Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Discuss your favourite picks, broker, and trading or investment style.
Post Reply
User avatar
augustabound
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 2546
Joined: 17 Mar 2007 09:56
Location: GTA

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by augustabound »

Found this link. Not sure if it's of any use to anybody.
Questrade’s inadequate security
The reason why I can’t give a blanket endorsement of Questrade is security – they do not offer any sort of guarantee (e.g. BMO Investorline’s Online Security Guarantee) against hackers, and unlike Interactive Brokers, if somebody managed to rip off your username and password, they can do a lot of financial damage to your account.

.....In addition, Questrade is privately held and as a result, one has no idea how financially solvent they are. Although Canadian investors are protected through CIPF, you do not want to have to reclaim your assets through this mechanism.

I do not believe Questrade takes security seriously enough beyond the typical lip service of telling its customers to “run a firewall and a virus scanner” and as a result, some of its customers will have their accounts compromised. Although I am very computer-savvy and it is unlikely that a phishing scam will get my username and password, it could happen and I want a form of protection beyond a username/password combination to make sure that my account is protected. Questrade does not offer this.
"Whenever I'm about to do something I think, would an idiot do that? And if they would, I do not do that thing." - Dwight K. Schrute
User avatar
72offsuit
Contributor
Contributor
Posts: 113
Joined: 12 Aug 2007 02:12

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by 72offsuit »

Ran into another problem with Questrade today. I had the same fictitious transactions on my accounts (3 total fake transactions, which I have requested to be removed, but which haven't been yet) as well.

In any case, I placed a Day order yesterday on Questrade at about 3:30. It got filled at market open this morning! How is this even possible? Has this happened to anyone? I'm trying to contact the people on Live Chat but I've been in the queue over an hour already.

Edit: The market was closed (Family Day), so my order carried forward to the next day and executed right at the open. Ugh. Didn't realize the market was closed. I still think there should have been a warning or something
Last edited by 72offsuit on 22 Feb 2011 14:20, edited 1 time in total.
FinEcon
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 1306
Joined: 03 Aug 2005 13:41

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by FinEcon »

72offsuit wrote:Ran into another problem with Questrade today. I had the same fictitious transactions on my accounts (3 total fake transactions, which I have requested to be removed, but which haven't been yet) as well.

In any case, I placed a Day order yesterday on Questrade at about 3:30. It got filled at market open this morning! How is this even possible? Has this happened to anyone? I'm trying to contact the people on Live Chat but I've been in the queue over an hour already.
I cannot understand why QT insisted on massive system change rollout dunig the industry's busy season. IMO, an IT rollout in this business should be done over June and/or July and whomever came up with the original 6 char account numbers should be shot. I remember thinking that their old account # format wouldn't last when I first signed up. Also, as industry pricing converges, QT will really need to step up their game which is probably the whole reason for te recent changes.
Show me the incentive and I will show you the outcome

--Charlie Munger
mikester
Contributor
Contributor
Posts: 236
Joined: 04 Feb 2007 22:12
Location: Toronto
Contact:

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by mikester »

FinEcon wrote:
72offsuit wrote:Ran into another problem with Questrade today. I had the same fictitious transactions on my accounts (3 total fake transactions, which I have requested to be removed, but which haven't been yet) as well.

In any case, I placed a Day order yesterday on Questrade at about 3:30. It got filled at market open this morning! How is this even possible? Has this happened to anyone? I'm trying to contact the people on Live Chat but I've been in the queue over an hour already.
I cannot understand why QT insisted on massive system change rollout dunig the industry's busy season. IMO, an IT rollout in this business should be done over June and/or July and whomever came up with the original 6 char account numbers should be shot. I remember thinking that their old account # format wouldn't last when I first signed up. Also, as industry pricing converges, QT will really need to step up their game which is probably the whole reason for te recent changes.
Agreed - the timing is horrible.

I don't know what Questrade will do in the future. I love the fact that they have been ground-breakers in many areas (low trading commissions, US$ RRSP, no annual fees) and a very low cost alternative to the big banks. As you say however, the cost gap is closing.
Mike
Money Smarts Blog
Investing and Personal Finance (It used to be Four Pillars)
chinamansteve
Contributor
Contributor
Posts: 103
Joined: 10 Jan 2009 21:14

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by chinamansteve »

I want to add my experience with Questrade. Lucky for me, my main broker is IB, but I have my TFSA with Questrade. This is what happened.

