risk selling low and having to buy back in at a higher rate, and 2. If I sell shares in my non-registered I will have to pay tax on capital gains, which negates any bonus payments that I would get from this kind of promotion in the first place.
- There may be tax implications on received bonus payments.
- Financial institutions will likely charge a transfer fee of up to $175 to transfer out your investment accounts, but many receiving financial institutions will reimburse that fee. Just make sure you have enough cash in your account to cover the initial charge.
- *Bonus matches are based on current promotional details, and based on net funding. If you transfer in 100k but withdraw 50k from another account, you will only get a 50k match
This summary is for informational purposes only and is based on Wealthsimple’s publicly available 2026 promotion terms. I am not a financial advisor or an employee of Wealthsimple, TD or Questrade. Terms and conditions are subject to change, and I recommend reading the full official legal text on each financial institution’s website before registering.
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