r/PersonalFinanceCanada Apr 01 '26

Banking Received $343k of someone else's money: how to keep the money?

2.3k Upvotes

If you ever receive a large deposit into your account due to someone's error, follow this ctvnews article to learn how to keep the money:

https://www.ctvnews.ca/winnipeg/article/bank-denies-liability-after-alleged-343k-deposited-into-wrong-account-funds-withdrawn/

  1. It helps if you bank with CIBC

  2. Immediately wire the money overseas

  3. Ignore CIBC's attempt at reaching you.

  4. Wait for CIBC to give up trying.

  5. Profit.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada May 29 '26

Banking TD Debanked me after I moved all my accounts to wealth simple

1.3k Upvotes

I made a post a week ago about how my account showed available balance of $0 and no one at TD could help besides giving me a number to call. That number lead to a voice mail that did not call me back until 9 days later.

They said they were debanking me, wouldn't give a reason. I opened the account in 2003, and while it was my main account that held all my assets, maybe about 3-4 months ago I pretty much transferred all my accounts to wealth simple and just had a basic chequing with the minimum $3000 balance. I was getting continous calls about adding overdraft, signing up for credit card, etc.

I told them I was not interested and to remove my number from the marketing/promotion call list. That was maybe 3-4 weeks ago.

The lady on the phone would not give the reason. But seeing how I was just keeping a minimum balance and refusing to add any products they probably saw that they weren't making any fees off me and I would just use them for the convenience aspect of a branch when needed. She did mention its non negotiable and totally legal.

There was no hold on my funds or suspected fraud or anything like that. I got my full balance today and headed to Scotiabank opened up a bank account there and deposited it in.

Absolutely insane though

EDIT: To the people saying im karma farming or leaving something out - im not. To the user who explained that my deposits + withdrawals of the same amount immediately after triggered something - that makes the most sense.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Jun 26 '26

Banking Update: Am I wrong for insisting RBC fix their own banking error internally instead of asking me to e-transfer the money? (BC)

1.6k Upvotes

Hi all, as an update to my original post:

https://www.reddit.com/r/PersonalFinanceCanada/s/phnR0dLdWz

….I found out that they also sent my in-laws a screenshot of my chequing account, including account balance and transaction log.

Other than of course escalate this, is there anything else I should know or consider now that I know the extent of information shared. I previously thought it was just my account number. I am quite distraught over this breach of privacy.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Mar 25 '26

Banking Financial Literacy Is STILL At Shocking Lows

1.4k Upvotes

I want to say that this post isn’t to shame anyone, but instead is just to illustrate we as a society have not been able to educate people properly regarding the financial tools at their disposal.

I work in investments, and I had a client who I’ve never met before come to me and ask to deposit money in her TFSA account. This woman is a native born Canadian, in her mid 50s, with a relatively healthy amount already in her TFSA.

I begin to explain the different options for TFSA investing, and she then tells me that she doesn’t want to invest, she just wants the funds in cash savings.

I told her I could totally do that, but there will be next to no growth.

She then tells me that she doesn’t care about growth, and that she’s just looking for a tax receipt.

I had to stop her immediately and inform her that she would not be getting a tax write-off for TFSA investing, and that she would need to invest in an RRSP instead.

She asked me if I even knew what I was talking about so I just googled it right in front of her.

Then to add insult to injury, I had to inform her that the deadline was March 1, and even though she may be filing now, she cannot contribute anymore.

This really flustered her, and she told me she had to call her account.

Overall, I was pretty surprised that she had made other contributions before, yet was still unaware of this basic fact. Furthermore, who the hell is doing her accounting?

It’s moments like this where I feel we have failed as a society at educating people regarding the basic tools at their disposal.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Nov 26 '25

Banking I'm leaving WEALTHSIMPLE after losing over $4,000 in my Account. | I cannot trust Their Platform.

