How Much Are You Paying For US Dollars?
Currency conversion remains one of the biggest rip-offs in banking and investing. It’s made worse by the lack of transparency: if you call your discount brokerage they’ll quote their current rates, but...
View ArticleScary When They’re Down, Scary When They’re Up
It’s been barely a month since Alexander Green remarked that we’re currently enjoying “the most disrespected bull market in history.” Green described how investors who were shell-shocked by 2008 were...
View ArticleETF Investors: Avoid the After-Hours Club
One of the first rules of buying and selling ETFs is to always use limit orders, never market orders. A limit order allows you to specify the maximum price you’re willing to pay, or the minimum you’re...
View ArticleNorbert’s Gambit at CIBC: A Case Study
Norbert’s gambit is an excellent way to reduce the cost of converting Canadian and US dollars, but not every brokerage makes it easy. Recently Justin Bender helped a client of our DIY Investor Service...
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The Hidden Cost of Bid-Ask Spreads
Trading commissions get a lot of attention from ETF investors, and rightly so. But depending which ETFs you use and the size of your trades, the impact of bid-ask spreads may be larger than you...
View ArticleNorbert’s Gambit: The Complete Guide
Norbert’s gambit remains the least expensive way to convert Canadian and US dollars at a discount brokerage. For investors looking to buy US-listed ETFs, learning this technique can save hundreds of...
View ArticleWill Robo-Advisors Ever Come to Canada?
Every investor who’s fired a bad advisor and become a do-it-yourselfer has probably had mixed feelings. On one hand, it’s liberating to get away from a costly strategy that was performing poorly. But...
View ArticleAsk the Spud: How Are Investors Protected?
Q: My father lost a large sum of money when the company holding his investments in his home country defrauded its clients. As a result, I worry whether it is safe to keep all our investments in one...
View ArticleShareOwner: Canada’s First ETF Robo-Advisor
Back in February I wrote about the rise of robo-advisors, the online services that allow you to build an ETF portfolio that’s maintained by a computer. These services are already operating in the US,...
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