I recently transferred my TFSA and a part of my non-registered account to Questrade in January of this year. I rarely log into my TFSA since I only buy a couple times a year with it. I logged in on Friday hoping to make a purchase, and realized that my account showed a balance of $0, and no holdings. I called Questrade and waited for the online chat for over 30 minutes before someone on online chat got to me. I asked the agent what was going on, how come my holdings are gone. The agent looked into it and told me I withdrew everything from my account and referred me to some site called https://online.penson.com and told me I can check there. I told the agent I can guarantee that I did no withdraw anything from my account. After a few moments, the agent came back and said my account was transferred to RBC. I was baffled by it and told the agent to use some common sense as I JUST transferred the account to them last month from RBC. He then told me he will get a supervisor to look into the matter and contact me as soon as it is resolved, with timing uncertain. The agent also comes back to tell me that it appears my account was linked to two separate email accounts, and gave me some email address. I told him I have absolutely no idea where he got the other email from as it was some random email that I've never used. Again, he said he will get his supervisor to look into it and get back to me. I am extremely disappointed with Questrade at the moment, and I told the agent that they really need to do something about their system as I have close to 30k worth of assets with them (reason why I was freaked when I saw a balance of $0). Lucky for me, IB is my main broker, and at this rate, if nothing is being done, I think I will move my TFSA else where and transfer the non-registered holdings to IB.
User avatar
deaddog
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 3422
Joined: 19 Jan 2008 19:59
Location: Central BC/Arizona

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by deaddog »

Why are you dealing with this with online chat?

I'd certainly be on the phone demanding to talk to someone that could solve the problem.
"And the days that I keep my gratitude higher than my expectations, well, I have really good days" RW Hubbard
chinamansteve
Contributor
Contributor
Posts: 103
Joined: 10 Jan 2009 21:14

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by chinamansteve »

deaddog wrote:Why are you dealing with this with online chat?

I'd certainly be on the phone demanding to talk to someone that could solve the problem.
I was waiting on the phone AND on online chat to see which got to me first. After 30 mins of waiting, an agent got to me on online chat so I hung up the phone. I'm going to give them a call on Monday again to get a follow up. This is absurd (BTW, this happened a week ago, and I have not received any response/follow up from them regarding my account).
User avatar
deaddog
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 3422
Joined: 19 Jan 2008 19:59
Location: Central BC/Arizona

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by deaddog »

I know their chat is painfully slow. Wasn't aware that phone support was as bad.
Just for the hell of it I'll send an e-mail with a complaint and see if any changes are in the works.
"And the days that I keep my gratitude higher than my expectations, well, I have really good days" RW Hubbard
FinEcon
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 1306
Joined: 03 Aug 2005 13:41

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by FinEcon »

deaddog wrote:I know their chat is painfully slow. Wasn't aware that phone support was as bad.
Just for the hell of it I'll send an e-mail with a complaint and see if any changes are in the works.
:rofl: maybe they'll answer your email after they answer the ones I sent then back in the second and third week of February. Why none sent more recently? I've given up, they won.
Show me the incentive and I will show you the outcome

--Charlie Munger
User avatar
deaddog
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 3422
Joined: 19 Jan 2008 19:59
Location: Central BC/Arizona

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by deaddog »

:rofl: :rofl:

Dear DD,

Thank you for contacting us!

We have received your inquiry and are assigning it to a representative. Please be aware that we are currently experiencing higher than usual email volumes. We will respond to your inquiry as soon as possible.

(my bold) Probably more than 2 :rofl:
"And the days that I keep my gratitude higher than my expectations, well, I have really good days" RW Hubbard
queerasmoi
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 3385
Joined: 27 May 2008 16:25

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by queerasmoi »

chinamansteve wrote: I recently transferred my TFSA and a part of my non-registered account to Questrade in January of this year. I rarely log into my TFSA since I only buy a couple times a year with it. I logged in on Friday hoping to make a purchase, and realized that my account showed a balance of $0, and no holdings. I called Questrade and waited for the online chat for over 30 minutes before someone on online chat got to me. I asked the agent what was going on, how come my holdings are gone. The agent looked into it and told me I withdrew everything from my account and referred me to some site called https://online.penson.com and told me I can check there. I told the agent I can guarantee that I did no withdraw anything from my account. After a few moments, the agent came back and said my account was transferred to RBC. I was baffled by it and told the agent to use some common sense as I JUST transferred the account to them last month from RBC. He then told me he will get a supervisor to look into the matter and contact me as soon as it is resolved, with timing uncertain. The agent also comes back to tell me that it appears my account was linked to two separate email accounts, and gave me some email address. I told him I have absolutely no idea where he got the other email from as it was some random email that I've never used. Again, he said he will get his supervisor to look into it and get back to me. I am extremely disappointed with Questrade at the moment, and I told the agent that they really need to do something about their system as I have close to 30k worth of assets with them (reason why I was freaked when I saw a balance of $0). Lucky for me, IB is my main broker, and at this rate, if nothing is being done, I think I will move my TFSA else where and transfer the non-registered holdings to IB.
The Penson site is where your account activity prior to the changeover can be viewed.