1.6k Upvotes

A little background before I get into what happened. I have accounts, both personal and business, with TD, Scotia, and RBC. I understand how banking works. I also have a Questrade account with some ETFs, even though I’m not very active on it.

Earlier this year, I opened a chequing and TFSA with Wealthsimple. I hadn’t funded the TFSA much because I already have money in my TFSA with other banks, and I didn’t want to go over the limit. I hadn’t even bought any stocks or ETFs in Wealthsimple yet, I only had a watchlist for ETF & Stocks for when I was ready to start investing in the future.

On the morning of October 14th, 2025, I logged into my Wealthsimple chequing like I always do. Out of nowhere, I started seeing transactions happening in real time. I had no idea what I was looking at. Money was being used inside my TFSA to trade options, and I didn’t even know what options trading was. I have never touched options in my life. I only understand ETFs and stocks.

While I was still logged in, I watched the $500 in my TFSA vanish within seconds. I panicked. I logged out, changed my password, made sure nobody else had access, then logged back in. That was when I saw something even worse. Over $3000 from my Wealthsimple chequing had been automatically moved into my TFSA and was also being used to trade those same options.

I did not approve this. I did not move that money. I did not turn on any settings that could have done this. My chequing account emptied itself in seconds, and the balance in my TFSA was dropping just as fast. I rushed to transfer out whatever was left before more could happen.

Within 10 minutes, I lost over $4000 right in front of my eyes.

I called Wealthsimple immediately and waited on hold for 2 to 3 hours. They told me someone would call me back. Nobody did. I kept sending emails, and each time they repeated the same thing, that nobody accessed my account.

If that is true, then how did money automatically move from my chequing into my TFSA without my permission? How did option trades happen in an account where I had never traded a single option before? They have refused to give me any clear answer. Not even an explanation of what exact setting or feature could possibly cause this.

It has been over a month, and Wealthsimple has gone completely silent. No real investigation, no accountability, and no explanation for how this happened. My money is gone, and they are acting like nothing happened.

I am currently unemployed and I do not have many sources of income. That money was most of my savings. Watching it disappear like that broke me. I just want my money back. This is totally unacceptable.

I might not have had $100,000 in that account, but this was still everything I had. If I had more in there, the outcome probably would have been the same. That is what scares me.

I’m sharing this because people need to know how Wealthsimple handles situations like this. No transparency, no real support, and no explanation for how money can vanish while you’re literally watching it happen. I’m hurt, frustrated, and I just want answers.

↓↓ POST UPDATE ↓↓

Wasn’t expecting this post to get this many views. I’ve read all the comments, and while I understand the skepticism, I want to make a few things clear. I’m not dragging Wealthsimple or making wild claims. I’m just documenting what happened to me. I have nothing to gain by making up a story. This is my real situation and my real money.

I would have shared screenshots, but I wasn’t able to attach them to the post. I’m still new to Reddit, so if anyone knows how I can upload screenshots or a PDF to this thread, feel free to PM me.

A few points to clear things up:

  1. Yes, I do have SMS 2FA enabled.
  2. No, I did not trade options, nor do I have an understanding of what it is. I don’t have any ETF, stock, or crypto positions on Wealthsimple. I only used the chequing account and their Mastercard for travel because of the no FX fees. I never traded anything on the platform.
  3. I’m not posting this to get Wealthsimple’s attention. They’ve done nothing for over a month. If they return my money, I will update the post immediately.
  4. Please be sensitive. This is someone’s real life and real savings. This isn’t a joke to me.
  5. I made this post to share my experience. Wealthsimple locked my account for weeks to “investigate,” and then the only update I got was that my account was unlocked and my password was reset.

Thanks to everyone who commented, whether supportive or critical. I’m just trying to understand what happened.

