The cheque has to be valid, signed, and recently processed through clearing to be such a source to confirm person's name and the bank account. See Annex 5: Examples of reliable sources of information…:

Confirm that the person has a deposit account, prepaid payment product account, credit card or loan account by means of:

• Credit card statement
• Bank statement for deposit or chequing accounts
• Loan account statement (for example, mortgage)
• Cheque that has been processed in the last statement period (cleared, insufficient funds) by a financial institution
• Telephone call, email, letter, or other traceable means of confirmation from the financial entity holding the deposit account, prepaid payment product account, credit card or loan account
• Product from a Canadian credit bureau (containing two trade lines in existence for at least six months)
• Use of micro-deposits

RetirEd said
In this post-truth environment, the only thing we can be sure of is that "The trouble with normal is it always gets worse."

I wish I could launch a trend where everyone watching Trump live, journalists included, would just start chanting "His lips are moving!" whenever he blatantly, flat-out lies...  

He aims to keep the (unfortunately) large gullible population well fed ...

I wish I could launch a trend where everyone watching Trump live, journalists included, would just start chanting "His lips are moving!" whenever he blatantly, flat-out lies...

Back in the depth of the pandemic, I was able to schedule such an appointment with someone at Oaken's downtown Vancouver office, and my identification documents were checked and scanned, and I was authenticated in under 20 minutes.

I don't know if they have offices beyond Toronto and Vancouver, but it might be worth scheduling an in person appointment, if the logistics work for you.

Feb 24
- I filled out the online application.

Feb 26
- No reply from Oaken. I checked the site: I could sign in but there was no account. Started a chat and was told to check under "pending investments". I checked a message there and it said it needed a signature file. I had previously uploaded a .PNG file with a signature that I use to stamp documents. Chat-Buddy said they'd been having issues with document uploads, so I should try again. Uploaded file again. Also sent via email to their "back office" email address.

Mar 5
- Got an email requesting... a signature file. Ordered to submit by Mar 12. I called and was told I needed to sign a piece of paper, take a photo of the signature and send that in. What they call a "wet signature".

Mar 13
- Got a "Welcome to Oaken" email. Logged in. Account still "pending".

Mar 20
- Got a "Low Balance Alert" via email. Account no longer shows as "pending". Figured it must be in process finally.
Checked back periodically and there was still no account. I had hoped to move funds in a the end of Feb, but got a renewed Tangerine Bonus rate, so urgency had passed.

May 25
- Still nothing on Oaken. Called in and was told I needed to "Enroll" again. Needed to use a different login ID, a different password, but the same email address .
Here was my (second) mistake: I was on the phone with the agent while I did this and was rushing through and entered "Raymond" in the name field instead of "Ray" which I use for just about everything else.
Accounts were opened immediately and I started to set up external links via FLinks. Each time it failed, and I suspected it was because my first name didn't match. Back to online chat where the agent agreed that was probably the issue. When I balked at their requirements to manually link accounts, he suggested I could submit a request to change the name on the account. Wrote a letter, emailed it in.

May 26
- Request denied. I can't change the legal name to shortened name.
Next step:
- Write and sign a letter of direction
- Print and sign PAD forms from the external bank.
- Include a recent statement from the external bank with ALL information shown with nothing blanked out.
- Copy of ID.

After an hour of downloading, printing, signing, scanning, I re-submitted the list of documents and waited. Website says 2 business days to process requests.

May 29
- 3 full days later, no reply to my submission. No external banks appear in the list under transfers.
Waited until 5 pm, then transferred all of my funds from Tangerine to EQ bank.

After 3 months of trying on and off, my set up with Oaken is still incomplete.

AlainJF said
Difficult question: Do you think this recent upward trend in rates will continue?  

Now that Canada is in a technical recession, the pressure to raise rates has likely subsided. We know that in the US, Trump would like interest rates reduced. The problem is inflation has risen, which usually prompts central banks to raise rates.

AlainJF said

Difficult question: Do you think this recent upward trend in rates will continue?

.

.

Dean

FINTRAC requires the following to be recorded for dual-process verifications:

• Person's name
• Date you verified the information
• Name of the two different sources used to verify the identity of the person
• Type of information referred to
• Account number or number associated with the information if no account number exists

Can't just record "John J. Doe", "Manitoba Hydro utility bill", and "unknown account number" as one of the sources.

Also don't need to provide six sources, as Oaken requested the original poster, to confirm name, address, date of birth.

Months ago, I applied to Canadian Tire Bank for a credit card. Application was approved and card issued. No request for copy of driver's license, copy of utility bill, copy of investment account statement, or confirmation of employment.

Presumably, Canadian Tire Bank did the credit file method. Name, address, and date of birth matched exactly. Credit file more than three years old and had info from at least two lenders. FINTRAC identity verification met.