Your experience reminds me of the situation upthread where first I was listed with "Margaret" as my middle name, and then a $111,000 bank draft appeared in my account that did not belong to me. Perhaps they somehow transferred your account instead of someone else's? That's a bit alarming.
chinamansteve
Contributor
Contributor
Posts: 103
Joined: 10 Jan 2009 21:14

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by chinamansteve »

queerasmoi wrote: The Penson site is where your account activity prior to the changeover can be viewed.

Your experience reminds me of the situation upthread where first I was listed with "Margaret" as my middle name, and then a $111,000 bank draft appeared in my account that did not belong to me. Perhaps they somehow transferred your account instead of someone else's? That's a bit alarming.
With the new "upgrade", I think Questrade has caused a lot of chaos for themselves and their clients. Honestly, I am extremely frustrated with this, and I just hope they can fix all this nonsense ASAP. I just hope they don't lose my account and I end up losing my assets, or else I will personally go down to their office with a shotgun. :x
User avatar
deaddog
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 3422
Joined: 19 Jan 2008 19:59
Location: Central BC/Arizona

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by deaddog »

A reply: On a saturday no less; I'm almost impressed :)
Subject: Customer Support Request From MyQuestrade
Dear Mr. DD

Thank you for contacting Questrade.

I apologize for the long wait and frustration we've caused.

Due to RRSP season and new system deployment, we've been experiencing higher than normal volumes and wait times. More agents have been hired to help with the incoming volumes. I assure you it will not be this way year around.

We look forward to making it up to you.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any additional questions.
"And the days that I keep my gratitude higher than my expectations, well, I have really good days" RW Hubbard
queerasmoi
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 3385
Joined: 27 May 2008 16:25

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by queerasmoi »

One of the occasional positives I've seen so far in the new system - it looks like DRIP is happening faster than before. In previous months if I got a distribution on the 1st, I'd maybe see the reinvestment by the 7th. This month I got a distribution on the 1st, and when I checked on the 3rd I saw both the cash and the new shares.
queerasmoi
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 3385
Joined: 27 May 2008 16:25

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by queerasmoi »

Questrade told me last week that I'd get a consolidated T3 slip online by March 31st. They've now missed that deadline. And I thought Credential was slow! Well my Credential T3 arrived midweek, and on April 1st I still have no Questrade T3... this will apparently be the thing that delays filing my taxes every single year from now on. My punishment for passive investing? :P
queerasmoi
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 3385
Joined: 27 May 2008 16:25

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by queerasmoi »

I did a "Norbert's Gambit" at Questrade in March. Shorted RY on the US side, bought it on the CDN side, flattened the positions. Then I spent the proceeds on an ETF. It worked out but the system is now very confused about me.

In myQuestrade I have an erroneous positive US cash balance. This has persisted for weeks even though someone is trying to help get it fixed.

And meanwhile, I also just got a margin interest charge for the past month, based on an erroneous negative US cash balance.

So it seems to me the shorting proceeds must have reached some different account other than the correct one. And when I spent the proceeds, Questrade recorded a margin loan as well. The rep I just chatted with is going to refund the margin interest but she still has no idea when it will be fixed. She wrote just now: "I don't think this display show up issue can be solved in the near future. You can email me for the rebate if you see the interest charge is not correct."

Moral of the story... Norbert's Gambit will confuse the hell out of Questrade. Try it if you have lots of time to spend getting your account fixed up afterwards ;)
User avatar
Quebec
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 1645
Joined: 24 Oct 2009 16:49
Location: Quebec City

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by Quebec »

queerasmoi wrote:Questrade told me last week that I'd get a consolidated T3 slip online by March 31st. They've now missed that deadline. And I thought Credential was slow! Well my Credential T3 arrived midweek, and on April 1st I still have no Questrade T3... this will apparently be the thing that delays filing my taxes every single year from now on. My punishment for passive investing? :P
Yeah, I thought I had all our tax slips on April 1st, and submitted our T1s to CRA (plus the provincial equivalents to Revenu Quebec) then. A few days later, a couple of final T3s show up in the mail from Questrade. The amounts are tiny on the wife's side (less than $10), and are less than $50 for me, but on the phone the CRA nevertheless suggested we each file a T1-ADJ... So we did. Plus the provincial equivalent: that's 4 extra forms in total!

Hummmmmmmmmmm.

Then a few days later we got emails from Questrade stating that they had forgotten some securities (a reasonably long list actually) for the first T3, and that they would be mailing another T3, to arrive in LATE APRIL. How convenient. Fortunately we did not own any of these securities. But still...
FinEcon
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 1306
Joined: 03 Aug 2005 13:41

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by FinEcon »

My god QT is run by morons. On a broker/bank/financial site, the last thing anyone wants to see is a security message. I got this both in Firefox and IE so I checked RFD and it turns out these fools let their Verisgn certificate lapse. Amateur hour continues at QT.
Attachments
ScreenHunter_03 Sep. 02 09.43.gif
Show me the incentive and I will show you the outcome

--Charlie Munger
queerasmoi
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 3385
Joined: 27 May 2008 16:25

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by queerasmoi »

Oy.