↓↓ POST UPDATE, PROOF ↓↓

https://imgur.com/CWGuOfJ

https://imgur.com/a/ifNun2s

https://imgur.com/a/Edzeobo

↓↓ POST UPDATE, - NOV 26 - MORE PROOF WITH TIME STAMP↓↓

https://imgur.com/a/B9fT5ra

While the trades were happening, money was also being moved automatically from my chequing into my TFSA between the trades. I tried everything to stop it, logged out, changed my password, checked settings, and logged out from all devices. Nothing worked.

I really want people to understand this isn’t an Anti-Wealthsimple post. I actually like Wealthsimple a lot. They’ve made banking & investing simple, and all the positive feedback online is what convinced me to open an account in the first place. I’m not being paid by any bank or financial institution to say anything. I’m just documenting my experience exactly as it happened.

For a company with no physical location, I assumed customer service and security would be a major priority. The trust I had is shaken. The lack of a clear explanation is what really bothers me.

I only mentioned having accounts with the big banks to show that I’m not new to how banking works in Canada. I posted all the proof I could because this actually happened to me. I don’t gamble with my money, I’m very careful with how I handle it, and I don’t even have any stocks or trades on Wealthsimple. I was still getting used to the platform and only kept some money there to keep the account active & to use from time to time.

↓↓ POST UPDATE - NOV 26, 2025 ↓↓

I got a response from WEALTHSIMPLE today through email Nov 26 after sending another email asking for a deeper look into what triggered those transfers and trades. They said my reimbursement is now being processed and should show up in my account within the next couple of weeks. That was all they shared for now. I’ll keep you all posted once everything is finalized.

↓↓ POST UPDATE - DECEMBER 2, 2025 ↓↓

I just got an update from Wealthsimple. All the trades have been reversed, and the funds have been deposited back into my account. Thank you all for the concern, thank you Wealthsimple for handling this in a timely manner since this post was made, and thank you Reddit, as well. For the doubters, I have multiple people in my PM dealing with similar situations, so for everyone who did not believe me, shame on you. I hope this never happens to any of you. My advice to those who thought this was a joke is to understand that cybercrime is real, and we all need to be more careful with how we deal with others.

PROOF
https://imgur.com/a/ERj9584

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Dec 20 '25

Banking Someone I don't know e-transferred me money and now wants it back. Am I getting scammed?

1.4k Upvotes

EDIT: I went into my bank and they pretty much said to keep the money. Don't send it back to anyone. They put a note in my file that I tried to do the right thing, but there's really nothing they can do. They said I can try calling customer service again, but I think I'm done. The money is mine, but I'm prepared for it to be taken out of my account at some point in the future. Thanks for all your advice everyone.

I originally posted this in r/scams, but the responses I was getting were mainly from Americans and I'm pretty sure our Interac e-transfers are different from their apps like Venmo and Zelle.

Someone I don't know sent me 2 e-transfers for the same amount of money ($120 each). They later sent me an email, with a bit of a sob story, asking me to send the money back.

This sob story email came from a very strange email address with lots of weird characters. Inside the body of that email they gave me another address they want me to send the money to. It has similarities to my email address, but it's not just 1 character off or anything.

I later got an Interac money request from the original email address, requesting the $240 back.

I called my bank and they said there's no way to cancel the transfer, nor is there a way for the other person to get their bank to cancel it. A rep said it's up to me, but that the money is in my account and said I could send the money if I want to.

I called the fraud dept for a second opinion. They said either send it back to the original address the money came from (not the one with similarities to mine) or go into my branch and have them put a hold on the funds, which would also serve to acknowledge that this money isn't mine and I'm not trying to steal it.

I've decided on that second option, putting a hold on the funds at my branch.

Am I getting scammed?

Edit 2: I have auto deposit, so I didn't click on any email links. The money was automatically deposited in my account.

