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Near the end of October, the Bank of Canada made the 9th cut to its key interest rate in the past 1.5 years, dropping it by another 25 basis points. In that time, the top rate on our savings account comparison chart has gone from 4.20% to 2.80%.

Neo Financial recently implemented some tiered interest rates, offering a chart-topping 2.90% if your Neo Savings balance is at least $20,000.

If you’re into the short-term promo game, you can currently get up to 4.75% with a few new deposit promos.

GIC rates topped out at 6.00% (for 1-year GIC) in 2024, whereas the best available GIC rate is now 3.95% for a 5-year GIC.

Qtrade goes commission-free

In February, Questrade became the 4th Canadian online brokerage to offer fee-free self-directed trading (joining National Bank Direct Brokerage, TD Easy Trade, and Wealthsimple), and now Canadians have a 5th option. Qtrade has gone commission-free, and is also offering a 5% bonus on the first $15,000 of new funds (and 1% thereafter) until January 5, 2026. We have listed this alongside a couple of other transfer bonuses at Canadian online brokerages.

Reactions to National Bank’s offering for Motive Financial customers

Last month, we detailed the upcoming move for Motive Financial customers to National Bank. In that same newsletter, we simply asked who is currently a Motive Financial customer. 60% of respondents said yes, and all 34 of the write-in comments from current customers expressed displeasure with the move, with most of them noting that they were either planning to leave, or had already emptied their accounts.

Forum users are also overwhelmingly not pleased with the new offerings. National Bank’s underwhelming offer is not surprising if we take the perspective that Motive Financial was just a necessary inclusion in National Bank’s acquisition of Canadian Western Bank. In that case, National Bank is likely doing the mandatory minimum, and sees little value in keeping Motive Financial’s clients.

Our cash back portal includes the Tangerine Money-Back World Mastercard

The Tangerine Money-Back World Mastercard is listed amongst many offers on our cash back portal. Tangerine itself has increased its welcome bonus to be an extra $120 back when you spend $1,500 in your first 3 months. And you can also get an additional $180 via Interac e-Transfer or $200 Amazon.ca gift card if you sign up through High Interest Savings Cash Back.

September 17 was a rare case when both Canada and the US made policy interest rate decisions on the same day. They both cut their rates by 25 basis points. In the current rate cycle, Canada has cut its key interest rate a total of 8 times (starting on June 5, 2024), while the US has done so 4 times.

The predictable drop in savings account interest rates followed swiftly, including 2/3 of the accounts we track. Exactly one year ago, the top savings account interest rate on our chart was 4.25%, whereas today’s leader WealthONE has a 2.85% savings account.

GIC rates have not dropped as quickly recently, and the top rate for any term, whether through a broker or not, is 3.95%.

No more cash back for the Wealthsimple prepaid Mastercard

Wealthsimple has completely eliminated the 1% cash back it was offering on its prepaid Mastercard (which essentially functions as a debit card, since it is tied to your chequing account). However, it is now offering unlimited ATM fee reimbursements anywhere in the world.

EQ Bank still offers 0.5% cash back on purchases made on its prepaid Mastercard, and unlimited ATM fee reimbursements in Canada only.

More details on Motive Financial’s transition to National Bank

National Bank has released more product migration details for Motive Financial clients, following National Bank’s acquisition of Motive Financial’s parent company Canadian Western Bank last June.

In late fall 2025, non-registered savings accounts will move to a hybrid / all-in-one chequing/savings account offering the same rates as Motive Financial currently does (2.00% for the Savvy Savings account for example), and a $28.95 monthly fee that is waived for the first 12 months only. After that, you’ll need a minimum $6,000 balance to waive the monthly fee. TFSAs will move to an account with a 2.00% rate for 3 months only.

Lightning round(up)

• We had over 400 responses to last month’s newsletter poll, with 68% of respondents saying that they do not pay an annual fee for any of their credit cards. Some of the written responses say that they get the credit card annual fee waived as a perk of their chequing account. Those who do pay an annual fee say that they get more than enough value out of points and other benefits such as waived foreign currency transaction fees or travel benefits.
• The 2026 TFSA contribution limit will be $7,000, which is the same as the past 2 years.
• As per our promotions page, there are currently no fewer than 7 bank account promos offering at least 4.50%.

The leaders on our savings account comparison chart are unchanged at 3.10% (at PC Financial and Wealth One Bank of Canada). However, EQ Bank’s ongoing “with an eligible direct deposit” rate was recently decreased from 3.50% to 3.30%. This is noted on our promotions page along with some higher rates for short-term promos, including:

• CIBC: 4.90% in a new eAdvantage savings account for the first 3 months
• Manulife Bank: 4.75% for 120 days in a new, non-registered Advantage Account opened between September 10 and November 21, 2025
• RBC new customers: 4.70% for 3 months in your first RBC High Interest eSavings account if opened before 3pm ET on October 29, 2025
• Vancity (BC only): 4.75% on new deposits to a savings account until October 31, 2025

Ways to beat inflation: new article

Our latest article is: Inflation, the silent investment killer: ways to keep more of your cash. The author, Rico M, tries to answer the question “How does someone protect more of their money from inflation to get more cents for their dollar?”. He starts off by defining inflation, reviewing the different causes and types of inflation. Then, he explores whether savings accounts and GICs outperform inflation, and if so, by how much. Finally, he explores whether equities and index funds are alternatives to consider.

The next key interest rate decision for both Canada and the US is scheduled for September 17, and cuts are forecast for both countries. Such cuts would trigger decreases in savings account and GIC rates.

