Questrade Review

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Review

Questrade, a Canadian discount broker located in Toronto, opened its doors in 1999 and was rated one of Canada’s best managed companies several years running.  Questrade Inc. is registered as an investment dealer with the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC), formerly Investment Dealers Association of Canada (IDA) and is a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund.

Questrade was the first brokerage to offer dual currency registered stock accounts and commission-free ETF’s. Their focus remains the same but to keep up with other online brokerages, they have now added Forex platforms and CFD’s to their list of trading options.

Questrade EFTs

There is a choice of different Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that provide low cost and instant access to investments during market hours. The list of Questrade Smart EFTs includes the Questrade Russell US Midcap Value Index Hedged to CAD (QMV) where traders can invest in mid-sized U.S. companies with good value while reducing their exposure to U.S. dollar fluctuation.

The Questrade Russell US Midcap Growth Index Hedged to CAD (QMG) invests in mid-sized U.S. companies with good growth potential. Plus, it reduces exposure to U.S. dollar fluctuation.

The Questrade Russell 1000 Equal Weight US Technology Index ETF Hedged to CAD (QRT) invests in the technology sector and allows investors to add large U.S. technology companies to their portfolio, while reducing exposure to U.S. dollar fluctuations.

Traders interested in the health care sector can choose to invest in the Questrade Russell 1000 Equal Weight US Health Care Index ETF Hedged to CAD (QRH) which gives them exposure to leading U.S. health care companies. This ETF keeps investors’ portfolios in a sector which represents healthcare companies, while reducing exposure to U.S. dollar fluctuation.

The Questrade Russell 1000 Equal Weight US Consumer Discretionary Index ETF Hedged to CAD (QRD) lets investors add U.S. retailers, media companies and other industries within the Consumer Discretionary sector to their portfolio, while reducing exposure to U.S. dollar fluctuation.

The Questrade Russell 1000 Equal Weight US Industrials Index ETF Hedged to CAD (QRI) provides the opportunity to invest with large U.S. companies within the producer durables sector (transportation, defense, etc.) while reducing exposure to U.S. dollar fluctuation.

Useful information accompanies the description of each ETF and includes graphs showing its performance, holdings and industry breakdown. An informative video an each ETF is also available.

An additional benefit: Traders can buy any North American listed-ETF, including Questrade Smart ETF absolutely commission-free.

Questrade ETFs

Accounts

There are four accounts to choose from at Questrade and they can all be opened at the same time in a packaged account.

Margin accounts are available to an individual, joint, or organization and offer stocks, options, ETFs, and precious metals. The leverage provided gives additional buying power.

The Questrade TFSA or registered trading account, allows traders to actively manage their portfolio with an RSP or TFSA. With this account traders can buy, sell, and hold individual stocks, options, mutual funds, ETFs, and precious metals.

Questrade Forex (FX) and contracts for difference (CFD) accounts focus on currencies traded on the global markets.  And the Portfolio IQ accounts is the Questrade professionally managed. These accounts can be funded with as little as $1 in cash, and as little as $2000 to be fully invested. They can be opened as a registered retirement plan (RRSP), a registered retired education savings plan (RESP), a registered retired income fund (RIF) as well as other options.

I was pleased to see when doing this Questrade review that a demo account is available for those wishing to practice their trading before opening a real account at Questrade. Questrade IQ practice accounts are good for 30 days, and include desktop and cloud-based software for computers and tablets as well as a mobile web app.

Questrade Account Types

Features

Questrade offers a host of other unique features.

With the Questrade Advantage, traders can trade stocks for as low as 1¢ and options as low as $4.95 + 75¢ per contract. The Questrade Advantage is an active trader program with good commissions. There is no minimum trading threshold or account balance requirement to use this service; all that is needed is to subscribe to an advanced market data plan and the Advantage is automatically put in place.

Margin Power is a new service from Questrade that combines a TFSA and a margin account thereby increasing the buying power of an account. Traders can enter new positions in their margin account without selling securities or transferring in cash. 

The Mutual Fund Maximizer allows anyone holding a mutual fund portfolio to be reimbursed trailer fees thus decreasing charges paid and increasing returns by compounding investing.