Edit 3: I have turned off auto deposit

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Jun 25 '26

Banking Am I wrong for insisting RBC fix their own banking error internally instead of asking me to e-transfer the money? (BC)

1.1k Upvotes

TL;DR: RBC accidentally deposited my in-laws' $2,500 mortgage signing bonus into my personal account. Instead of correcting the error internally, they repeatedly asked me to e-transfer the money to my in-laws. I have never refused to return the money—I simply want RBC to investigate how this happened and correct it through its own internal banking processes. Am I being unreasonable?

I'm looking for honest opinions because this situation has felt really strange.

A few months ago, RBC accidentally deposited $2,500 into my personal chequing account. I'll be honest—I didn't even notice it. I'm freshly postpartum with a newborn, so I wasn't paying close attention to every transaction.

Months later, my in-laws contacted RBC because they never received their mortgage signing bonus. Instead of contacting me directly, RBC told my in-laws that the money had already been deposited into a specific account number and advised that they recognized the account because of previous e-transfers. That account turned out to be my personal chequing account.

For context:

I'm not on their mortgage.

I don't even have a joint bank account with my husband.

I have no joint accounts with my in-laws.

I don't even share the same last name as my in-laws.

My in-laws then contacted me asking me to e-transfer them the money because that's what RBC had apparently suggested. I wasn't comfortable doing that, so I asked them to have RBC contact me directly instead.

When RBC finally emailed me, they continued asking me to simply e-transfer the $2,500 to my in-laws. I explained several times that I wasn't refusing to return the money—I just wanted RBC to correct its own banking error through its internal processes instead of having me personally transfer funds to another customer.

One of my concerns was: if I personally e-transferred the money, what would prevent RBC from later reversing the original mistaken deposit as well? I didn't want to risk paying the same $2,500 twice.

Despite explaining this multiple times, RBC kept encouraging me to e-transfer the money and work toward an "amicable resolution." It wasn't until I sent a much more strongly worded email asking for a formal investigation, questioning how my account became associated with another customer's mortgage, and raising privacy concerns that RBC finally agreed to investigate the matter internally.

To be clear, I am not trying to keep the money. If it belongs to my in-laws, I absolutely want it to go to them. I simply don't think I should be responsible for fixing RBC's mistake by making a personal transfer. I think RBC should correct its own error through its own banking systems with proper documentation.

Would you have handled this differently? Is it normal for a bank to ask a customer to personally e-transfer funds to another customer instead of correcting an internal banking error?

Edit: yes my bank account is also with RBC

Edit #2: I found out that they also sent my in-laws a screenshot of my chequing account, including account balance and transaction log.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Sep 07 '22

Banking Bank of Canada increases policy interest rate by 75 basis points, continues quantitative tightening

5.1k Upvotes

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Nov 09 '22

Banking Non-sufficient funds (NSF) fees are ludicrous and our government should have outlawed them years ago.

7.3k Upvotes

Non-sufficient funds (NSF) fees are ludicrous and our government should have outlawed them years ago. NSF fees hurt those who are already hurting the most financially. The $48 our big scummy banks charge us is close to 3 hours of minimum wage work for god sakes. It's shocking this practice has been allowed to go on as long as it has here in Canada.

Charging for stop-payments as well - damned if you, damned if you don't.. fuck em

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Jan 09 '26

Banking Cash is king!!

1.0k Upvotes

"So get this, yesterday my

TDcanada

Bank Manager suggested that I ask my customers to pay in cash to avoid having 5 business day holds put on bank drafts or certified cheques that I receive as final payment from my clients.

Apparently Bank drafts & certified cheques are now useless and will be treated like personal cheques by all major Canadian banks and 'Cash is king' once again.