Poll results: Do you invest in mutual funds or ETFs?

According to last month’s reader poll, 60% of respondents invest in ETFs in some way. The breakdown of answers is as follows:

• Yes, mutual funds only (11%)
• Yes, ETFs only (38%)
• Yes, both mutual funds and ETFs (22%)
• No (29%)

There were a few common themes in the written responses. Those who don’t invest in mutual funds and/or ETFs are usually invested in individual stocks, savings accounts, or GICs, with the latter group especially interested in capital preservation (usually due to their age) and avoiding volatility. There were quite a few comments noting that they eschew mutual funds or are transitioning away from them due to their relatively higher management fees.

More personal finance reading

• There was a recent security breach at Wealthsimple, although it reportedly affected less than 1% of their customers
• Annual fee increases are coming to several credit cards, including the American Express Cobalt Card (from $12.99 to $15.99 per month), the WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard (from $119 to $139 per year), and the Wealthsimple credit card (from $10 to $20 per month if you don’t meet the criteria for a fee waiver)
• Tangerine Bank is transitioning from passwords to PINs for online banking
• Tangerine Bank is testing out tiered interest rates for select customers
• Transfer time for EFTs has gotten faster over the years
• A discussion on the suitability of 3-year versus 5-year GIC ladders as you get older

20 years ago (in 2005), the CDIC coverage limit per deposit category was increased from $60K to $100K. Now, the federal government is considering raising that limit from $100K to $150K. That would follow quite closely to inflation, as the Bank of Canada’s own inflation calculator returns a roughly 54% inflation increase between 2005 and 2025.

Current savings account and GIC rate leaders

Nowadays, at least your savings account interest rate is likely to exceed the current inflation rate (of less than 2.0%) at most of the financial institutions on our savings account comparison chart. 3.10% is still the top savings account interest rate, which you can currently get from PC Financial and Wealth One Bank of Canada; and you can still get 3.50% from EQ Bank if you have an eligible direct deposit. Some of the recent rate changes include increases from Hubert Financial (from 2.00% to 2.30%), as well as MAXA Financial and Outlook Financial (both from 1.85% to 1.95%).

Meanwhile, the top GIC rates on our chart are currently as follows:

• 1-year: 3.65% (or 4.10% via a broker)
• 2-year: 3.75% (or 4.05% via a broker)
• 3-year: 3.70% (or 3.92% via a broker)
• 4-year: 4.00% (or 3.88% via a broker)
• 5-year: 3.95% (or 4.01% via a broker)

Mutual fund sales culture concerns

Recently, the Ontario Securities Commission and Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization reviewed the sales practices at 5 bank-affiliated mutual fund dealers. Among the study’s findings:

We observe that 25% of representatives across banks reported that clients have been recommended products or services that are not in their interests at least ‘sometimes’, which suggests that product recommendations may not always be in the interests of clients.

Quick personal finance hits

• Poll results: Last month, we asked readers whether they’ve ever been a victim of financial or online fraud. 32% responded “yes”, while 68% responded “no”.
• Discussion on how to determine what percentage to withdraw from your RRIF each year
• Forum users do not recommend a market-linked GIC
• Remember that if you have excess cash sitting in an investment account, you can take advantage of brokerage investment savings accounts, which forum user Norman1 regularly tracks

Can you spot a scam banking website?

Two weeks ago, one of our forum users spotted a website claiming to be from UBS Bank and offering a 5.25% 1-year GIC and a 4.35% savings account. Was it too good to be true? Yes, it was a complete scam! And the fraudulent website is still up as of today. It has several hallmarks of a scam website:

• Rate(s) too good to be true
• Broken links
• Design inconsistencies
• Typos
• Embedded third-party contact form
• New domain name
• Cannot be verified by other reputable websites

If you are a victim of online fraud, you should contact your local police and also report it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.

Savings account and GIC rates holding steady

There has been no change in rate leaders on our savings account comparison chart or GIC comparison chart over the past month, with the exception of Oaken Financial’s 4.00% 2-year GIC rate special until July 16. PC Financial and Wealth One Bank of Canada are tied for the top savings account interest rate at 3.10%, and EQ Bank is still offering 3.50% if you have an eligible direct deposit.

Is Wealthsimple becoming more mainstream?

The Wealthsimple chequing account just got some new features, including:

• Send domestic wire transfers and bank drafts, free until August 31
• Interac e-Transfer: send up to $25K per day
• Interac e-Transfer: use your own email address to receive e-Transfers
• Mobile cheque deposits

Wealthsimple also officially announced its credit card, which had previously been in beta, and offers 2% cash back, no foreign currency transaction fees, and no annual fee if you have over $100,000 with Wealthsimple.

Poll results: Have you ever had a Hubert Financial account?

Last month, we asked readers whether they have a Hubert Financial account. It has been a quietly solid option for savers for many years, although it has lost some of its lustre (amongst our forum users at least) since joining Access Credit Union. 61% of respondents have never had a Hubert Financial account! 13% answered “Yes, and I use it as much or more than before”, while 26% answered “Yes, but not anymore, or I don’t use it as much as before”.

More personal finance news

• Wealth One Bank of Canada has been purchased by an all-Canadian consortium
• Effective July 1, 2025, the Government of Canada has lowered the lowest marginal federal personal income tax rate from 15% to 14%. That puts the annual rate in the lowest tax bracket at 14.5% for 2025 as a whole (since the 14% rate only applies to the second half of the year). If you have income tax deducted from your pay, you should see the effect on your next pay cheque.