Questrade Canada: Major Pros and Cons

Questrade is a Canadian broker that is quite popular in Canada (and the US) but mostly unknown internationally. The main reason is the restrictions the broker imposes on non-Canadian users. However, some beginners in Forex trading still consider Questrade a viable choice when looking for a broker. That’s why we’ve decided to review the most prominent advantages and disadvantages of the broker to help you make a decision.

Overview

The broker is part of the wider Questrade Group that was founded in 1999 and has earned quite a reputation since then. The company is widely considered very reliable and well-regulated by Canadian financial institutions. But there are lots of limits and restrictions for non-Canadians, and transactions may take up to 3 business days. Besides, there are lots of negative reviews on the brokerage services provided by Questrade Canada, so its reliability is not that certain.

Pros

While the broker is not too useful for non-Canadian users, it certainly has a couple of attractive features that can make you at least consider it as a viable option:

•         Reliability. As said before, Questrade is known for its very serious approach to security, and it’s supervised by both CIPF and IIROC. The former guarantees the users a possible compensation of 1 million Canadian dollars, and the company itself can remunerate you with 10 million CAD in case some of your funds go missing.
•         Versatility. Questrade provides you with a surprisingly wide range of instruments to use including 110 currency pairs, CFDs on shares and indices, ETFs, and various shares and bonds on TSX, NASDAQ, and NYSE. The broker offers you about a dozed of platforms for trading and a variety of specialized accounts (there is a demo account, too).

Cons

However, the broker seems to have a couple of serious disadvantages, too — at least for users not from Canada or the US. The most annoying cons are:

•         Questionable trading conditions. The only supported currencies are USD and CAD, the leverage is capped at 1:20, and the commissions are relatively high for Forex traders. In addition, MetaTrader 4/5 is not supported, and you won’t be able to use it.
•         Too much security. You can’t deposit or withdraw money without verification, and the broker requires much financial information to sign up.
•         No 24/7 support. The customer support is available only for 12 hours 5 days a week.