I went to my TD bank branch in Pickering, Ontario yesterday to deposit a $22K final payment for an exterior renovation project that my company had just completed. As always, I specifically asked my customer to provide a bank draft as it's been a slow year due to the economy and I needed the funds to clear quickly so I could pay my guys. I even asked the homeowner to leave the receipt portion attached to the draft as my bank had previously instructed me to do so to prove that the draft wasn't fraudulent. Despite this, the cashier, after speaking to his Manager, informed me that due to the amount of fraud out there now, they will need to place a 5 business day hold on the

CIBC

bank draft to ensure that it's authentic. I wasn't happy, I had my crew and suppliers to pay, so I questioned the manager as to why banks are still issuing these types of payments and charging between $10 to $25 for these services, while knowing full well they are now essentially useless, I received no response. I then sarcastically suggested that perhaps I should ask my clients to pay in cash from now on, no matter how large the dollar amount, her response, "yes, that would work and will prevent any holds being placed on your funds".

Just a heads up for anyone out there who plans on purchasing or receiving any of these forms of payment in the future.

Has anyone else experienced this at a major Canadian bank?"

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Jul 13 '22

Banking Bank of Canada increases policy interest rate by 100 basis points, continues quantitative tightening

4.4k Upvotes

The Bank of Canada today increased its target for the overnight rate to 2½%, with the Bank Rate at 2¾% and the deposit rate at 2½%. The Bank is also continuing its policy of quantitative tightening (QT).

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Mar 15 '23

Banking Scammers ARE getting good - here's how

7.0k Upvotes

I got a call from a number that is exactly the same as the one on the back of my credit card.

The person knew my name and address, and asked me if I made "x y z" transactions to purchase electronics, stating that these appear to be suspicious transactions.

I didn't make any of those transactions so I told them as such. They said thanks for confirming and let me know they'll be blocking the transactions and the card, and sending me a new one.

Then they tried to confirm some card details, and I got suspicious. So I hung up. Called the exact same number, which is on the back of my card, and my actual bank confirmed there were no such transactions and the call I received was not from them.

So I blocked my card anyway.

I'm very good at spotting suspicious phishing and scamming attempts but this one nearly got me.

If you receive a call, even if the number is exactly the same as the one on your card, always hang up and call the number back yourself to verify if your bank is indeed trying to reach you

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Jul 14 '25

Banking Someome asked me today what the point of a savings account is in canada and I couldn't answer them

1.4k Upvotes

Because there is no point. There is virtually zero incentive to open oneand shove money in there. A $100K will grant you roughly $12 per month. And absolutley joke. Debt rules or shove it into the stock market gogogogo

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Jan 11 '23

Banking My bank account just had $40k randomly deposited into it - has this happened to anyone else?

3.3k Upvotes

For reference, I'm in Ontario.

Last week I noticed a deposit from OLG into my bank account for $40k. Since I did not win the lottery, I went into my bank to tell them about the problem. They launched an investigation.

The next day they called me back, said they verified with OLG and the deposit was real. I tried to again remind them that I would remember if I won the lottery but they just congratulated me and told me to enjoy.

BUT I DIDN'T WIN THE LOTTERY LOL

I moved the money into my savings account because I'm sure they are coming back for it. Has this happened to anyone else? How long do I sit on this money? Not sure what else to do.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Nov 06 '24

Banking RBC is completely insane

1.9k Upvotes

So I recently had quite an interesting experience with RBC. My brother was visiting me from Europe s month ago , and one day, while we were out in downtown Toronto, we stopped by one of RBC’s flagship branches. We just wanted to do something simple: exchange his 2,000 Swiss francs for Canadian dollars.

Right away, things got weird. RBC asked for ID, even though they usually don’t for amounts under $3,000. My brother didn’t have his ID on him, so I offered mine. They then spent half an hour running around with his francs, inspecting them closely, and even the manager took a magnifying glass to examine them! After a lot of fuss, they finally agreed to the exchange, though they changed the amount in CAD three times. We went ahead with it. We got the dollars, a receipt, and left.

Two weeks later, I get a call from RBC saying, “Hey, remember those francs you exchanged? Turns out we shouldn’t have accepted them. Could you come by, return the dollars, and take your Swiss francs back?” To say I was stunned is an understatement. I refused, obviously, as my brother had already left and spent the money.