Questrade also offers borderless trading which enables both U.S. and Canadian cash to be registered on one account, including TFSAs. Traders can trade markets on both sides of the border without surprise currency conversion fees every time they buy, sell or receive dividend income.

Another unique feature is the Drip plan. Anyone registering to the Questrade dividend reinvestment plan (DRIP) automatically receives dividend income that can be used to purchase additional shares without any trading commissions. A DRIP, also known as a DPP (direct purchase plan), is considered a slow, steady approach to building wealth.

Education

When it comes to education, Questrade offers a full range of online and in-person training that is geared towards both basic and advanced Forex and CFD trading.

Questrade’s free webinars and seminars provide instruction on how to get the most from each platform, understand the portfolio options, find out how to avoid extra fees, and get great tips on maximizing profits.

At the online Trading Academy, traders can take advantage of a free power trading workshop to learn the foundations for building a successful portfolio. And anyone wishing to learn about the theory behind trading and investing and how to put that theory into action can do so through a free program offered by one of Questrade’s partners.

In addition to all the above, every Questrade account comes with a full suite of powerful research tools, publications, reports and financial resources to help self-directed investors make smarter, more effective trades.

Deposits/Withdrawals

There are endless ways to fund an account at Questrade including the standard transfers, online banking, certified checks, money orders and others. Withdrawals can be made using the same methods.

Customer Support

Traders get platform support 24 hours a day, seven days a week with online help. Live help is available by leaving a written or audio message and telephone calls are answered in their Toronto office in English and French. I was surprised when doing this review that there was no Chat support offered.

Conclusion

Questrade is certainly an interesting broker with a vast amount of resources available to their account holders. There were no bonuses offered at the time of this review but maybe the broker felt it didn’t need bonuses to attract new clients. An interesting related note is that Questrade continues to be the only brokerage in Canada to allow dual-currency (CAD and USD) to be held simultaneously inside registered accounts which in and of itself will save a tremendous amount of money from unnecessary conversion fees.

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Features

Questrade is chock-a-block with features. They seem to go on and on making the site somewhat cumbersome. But once you have mastered the method, you can appreciate the many unique offerings available for traders of all kinds and with all levels of trading. There are many choices for accounts, platforms and other trading tools and strategies and traders can practice using these tools risk-free by opening a demo account first and practicing for a period of thirty days before moving over to a real trading account.

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Platforms

Questrade IQ

The main platform at Questrade is Questrade IQ which offers direct access trading platforms without a middleman.

Questrade IQ is a suite composed of four flavors: Questrade IQ Web, a fully functional web-based trading platform; Questrade IQ Edge, a streamlined desktop-based trading platform; Questrade IQ Mobile, their first mobile entrant in the field of trading for iPhone/iPods Blackberrys and Androids and Questrade IQ Essential, their non-install web platform designed for tablets netbooks.

All four platforms are free for members and include snap quote live Canadian/U.S. streaming Level 1 data, research tools for fundamental and technical analysis, a charting package, and more. At times market data can be delayed (up to 15 minutes) and when this happen a cute clock icon appears on-screen to let you know of the streaming hangup. And although it is made available for free, Questrade IQ can be upgraded to include one of three data packages or add à la carte feeds.

Questrade IQ Essential Platform

IQ Web

IQ Web is a powerful and clever web platform. IQ Web is the next generation of online trading. It’s sleek, efficient and built for speed. Access to Questrade IQ can be made from any computer with an internet connection. It can be personalized and customized to display whatever gadgets are wanted.

IQ Edge

Questrade IQ Edge is a robust trading machine geared for active and pro traders.  This desktop platform is smart and intuitive and allows traders to place orders however they want with all or none, anonymous, iceberg, minimum quantities, trailing orders and fill or kill durations.

All the platforms offer the main features of the Questrade IQ including an exclusive market research package, including Intraday Trader1, market intelligence, and the definitive support library in the Exchange.

IQ Mobile

IQ Mobile offers universal trading, use of resource tools such as Intraday Trader1 and Market Intelligence, multiple order types, studies and drawings, and super-fast trade executions with direct access to the markets.

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