This does not surprise me in the least.
Londoncalling
Contributor
Contributor
Posts: 165
Joined: 26 Jul 2011 15:51

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by Londoncalling »

not sure what is going on at questrade today. when I ried to go to their site http://www.questrade.com I got the webpage for IIs7 information support service.

what's up with that?

I can view my balances and positions through penson but am unable to trade today as I cannot access the trading platform. :cry: :evil:
User avatar
Quebec
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 1645
Joined: 24 Oct 2009 16:49
Location: Quebec City

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by Quebec »

Questrade has a problem with RESPs. Specifically, I still have not received the 10% provincial incentive for a contribution made in 2010. I've called them 3 or 4 times about this (it took 0.5-1 h each time); last time the answer was "we know there is a problem", but they don’t seem to know what the problem is and how to solve it. How difficult can it be to ask the provincial govt $250 on my behalf?
User avatar
newguy
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 8088
Joined: 10 May 2009 18:24
Location: Montreal

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by newguy »

Quebec wrote:Questrade has a problem with RESPs. Specifically, I still have not received the 10% provincial incentive for a contribution made in 2010. I've called them 3 or 4 times about this (it took 0.5-1 h each time); last time the answer was "we know there is a problem", but they don’t seem to know what the problem is and how to solve it. How difficult can it be to ask the provincial govt $250 on my behalf?
Dammit, I was just about to look for a single location to get an RESP in Qc. I believe from your earlier research this was the only place.

newguy
User avatar
deaddog
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 3422
Joined: 19 Jan 2008 19:59
Location: Central BC/Arizona

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by deaddog »

Trailer fee rebates with Mutual Fund MaximizerTM

If you want a greater return on the mutual funds you already own, transfer them to Questrade and get as much as 1% (or more) of the total value of your funds back every year. And because you're already a Questrade client, transferring your funds is simple and can be done right in myQuestrade.
"And the days that I keep my gratitude higher than my expectations, well, I have really good days" RW Hubbard
User avatar
Bylo Selhi
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 29494
Joined: 16 Feb 2005 10:36
Location: Waterloo, ON
Contact:

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by Bylo Selhi »

Via RFD: Open and fund a new Questrade account with a minimum of $250,000 and get an iPad 2.
Terms and Conditions:
Questrade is offering new and existing clients an iPad 2 when opening a new account.
• Open and fund an account with a minimum of $250,000 in assets by 11:59 p.m. ET, December 31st, 2011.
• Must quote offer code IPAD250 at the start of the account application.

General
• Offer open to new and existing equity clients. Forex accounts are not eligible.
• If you are funding your account by transferring from another broker, the transfer must be initiated by 11:59 p.m. ET, December 31st, 2011 and must be completed within 90 days of initiation to qualify for the offer.
• Amounts quoted are in CAD.
• This offer is not available with any other Questrade offer except FREE TO TRANSFER (see below).
• New accounts by existing Questrade clients cannot be funded by transferring funds from another Questrade account.
• Account holders must maintain a minimum account balance of $250,000 in assets for at least 6 months of account activation. If the account balance falls below $250,000 in assets before the end of the 6 month period due to withdrawals on your account, you will no longer qualify for the promotion and Questrade will have the option to apply a charge to your account based on market value of the iPad 2. If the account balance falls below $250,000 in assets due to market fluctuations, you will still be eligible for the promotion and no charges will be applied.
• Clients will only get one iPad 2 (Wi-Fi only, 16 GB), excluding the smart cover, or cash equivalent per account.
• iPad 2s are subject to availability.
• Images of iPad 2 shown on any advertisement used by Questrade does not represent the actual iPad 2 which will be offered to clients.

Free to transfer
Questrade will pay your transfer-out fees up to CAD $150 when you move a minimum of CAD $25,000 to Questrade from another brokerage. Payment of the transfer-out fee is capped at $150 and is limited to one account per client.
Any reason why I shouldn't avail myself of their offer? :twisted:
Sedulously eschew obfuscatory hyperverbosity and prolixity.
User avatar
IdOp
Veteran Contributor
Veteran Contributor
Posts: 3873
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 11:27
Location: On the Pacific sea bed, 100 mi off the CA coast.
Contact:

Re: Questrade (the former misnamed TradeFreedom thread)

Post by IdOp »

Bylo Selhi wrote:Any reason why I shouldn't avail myself of their offer? :twisted:
If you want to get an iPad2, it might be worth waiting until Apple solves the problem with condensation forming on the screen.

;)
Post Reply