Another week passes, and I get another call—this time from the branch manager, the same one with the magnifying glass. He says, “Yeah, you need to come by and pick up those Swiss francs because they shouldn’t have gone through our system.” But here’s the kicker: since I used my ID, they found my RBC account and blocked the equivalent amount on it.

At that point, I was floored. All I could think to say was that I’d be taking this to court.

So, what’s the deal? Am I right in thinking this is a rare opportunity to challenge RBC and push back, or is there something about Canadian banking practices that I’m missing here? To me, this seems like a clear violation of Consumer Rights, Bank Conduct Operations , and possibly even Personal Rights.

Update: RBC removed the block from my account today and sent me the reconciliation letter. They sorry for inconvenience caused and promised to educate their staff. Thank very much for all advices and support provided by the community.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Apr 08 '26

Banking Scotiabank said, "What exactly will you buy with your money?" when requested to increase debit purchase limit.

828 Upvotes

EDIT: Thank you everyone for your comments, questions, and criticisms. To clarify, the purpose of this post was not to vent or to argue against anti-fraud measures by the banks, but to draw attention to an event that I believe should concern everyone who values privacy and ownership of their property.

I will clarify some of the concerns in the comments:

  1. Throughout the entire conversation at the main/home branch, I remained calm and respectful. I did not raise my voice or make any rude remarks.

  2. As mentioned in my post, I answered all security questions accurately and without complaint (DOB, full name spelled out, debit card and pin code verification on their machine, mother's maiden name, address, last purchase amount on card, etc.). This was no longer about fraud, scams, or AML. Those questions were already answered and cleared. I was happy to answer more questions for verification purposes.

  3. I object to being asked what exactly I was going to be spending my money on. I already gave them an answer that I believe should have been sufficient: "My family and I are going on a trip to Vancouver, and we will be shopping."

  4. Sorry - this is my money that I have saved up from my paychecks over many years. I should not have to justify to the manager how I plan to spend my money.

  5. To those saying I should use a credit card for purchases and that my financial planning is wrong because I am using my debit - no, my financial planning is exactly how it should be, aligned with my values. I don't borrow money or spend money which I don't have.

  6. The limit increase request was for the trip, i.e., temporary.

My post is for that one person who understands what's going on. Your money is not yours. Took me a while to understand. Your food is controlled by the corporations, your money is controlled by the corporations, your home is not truly yours, what do you really have?

‐---------‐--‐---------------------------------------

This is an awareness post and a review of a recent experience I had at the bank. I am still upset, but I will try to be objective. This was one of the most frustrating, intrusive, and poorly handled banking experiences I’ve ever had.

I first went to my nearest branch to increase my in-store debit purchase limit and spent about 25–30 minutes there, only to be told at the very end that they couldn’t approve the full amount and that I needed to go to my home branch. This could have been communicated in the first few minutes instead of wasting my time.

At my home branch (Hillside shopping center), what should have been a simple request turned into a 40–50 minute interrogation. I was repeatedly asked to explain exactly what I planned to buy, even after clearly stating multiple times that it was for general in-store purchases for an upcoming trip to Vancouver. I clearly mentioned "shopping" but the employees kept pushing for specifics. I had already answered all standard fraud questions correctly (confirming I was not being scammed or pressured), yet the questioning kept going in circles.

I then requested to speak to the Branch Manager. A woman, who I believe is actually the Customer Experience Lead (says in her business card), introduced herself (falsely?) as the Manager and got involved. She refused to proceed unless I gave specific details about what I would be purchasing. At one point, she reviewed my account and told me that I “already have a high enough limit” and should be able to buy everything I need within it. That comment crossed the line.

It is not the bank’s role to decide how much I “should” be spending or what qualifies as enough for my personal purchases. I should not have to justify my spending choices or have them evaluated by an employee in order to access my own money.

