Briguy said
According to their web page, Wise is paying 2.22 percent on Cad funds, which is about the same as Scotiabank Series F ISA. I would highly advise people NOT to store any more money on Wise than you need at the time, as they ARE NOT REGULATED in Canada except in their reporting of transactions to Fintrac. If you trigger their AML algorithm, they will debank you and take a long time to return your money. Your only recourse lies with the UK Ombudsman, there is no institution that regulates them in Canada to lodge a complaint.  

Yeah, I wouldn't say they're not regulated, but they're regulated more lightly than banks and federal credit unions. Even provincial credit unions do not regulate from a consumer protection standpoint, which is why I prefer federal credit unions.

In B.C., you may have limited recourse through Consumer Protection BC. Most recently, the B.C. government expanded the Civil Resolution Tribunal significantly, so you may be able to sue (cheaply!) Wise in the Civil Resolution Tribunal and never need to go to a courtroom (it's online).

More regulation is coming, when FINTRAC gets added regulatory powers.

Norman1 said
KPMG was appointed the liquidator of PACE CU in August 2022 and is still in the process of liquidating the credit union.  

KPMG works on it for 4 years, what money from liquidation goes to pay KPMG bill.....

PACE CU isn't insolvent. Its assets exceeded liabilities, including deposit liabilities. Some of the PACE CU's loan book is still with PACE and didn't need to be given to Alterna CU for the PACE deposits Alterna assumed.

PACE CU members who bought those private preferred shares agreed to drop the matter for 70% of their invested money back."

I think all the depositors (of which I was one) were made whole. Preferred shares are sort of like equity so higher risk.

PACE CU members who bought those private preferred shares agreed to drop the matter for 70% of their invested money back.

Alterna CU agreed to assume the insured PACE CU deposits as part of the purchase price for PACE CU's loans, branches, and other assets.

KPMG was appointed the liquidator of PACE CU in August 2022 and is still in the process of liquidating the credit union.

So, how are the PACE survivors doing? I guess they were all made whole except they lost their investment capital ($1,175.00). Did many former PACE clients move to Alterna?

Are there any current institutions at risk?

JohnnyCash said

Are you referring to this notice which I found in my RBC Messages Inbox?

https://www.rbcroyalbank.com/o.....26_eng.pdf

Seems to me the USD $3.00 fee only applies to paper mailed statements which can be avoided by choosing to have electronic statements.  

Thanks for pointing that out. I overlooked it.

BlueSky said
For a long while I was with RBC on both sides of the border. While RBC US didn't change their terms as of yet, I got notified that RBC CAN is going to charge a monthly fee of $3.00 on their US eSavings account come August. It used to be fee free. I have two questions:

1. Is there another cross border banking worth looking at? So far, CIBC is the least fee charging, least complicated (online setup, no advisors, etc...) at $0.75USD/transaction, even cross border transfer to their U.S. side.

2. I don't believe it's currently possible without a wire fee, but transferring from the U.S. to a Canadian USD bank account. This is in the event I close both sides of RBC accounts. My option at this time is to pay 3-4 months the fee until a GIC matures in the U.S. and transfer over to the Canadian side.

I am OK with keeping the US account under the current terms, but should a transfer be necessary, wire fees will apply if transferring to a Canadian bank.

Thanks for your input.  

Are you referring to this notice which I found in my RBC Messages Inbox?

https://www.rbcroyalbank.com/o.....26_eng.pdf

Seems to me the USD $3.00 fee only applies to paper mailed statements which can be avoided by choosing to have electronic statements.

1. Is there another cross border banking worth looking at? So far, CIBC is the least fee charging, least complicated (online setup, no advisors, etc...) at $0.75USD/transaction, even cross border transfer to their U.S. side.

2. I don't believe it's currently possible without a wire fee, but transferring from the U.S. to a Canadian USD bank account. This is in the event I close both sides of RBC accounts. My option at this time is to pay 3-4 months the fee until a GIC matures in the U.S. and transfer over to the Canadian side.

I am OK with keeping the US account under the current terms, but should a transfer be necessary, wire fees will apply if transferring to a Canadian bank.

Thanks for your input.

Norman1 said
Financial institutions can have provisions for those who cannot or do not wish to receive interest for religious or other reasons.

....  

This is fascinating information.

In case there are any people who spend time on this web site looking for the best GIC and HISA rates, and then choose to forego the interest for spiritual reasons, please PM me.

I would be pleased to receive your interest in lieu of it getting paid into your account, and thus cleanse you of that burden according to your beliefs.

Meet Wise Interest explains how the optional plan works. Those who opt into the plan will have their Wise account balance funds swept into interest-bearing bank accounts in Wise Payments Canada Inc.'s name. Interest earned will help fund the interest Wise pays on the Wise account balances.

Currently, the interest-bearing bank account is with the Bank of Montreal.

Details are in the Wise Balance+ Account Program Agreement.

JohnnyCash said
Effective today, if you have a Wise multi-currency account that holds funds in CAD, USD, EUR, GBP, you can now opt-in to earn interest on your balances.

https://newsroom.wise.com/en-N.....anada/  

Why is there even an option not to collect interest? Who, especially in this community would NOT opt in and choose to forego interest?

Hmm said
What are the extra/hidden fees for these accounts?  

Wise is quite transparent with fees, so no surprises. Its primary service is in currency conversions and wire transfers; the interest feature is something new.