Log In
Register
Home
Topic RSS
Facebook
Twitter
Email this9:12 pm
May 1, 2025
Offline
Canadian Direct Financial and Motive has been great, but I have no intention of migrating to National Bank products.
Looking at the HISA list, I'm having trouble finding something equivalent to what I have now - a no fee chequing account attached to a savings account with a competitive interest rate.
What are your thoughts on where to go next?
4:46 am
November 8, 2018
Offline
It may be hard to find what you are looking, but if you split your requirements it'll become much easier.
If you settle on:
1. A no fee chequing account;
and
2. Savings account with a competitive interest rate.
Then, just find two FIs and make sure you can link one to another for EFT.
For #1, my suggestion would be Tangerine. Free checking, debit card, they used to offer first checkbook for free but I am not sure if they do it any more. Simple bill payment process.
Very low Savings interest rate unless they have promo offer.
If you haven't been Tangerine client, they currently have new client 4.5% Savings account promo for 5 months (https://www.tangerine.ca/en/offers).
Transfer your Savings funds to Tangerine and spend next up to 5 months looking for FI where you can park your Savings funds with good rate, but which does not have all services Tangerine checking account provides.
Could be more than one FI. Tangerine offers up to three external links to other FIs, I use two. When I need funds above my regular spending I pull them to Tangerine from linked FIs.
6:18 am
September 30, 2017
Offline
People are still used to think rates from last year. There is nowhere to go, we'll be looking at a rate difference from 0.25% to 0.50% among the pack.
... Is Motive the only bank you have?
5:18 pm
May 1, 2025
Offline
Motive is my primary bank - I have a savings account at Tangerine strictly to get the extra cashback category on their credit card - I don't keep a balance there.
Yes, I know splitting the services would open up my options, but it also creates extra steps and hassle that I don't want. I've always accepted a hit on the savings' interest rate to have these services under one roof.
6:31 pm
January 9, 2011
Offline
It sounds like you wouldn't want to hear this, but my suggestion is to do nothing different, and assess how National performs. In detail, meaning any change at all down the road, like fees or not "keeping their word" about rates.
Meanwhile, investigate the details of every Bank option on the HISA list, and track rate competitiveness over time. I would also start contacting Tangerine complaining about not getting a special promo savings rate, indicating the range of funds that could be transferred.
My memory's not as sharp as it used to be. Also, my memory's not as
sharp as it used to be.
5:57 am
November 8, 2018
Offline
You can't have it all.
If you'd like, consider short-term GICs at Tangerine to park your savings. Their 90 days GIC is at 3% now, can't find very many HISA with that rate. Put enough cash to Tangerine Savings for 3 months of your expenses, park the rest in 90 days Tangerine GIC. When it matures, repeat the process.
7:59 am
November 19, 2022
Offline
Alexandre said
You can't have it all.If you'd like, consider short-term GICs at Tangerine to park your savings. Their 90 days GIC is at 3% now, can't find very many HISA with that rate. Put enough cash to Tangerine Savings for 3 months of your expenses, park the rest in 90 days Tangerine GIC. When it matures, repeat the process.
WealthONE 3.1% HISA and up to 4% GIC
CDIC coverage up to 100k
9:17 pm
September 28, 2023
Offline
EQ is decent if you switch your pay over to them... 3.5% interest.
It is my daily banking account, but two drawbacks are no ATM deposits and no cheques.
8:26 am
May 1, 2025
Offline
ATM deposits are mandatory for me. Cheques... I'm not sure about? eTransfer has partially replaced their function, but I have used them for this and that over the years.
As for waiting to see what migrating to NB means, I think their email makes it pretty clear we can expect (temporarily) equivalent interest rates, but the account terms will otherwise be per National Banks current offerings - all of which include monthly fees. I'm not signing up for that.
8:12 am
November 8, 2018
Offline
As for myself, I closed my accounts with Motive. I decided not to wait till migration and what will it bring.
7:48 am
April 6, 2013
Offline
The copy of the letter posted does not commit to migrating the Motive accounts to existing National Bank products.
The only certain thing now is the Motive branding and site will be gone.
12:04 pm
May 1, 2025
Offline
Norman1 said
The copy of the letter posted does not commit to migrating the Motive accounts to existing National Bank products.
It is the second big paragraph:
After months of thoughtful planning, we have decided that CWB clients will migrate to National Bank products and platforms over time. When we’re ready, your Motive products will migrate to similar products at National Bank where you can continue on as the savvy saver that you are.
1:33 pm
April 6, 2013
Offline
No, it's not. That paragraph is only about the branding of the products. Debit cards and accounts will eventually carry the National Bank branding.
National Bank is going to get rid of the Canadian Western Bank and Motive branding of the products. They already eliminated the bank, Canadian Western Bank, itself.
Still not certain what the fee structure of the National Bank-branded accounts will be. Royal Bank rebranded and issued new account numbers for the Royal Trust bank accounts when they bought Royal Trust. But, the new RBC accounts kept the fee structure of the Royal Trust accounts.