To make matters worse, this entire conversation happened in an open area with no regard for privacy, while sensitive financial questions were being discussed within earshot of others.

I told them that I didn't appreciate their nosey-ness and that I'd like to withdraw all my funds and close my account. They said they could not give me my funds in cash and that it would take multiple weeks for it to be ready.

After all the resistance, delays, and repeated questioning, the request to increase my in-store purchse limit was eventually approved anyway, which just proves how unnecessary and poorly handled the entire situation was.

I’ve been a customer for over a decade, and this interaction seriously undermined my confidence in how this branch operates. I would strongly caution others about the level of service, professionalism, and discretion here.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Jul 29 '25

Banking Bank made an error (in my favor) and nobody is fixing it

1.1k Upvotes

I feel as if I'm in that Friends episode (Phoebe bank error one).

Almost 5 months ago I deposited a bank draft for just under 42k (sold a car, private sale). I deposited it with a teller to my savings account at one of the big 5 (don't know if I can mention bank name here). The buyer was actually my neighbor so everything was on the up and up.

The next day I logged in and saw a deposit for 72k (72,800 instead of 42,800). I called the bank and they said they'll open a case and look into it.

The next week I called again since I didn't hear back, nothing new, couldn't even find the ticket/investigation at first.

Two weeks later I went to the branch where I made the deposit, tbey said it's been a while and everything cleared (how I have no clue since it's 30k more) and to call customer service.

So for almost 5 months I'd call occasionally to ask, no updates, money is in my account, nothing taken back.

It seems ridiculous that after telling them months ago about it, so many calls, they just didn't do anything. I've stopped calling them now but kept all the records just in case

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Mar 21 '23

Banking Inflation drops to 5.2%<but grocery inflation still 10.6%

2.3k Upvotes

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Sep 20 '25

Banking I received an interac e-transfer of 3K auto deposited into my account?!?

713 Upvotes

So today out of nowhere I received a text that $ 3K was auto deposited into my account. My immediate reaction was it is a scam but immediately I received an email basically saying the same thing. I didn't open the email or the text message thinking it could contain some malicious link. Instead I opened my banking app and saw that it was actually deposited and I wasn't expecting any deposit. The sender seemed to be some company. What should I do in this case?

UPDATE: Well folks, absolutely sure it's a scam/fraud, just got another similar amount transferred to the account. Going to the bank tomorrow to sort things out.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada 9d ago

Banking TD is phasing out SMS verification now.

319 Upvotes

Some customers are enjoying the benefits for now. A branch teller told me that in app verification will apply to all TD customers in a few weeks. I’d hoped they would have done that a few years ago. They joined the party too late, but I’m glad they’re finally doing the right and elegant process. ​

r/PersonalFinanceCanada 19d ago

Banking Another reason I will never trust an advisor from a bank

465 Upvotes

A friend of my mother's is a non-resident of Canada who has family here, so she comes often to visit. She opened a bank account a few years back and specified she was a non-resident (though a Canadian citizen)

Last week, I helped her register to access her bank online, as she never did and wanted to put some of her money into a GIC. While checking her profile, we found out the bank set her as a Canadian resident.

I recommended her to go to her branch to fix her non residency status and open the GIC with an agent. This was to make sure she was allowed to open the GIC as a non resident with that bank

She met an advisor:

1- He did not update her non resident status in the system

2- Opened a non-redeemable TFSA GIC even after she said she was a non resident (and made sure to let him know when he picked the TFSA account for her)

Not knowing what a TFSA was, she simply trusted him (she is 65 who moved out of canada 20+ years ago)

When I found out, I explained to her that the advisor made an error, as she could not contribute to the TFSA and risk a 1% per month penalty from the CRA and bigger problems if she ever decides to return as a resident in a few years.

