CIBC Investor’s Edge Review

The Canadian government regulates investments; so, if you want to take trading into your own hands, you need to be able to access a brokerage account. A brokerage platform in this country is either independent brokers or those affiliated with financial institutions. While self-directed investing has grown in popularity, so have brokerage options. There are non-affiliated digital broker platforms such as Wealthsimple. Conversely, there are large-scale platforms under the umbrella of big banks. CIBC Investor’s Edge is one of these options, gaining interest amongst consumers for its versatile features. 

When you seek out an investment platform, there are key considerations. Determining whether CIBC Investor’s Edge is your best route to success, consider all the different aspects of online trading. It’s about more than what the platform offers in terms of accounts available, versatility, and features. Deciding on a brokerage, especially if you prefer bank affiliations, is about features like customer support, convenience, and security. 

This review details the essential details of CIBC Investor’s Edge, so you can decide if it is the right way to make your money work for you. 

CIBC Investor’s Edge Features 

As with any brokerage platform, CIBC Investor’s Edge has an array of features aiming to set it apart from the competition. The main focus of their features is insight-based, offering everything from notifications to watchlists. 

Screeners

This feature is a customizable filter system, enabling you to distill market information based on a range of criteria. Search by industry, sector, price change percentage, and market cap. Additionally, there are pre-designed screening tools established by the platform itself. This sorts the stocks you want to track, enabling quicker trades and easier access to information.  

Technical Insight

Designed to integrate current events with the impact on stocks, this gives you the chance to search for technical developments. Consider strategizing an investment on a pending patent, and being able to track that patent to calculate opportunities. This tool is designed to test theories, offer validation through fact-checking, and enable you to curate a data-based investment strategy. 

Morning News Call

Rapid access to information is a critical part of becoming a self-directed investor. The CIBC Investor’s Edge Morning News Call uses Thomson Reuters (itself a publicly-traded company — ticker name TRI on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges) to offer the most up-to-date market information. In the form of a daily newsletter, it offers a variety of market information, including the American, European, and Asian markets. Delving into corporate finance and emerging enterprises, this offers fast access to relevant information so you don’t have to sort through unnecessary details. 

Advanced Charting

Especially if you are a visual learner, this feature has a lot to offer. The high-end charting technologies make you capable of assessing the market from various standpoints. You can customize the charges against various indicators and recent studies. By enabling you to view the market from different angles, it opens up further insights. 

Trade-Fill Notifications & Alerts

A convenience feature, the trade-in notifications send you an email when your orders are complete. The alerts are designed to provide alerts for news and technical events, as well as tracking the shifting of prices so that you can make timely purchases and sales. 

Watch Lists

This feature lets you curate a series of watchlists, up to 20 at any given time, to assess different criteria. You can use it to measure your active portfolio and keep tabs on stocks of interest. By allowing you to make these assessments separately, it allows you to analyze the market from various perspectives. 

Daily Market Report

Sent via email, this focuses more on conceptual angles of the market, including technical analysis. Using Recognia, a company that is internationally recognized for analytical software, both technical and quantitative. These insights allow you access to broad-spectrum market phenomena and use it to curate your portfolio.

Regular Investment Plans

For any investment strategy to work, you need to continually add to the amount invested. This feature allows automatic bank account transfers on a recurring basis. This way, you can schedule regular installments into your savings, compounding its value. 

Types Of Investments Offered By CIBC Investor’s Edge

In order to supply the most possible investment options, CIBC Investor’s Edge offers different types of accounts. Depending on your personal investment philosophy, you can opt for one or several of the different investment types. 

• Stocks: Also referred to as equity, purchasing stocks means that you are buying a small part of the company. That share quality means that when the business thrives, so do your investments. However, if the company does not thrive, neither do your investments.  With these accounts, you can diversify your investments across different industries and sectors. Through these accounts, you can earn via both capital gains and dividends. 

• ETFs: Exchange Traded Funds are investment funds that trade in the same way as a stock. These accounts have low fees relative to Mutual Funds and allow for affordable portfolio diversification. 

• Options: These accounts are built for those with experience investing. While options can offer an incomparable amount of flexibility, the profit comes from mercurial stocks. When used correctly, strategically placed options let you cash in on volatile stocks. It enables you to hedge against potential losses while also turning a profit. 

• Mutual Funds: This type of fund effectively collects a wide range of companies, diversifying the portfolio against types of assets, industry, currencies, and geographical position. The fund does the diversification on the investors’ behalf, and you can choose from a variety of different strategies. Based on your priorities, you can opt for a mutual fund that fits your desires. These have higher fees than ETFs, though many prefer them for simplicity and ease of use. 

