Step-by-step: How to invest with Wealthsimple (Part 2)

Let's Talk About Money

5 years ago

In Part 1 of the “How to invest with Wealthsimple” guide, I went over first 2 steps of the sign up process: what types of personal information you need to provide, and the types of questions asked in the risk assessment process. In Part 2 of the guide, I’ll show you the different types of accounts you can register for, and how to actually add funds to your Wealthsimple account.

Sign up now to start investing with Wealthsimple and get a special $50 bonus with your initial deposit!

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Step 3: Wealthsimple account types

Step 3 of the 4 step process provides you with options on opening different types of registered and non-registered accounts, as well as the option to transfer from registered accounts at other banks. This step is important if you already have TFSA and RRSP investments that you want to transfer over, without affecting contribution room or taxable income.

Start by selecting to start a fresh investment account with Wealthsimple, or to transfer from an existing registered account:

Transfer an existing account

If you are transferring from an existing registered account, and transferring over $5,000, Wealthsimple will cover your bank transfer fees (excluding Deferred Sales Charge (DSC) fees or other trading fees). Select the type of account you are transferring, and follow the account information questions that follow.

Opening a fresh account

If you are opening an account from scratch, Wealthsimple provides many options. You can open:

Savings accounts
Registered accounts (TFSA, RRSP, RESP)
Personal non-registered accounts
Joint non-registered accounts

While I opened a Savings account, I found that Wealthsimple is not able to match the interest rates that EQBank provide, so I won’t go into the Savings account very much. In this step you can name your account whatever you like.

The last step before opening the selected account types is to review the agreement that Wealthsimple provides. Reading the small print can be annoying, but I would suggest reading as much as you can.

Step 4: Funding your Wealthsimple account

Step 4 is the most important step: how you plan to fund your account! This will cover how to link to your bank account, and how to setup a re-occurring or 1 time deposit. A small deposit will be necessary to start with Wealthsimple. I started with $50.

If you initially deposit at least $500, you can receive a special $50 bonus when using this link!

Link your bank account

As part of the Wealthsimple signup process, you’ll need to make a first deposit, which will link your bank account. Start by clicking the “Select an account” drop down from the “From” menu:

Now select the “Add a new bank account” option:

Select which bank to connected to to fund your Wealthsimple account. I do my day-to-day banking with Tangerine (which I talk about here, here and here), so that is the process I’ll show here:

Wealthsimple uses the secure service “Plaid” to link to your bank account, which is used by many financial institutions.

Provide your login information as you would to login to your banking platform yourself:

Your bank will provide notification after it is able to successfully connect to your bank:

If you have numerous accounts with your bank, you’ll now get to select which account you would like to connect. You can only select from chequing and savings accounts. Check the box beside the appropriate account and select continue:

Create a deposit

An account has now successfully linked! You can select this account from the “From” menu, and select which Wealthsimple account that you’d like to deposit into. Select the amount to transfer, as well as whether you would like to make this re-occurring or a one-time transfer:

Clicking “Submit deposit” will show you a final check screen, where you can confirm or cancel the transaction:

Select “Confirm this deposit” or cancel! It will take 1 – 2 business days for the transfer to complete. When completed, it will show up in your account as soon as it does:

You have now completed your registration with Wealthsimple! You can now transfer additional funds in the exact same way if you would like to transfer to other accounts, or more funds to the same account.

Wealthsimple success

You’re now ready to get started with the Wealthsimple Robo Advisor. If you want to know more about the cost and investment types that Wealthsimple provides, see my review with all of the relevant information.