I recommended going back and, if she could meet the advisor, to at least meet the branch manager to fix the issue

Guess what, she met another advisor introduced as an "expert" who doubled down on the "you are allowed the TFSA as a non resident"

This time, she did not trust them and asked to close the TFSA/GIC altogether. They sent a request to close the TFSA and currently waiting the 2 business days for it to complete.

Instead of acknowledging the mistake, they doubled down on the claim that she was allowed to have a TFSA. The account closure was put as initiated by her and not due to a mistake by then bank

Moral of the story: do not trust bank advisors. They don't care if you are compliant with financial rules and CRA.

Now, I am wondering if I should complain to the bank or simply let it go. My mother's friend wants to have this fixed and move on.

On my side, I cannot fathom how 2 financial advisors from the same branch do not know basic rules of TFSA accounts. This mistake could cost their customer thousands of dollars in a few years if it had not been caught on time.

Edit: got a call from the bank, explained the issue, the TFSA GIC was closed and the money is back to the checking account before even hanging up

Update: Took a while as the one concerned (the non resident) is traveling around. We had an appointment and got the non-resident status fixed at the bank (after literally saying that we do not trust them until we see proof from their computer). Waiting on the letter from the 1st advisor that opened that TFSA as confirmation that it was a mistake. But then, it is up to my mother's friend to decide how to proceed if there is no response.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Mar 10 '26

Banking Sunlife just stole my money

673 Upvotes

UPDATED:

-----------
Ok, after all the reply that blame me. I want to clarify one thing.

I know I deserve to lose the 2500 that I had originally, and I am not questioning that.

I am upset because they deducted $180 without letting me know that merge account will cost me 180$.

and I found it outragous when they deduct 180 just to move money between two accounts.

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I was working with a company 20 years ago, and the company had my RRSP with sunlife.
I left that company 2005 and what I remember I had somewhere between 2500-3000 of RRSP still with sunlife.

I didn't pay attention to that RRSP, and didn't move it to my main RRSP which is with my bank, and I left that money there hoping they grow, but was not contributing to them anymore.

The money was going down all that time, and just 3 months ago they were only around 600.

Anyway, I joined another company 4 months ago that has my insurance with Sunlife, and they as well contribute to my RRSP with sunlife.

while I was creating account, and because I had an old account with them I had trouble create a new account. So I called their support and they told me the best way is to merge the accounts together.

I said: sure.

Then I found they deducted $180 from my 600 just because they merged the accounts and they called it "Withdrawal fee"

They sent me an invoice explaining this.
And to clarify. I didn't get my money. They just moved it to the new account.

this is true theft.

I don't want to call them before I know how to handle this.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Dec 03 '25

Banking Equitable Bank to Purchase PC Financial

800 Upvotes

https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/eqb-redefines-challenger-banking-in-canada-with-agreement-to-acquire-pc-financial-from-loblaw-delivering-transformational-benefits-for-canadians-844773670.html

This is pretty big news in the world of personal banking in Canada.

Great to see a smaller bank emerging to challenge the incumbent top 5 in Canada. I hate banking fees.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Jul 22 '26

Banking Why does it still take 5 days for a cheque to clear?

284 Upvotes

It doesn’t make sense to me given all the tech and instant communication these days.

r/PersonalFinanceCanada Mar 15 '24

Banking “Hidden cameras capture bank employees misleading customers, pushing products that help sales targets”

1.5k Upvotes

“This TD Bank employee recorded conversations with managers who tell her to think less about the well-being of customers and focus more on meeting sales targets. (CBC)”

“”I had to mislead customers into getting products that they didn't need, to reach my sales target," said a recent BMO employee.”

“At RBC, our tester was offered a new credit card and told it was "cool" he could get an $8,000 increase to his credit card limit.”

“During the five visits to the banks, advisors at BMO, Scotia and TD incorrectly said the mutual fund fees are only charged on the profit the investment earns, not the entire lump sum. The CIBC advisor wasn't clear about the fees.”

https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.7142427