• GICs:  Guaranteed Investment Certificates are a safe way to invest since the certificate secures the principal investment. You invest a set amount of money over a chosen period of time. After that, you are entitled to both the original amount and interest accrued over the period of the investment. Depending on your long-term goals, you can set the maturity dates at different intervals. 

• Fixed Income: These investments are often preferred by those newer to the market, particularly given the conservative structure. The investor chooses from a large set of fixed income options, ranging from corporate to asset-backed accounts. Each has a unique set of terms, features, and risk levels. The fixed part of the investment means that you get a predictable return; and, depending on the amount invested, it can be used as an income stream.

• Precious Metals: e-Certificates in precious metals allows you to diversify your portfolio into a physical commodity. It enables the investor to put money in gold or silver, without the tedious logistics of purchase and storage. You can use these certificates as a part of RRSPs and TFSAs, along with RESPs and RRIFs. The value of these certificates varies based on the market, rising and falling with the value of the precious metal. 

Cost Of CIBC Investor’s Edge Platform

Depending on the account you choose and the investments you are dealing with, the cost of service differs. 

• Mutual Funds: Zero cost associated with these investments.
• Options: Ranges from $4.95 to $6.95, with an extra $1.25 per option contract. 
• Equities: Between $4.95 and $6.95. Students pay $5.95. 
• ETFs: From $4.95 to $6.95. Students pay $5.95. 

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Types Of Accounts  

• TFSA: A Tax-Free Savings account means there are no fees on capital gains or dividends, nor on the interest earned. It allows you to withdraw funds and use any extra contribution room in your account. 

• RRSP: Registered Retirement Savings Plans let you reduce your tax burden, use the full room in your RRSP and pay no tax until you take funds out of the account. These accounts also allow you to maintain different currencies simultaneously. 

• RESP: These enable you to save for your children’s post-secondary studies, with the Registered Education Savings Plan being eligible for a yearly grant of $500. The amount grows free of tax until funds are withdrawn. During its maturation period, you can also get access to other grants to add to its value. 

• Alternative registered accounts: These accounts include Registered Retirement Income Funds and other locked-in retirement funds. Each of the accounts differs in structure, benefits and drawbacks. To learn more about which fits your goals best, you can contact CIBC Investor’s Edge. 

• Non-registered accounts
  • Cash account: Either structured as Corporate, Joint, or Individual accounts, these let you diversify your investments across stocks, bonds, and industries. These accounts enable automatic transfers through Dividend Reinvestment and Regular Investment setups. 
  • Margin account: Built to up your purchasing ability, these accounts use your investment as borrowing security.  It’s popular for both complex investment strategies and those looking to short stocks. These accounts have higher fees but offer eligibility for option trading as long as the account means a certain threshold. 
  • Non-personal account: Available to Corporations and Partnerships, Investment Clubs, for Estates and Formal Trusts, these accounts allow more than one individual to participate in the investment strategy. Also used for future planning, these accounts are opened through a CIBC Investor’s Edge professional and require more steps than other account types.  

CIBC Investor’s Edge Pros And Cons 

As with any self-directed investment platform, there are benefits and drawbacks to CIBC Investor’s Edge. Finding the right company to use means identifying your top priorities and opting for the one that meets your needs best. 

Pros

• Versatility: Investment portfolios are all about diversification. The multiple accounts and investments available open up countless opportunities for personalized investments. 
• Easy application: The setup process for accounts with the company is fairly straightforward. It balances security with convenience in a proper manner to ensure your investments’ welfare. 
• Research tools: The platform offers a whole host of research opportunities; so, if you are a DIY investor, you can curate a strategy instead of randomizing your investments. Both media and technical options for research enable you to structure an approach that suits your needs. 
• Compatibility: You can use the application on both iOS and Android systems, and the app itself purportedly performs well, provided the mobile connection is reliable.  
• No investment minimum: At one time, funding was the true barrier to investments, where people had to centralize funds in order to trade. Now, there are opportunities for those with little startup cash to still use the market to their advantage.

Cons

• Fees: Unlike other platforms, there are several fees associated with this approach. While they are reasonable, it does add to the amount of startup cost associated.
• Limited funding options: There are few ways to put money on your investment account, making it slightly more restrictive than other companies. However, provided you use CIBC as a bank, it is far from unreasonable. 
• No socially or eco-conscious options: Many places offer these, but with CIBC, you would have to independently review the investments to ensure that it is all above board. 

Final Thoughts 

Any opportunity to use the preexisting financial system to your advantage is welcome, and the CIBC Investor’s Edge platform lets you do so. It stands out from other investment apps in terms of special features. Ideal for those who want to curate an actual investment strategy based on real-world data, this is a worthy platform. It’s easiest to use for those banking with CIBC already; and provided you use the tools available and make efforts to curate a portfolio fitting to your plans, CIBC Investor’s Edge offers everything you need to get the job done.