1:45 pm
January 9, 2011
Offline
This is an uniformed about-what-National-has type of question.
Does National Bank currently even have an all internet bank such as Motive vs. CWB had? I'm not talking about National online banking and available products which can be accessed online, but a separate entity with separate fee structures, rates etc.? If they do, then we could guess that's what it will be like. If not, then National is essentially getting into a new market segment, and something close to the Motive package is more likely to be continued.
What i do know is alot of us here will be watching what they try and do, both initially and over time.
My memory's not as sharp as it used to be. Also, my memory's not as
sharp as it used to be.
2:46 pm
April 6, 2013
Offline
The banks have known about digital-only banking since ING Bank Canada launched ING Direct over 20 years ago.
National Bank has shown no interest in having a digital-only channel. They would have started such a channel by now if they had an interest. They would have kept the ready-and-running Motive Financial division and branding if they were interested in startng such a channel now.
6:28 pm
January 10, 2017
Offline
BNS has Tangerine (no fee online bank)
CIBC has Simplii (no fee online bank)
RBC, TD and BMO have no separate "no fee online bank".
National Bank in the their letter states, "That’s why we will continue to offer you a similar interest rate* " Similar??...what is that??.
I think National bank will want to be like these 3 banks - to maintain high fees. No fee online banking is likely the future, but there is no rush to do it. Here are some stats:
Customer Base Breakdown by Bank (2023)
1. TD Bank (Toronto-Dominion Bank)
Total Customers: Approximately 28 million globally.
Canadian Customers: Over 11 million (primarily through TD Canada Trust).
International Customers: Approximately 17 million (primarily through TD Bank in the U.S.).
2. Royal Bank of Canada (RBC)
Total Customers: Approximately 17 million globally.
Canadian Customers: Approximately 11 million (primarily through RBC Royal Bank).
International Customers: Approximately 6 million (including clients served through RBC's U.S. operations and international branches).
3. Bank of Montreal (BMO)
Total Customers: Approximately 13 million globally.
Canadian Customers: Approximately 8 million (primarily through BMO Bank of Montreal).
International Customers: Approximately 5 million (including clients served through BMO Harris Bank in the U.S.).
4. National Bank of Canada
Total Customers: Approximately 2.4 million.
Canadian Customers: Approximately 2.4 million (primarily in Quebec and other Canadian provinces). International Customers: A smaller portion, as the bank's international operations are limited.
10:07 pm
September 28, 2023
Offline
BMO tried to copy the CIBC-Loblaws offering with their own accounts in partnership with Empire-owned supermarkets (Club Sobeys being by far the largest). It only lasted a few years before being unwound.
RBC had no fee accounts when they acquired Ally... only to cut rates immediately and close the accounts in a matter of weeks... shows their opinion on no-fee banking.
Only time will tell if NB will delve into the no-fee banking market space. One thing that gives me a glimmer of hope is they were the first bricks-and-mortar financial institution in Canada to drop commissions on their self-directed brokerage accounts (NBDB... inspired by Wealthsimple, followed by Desjardins and Questrade).
It is my hope that they do a similar move with banking, and the acquired Motive accounts would be a perfect launch base. But when they compare that to the many traditionalists paying bank fees, they will see us as potential revenue. If they are going to cut rates and raise fees, they might as well not spend the energy migrating us, we will just fly the coop to greener pastures.
The pressure must be building on the big banks to offer low or no fee options... the rise of all-in-one accounts by EQ, PC Money, Wealthsimple and others has to be chewing away at the Big 6 customer base, especially among the younger cohort who may have never needed entered a bank branch for teller service.
6:39 am
April 6, 2013
Offline
There's no pressure. RBC, for example, has increased the monthly fee on its Signature chequing account from around $10 to $16.95 over those 20 years. Another is TD Bank who increased the minimum monthly balance from $1,000 to $5,000 to waive the regular service fees on one of its older chequing accounts.
The digital-only banks and traditional banks cater to different customers. One of Tangerine Bank's former CEO explained that a while back.
8:24 am
November 18, 2017
Offline
Norman1 said:
The banks have known about digital-only banking since ING Bank Canada launched ING Direct over 20 years ago.
Wikipedia confirms:
Tangerine was originally founded in April 1997 as ING Group (using the trade name ING Direct) and operated as a telephone banking service
I was with them from 2000, staying with them for years. They weren't a "digital-only" bank; they had a branch in several large Canadian cities and did business primarily using the direct-debit/direct-deposit mechanism. And Canada Post.
The digital stuff lame later.
And they had excellent no-wait telephone service! And no fees!
RetirEd
8:36 am
November 8, 2018
Offline
I opened account with ING Direct over 15 years ago. These were the times when ING still had to convince people online banking has the merit.
How much have changed in banking in such short period of time.
Please write your comments in the forum.