Wealthsimple Investments Inc. Fee Schedule for Self-Directed Accounts
Understanding the currency conversion fee - CAD Accounts
Wealthsimple Investments Inc. (WSII) charges a 1.5% currency conversion fee on CAD and USD conversions (and vice versa) when trading US-listed securities from your CAD Account. For clarity,
This fee is applied to the WSII Corporate Exchange Rate.
There are no commission fees, transfer charges, or other hidden fees.
We don’t sell your information or data.
Orders are always executed at the best available price.
The WSII Corporate Exchange Rate is a live rate including a spread which may vary due to market conditions.
The fee is included in the total foreign exchange rate (FX) that is applied to each applicable filled order. We’ll show you the rate you receive on the trade confirmation once the order has been filled. Take a look at the two examples below:
An example asset purchase
You decide to purchase $100 USD of a US-denominated asset
In this example, the WSII corporate exchange rate for converting Canadian to US dollars is 1.3
With a 1.5% currency conversion fee, the total foreign exchange rate becomes 1.3198 (FX rate of 1.3 / (1 - 0.015))
The total cost to you is $131.98 CAD
An example asset sale
You decide to sell $100 USD worth of a US-denominated asset
In this example, the WSII corporate exchange rate for converting Canadian to US dollars is 1.3
With a 1.5% currency conversion fee, the total foreign exchange rate becomes 1.2805 (FX rate of 1.3 * (1 - 0.015))
You receive $128.05 CAD from the sale
The currency conversion and the corresponding fee will only apply when the order is filled. If the order does not get filled, you will still hold CAD and not USD.
Understanding the currency conversion fee - USD Accounts
WSII charges a 1.5% currency conversion fee on all currency conversions of cash between your CAD Account to your USD Account and vice versa. This fee is applied to the WSII Corporate Exchange Rate explained above. There is no currency conversion fee when trading US-listed securities from your USD Account.
Everyday Fee Schedule (All Accounts)
Below is a list of fees associated with normal day-to-day transactions.
Description & Amount
Commission for listed US & Canadian securities : $0
Account Opening : $0
Account Closing : $0
Deposits via Bank Transfer (EFT) : $0
Withdrawals via Bank Transfer (EFT) : $0
Electronic Statements & Trade Confirmations : $0
Inactive account : $0
Foreign Exchange Fee (CAD ⇆ USD) : WSII Corporate Exchange Rate x 1.5%
Outgoing account transfers to another institution : $0
Options contract fee for Core users : US$2
Options contract fee for Premium and Generation users : US$0.75
Options early exercise fee : US$45
Options auto-exercise fee : US$20
Do not exercise instruction: US$45
Additional Terms for USD Accounts
Unless expressly stated otherwise below, all terms of your Client Account Agreement apply to your USD Account and remain unchanged including applicable fees and features.
When you open a USD Account, you will be charged the monthly USD Account Fee listed below and will be asked to specify an account for billing purposes. The USD Account Fee will be debited from the account you specified on a monthly basis as of the date on which you opened the USD Account and each month thereafter. For greater clarity, the USD Account Fee will be withdrawn directly from the designated account. If this account has insufficient funds available to cover the USD Account Fee on the payment date, we may automatically attempt to charge the account again and / or your subscription may be canceled without notice.
In the event that WSII supports, and you sign up for, pre-authorized debits for the USD Account Fee, you will be charged in accordance with the Section 1.k. of your Client Account Agreement.
You may cancel your USD Account at any time. Your USD Account will remain open until the end of the current payment cycle, at which point it will be closed. You will not receive any pro-rated refund of your subscription fees.
USD Account Fee
$10 + applicable tax per month
By-request transactions or extenuating circumstance fees (All Accounts)
The following are transactional fees that only apply if you request any of the services below and your request is approved by a WSII representative.
Description & Amount
Paper Account Statement : $20
Special Requests & Investigation : $75 per hour
Voluntary Corporate Action/Election : $50
Wire Transfer (Incoming and Outgoing) : $30
If you wish to wire an amount greater than $50K our team may be able to make arrangements for the specified fee. Please submit a request for more details.
Broker-Assisted Phone Trade : $45
The ability to submit trade instructions via phone is available only in extenuating circumstances and can only be executed through WSII's trade desk. The Wealthsimple Client Success team is not authorized to submit any trade orders on behalf of clients.
Certificate Withdrawal : $250
This fee is charged by the Firm for having a physical certificate re-registered to an Account holder and sent to such Account holder.