Thinking of opening a high-interest savings account or purchasing GICs but aren’t sure which bank’s products will fit your needs? This review breaks down what EQ Bank has to offer, so you can decide if EQ Bank is the right fit for you.
Photo by Soroush Karimi on Unsplash
Online-only banks are increasingly popular due to their competitive, no-fee accounts, in concert with the increasing switch to digital spurred by COVID-19. With some of the most competitive savings and GIC accounts in the country, EQ Bank is helping lead the charge.
As an online-only financial institution, EQ Bank can offer more competitive accounts because it doesn’t have the cost of managing brick-and-mortar branches. They can pass the savings to you in the form of higher interest rates and no-fee everyday service fees.
| Account type | Interest rate | Perks |
| High-interest account Get this rate* |
1.25% |
|
| TFSA account Get this rate* |
1.25% |
|
| RSP Savings Account Get this rate* |
1.25% |
|
| EQ GICs View all rates* |
1.50% - 2.40% |
|
Get more information about EQ Bank*
EQ’s high-interest savings account, the Savings Plus Account, earns a very competitive interest rate, has $0 everyday banking fees and comes packed with perks.
When you open this account, your balance earns 1.25% interest without any promotions or tiers to manage. That’s great when compared to the typical 0.05% offered by many of the big banks.
Features include the ability to deposit cheques and pay bills with the account, which means it can function like a hybrid chequing/savings account. However, there is no debit card available, so to access cash you’ll have to transfer money to another account of yours with a debit card. Luckily, you’ll get free Interac e-Transfers, so you can move money between accounts quickly and easily. As for larger amounts (up to $100,000), no-fee electronic funds transfers move your money in five business days. If you’re looking to send money internationally, EQ Bank has you covered with inexpensive international money transfers through Wise.
As a non-registered savings account, this is a great place to safely store some extra cash for emergencies or for short- or medium-term savings. If you’re saving with a family member or friends, you can open a joint account with up to two other people.
Open the EQ Bank Savings Plus Account *
With the highest interest rate in the country for a savings account (1.25%), plus no annual account fees, minimum balance requirements or withdrawal fees, EQ Bank’s TFSA Savings Account is hard to beat as a low-risk way to grow your money tax-free. Heads up, though: EQ Bank is lowering the rate to a still-competitive 1.25% rate on May 26, 2021.
To open an EQ Bank TFSA savings account, you’ll have to open a Savings Plus Bank account first. When you want to fund the TFSA, you must first deposit your money in the EQ Savings Plus Account and then transfer it to the TFSA (or you can transfer funds directly from a TFSA held at another financial institution). The same process follows for withdrawals; or you can move money using an electronic funds transfer. This TFSA account doesn’t have joint account options, and each EQ Bank customer can only have one TFSA account.
This registered TFSA account allows you to grow your money tax-free without having to pay tax on gains when you withdraw funds from the account. The amount you’re allowed to contribute changes annually, so check with the CRA, but when you withdraw TFSA funds you regain that contribution room starting the next calendar year.
Open the EQ Bank TFSA Savings Account *
RRSPs are registered accounts designed to help you save for retirement. Growth on RRSP contributions are not taxed in the year it’s earned, but rather when you withdraw, which, the logic goes, will be after you retire and therefore in a much lower tax bracket. Also, you can borrow up to $35,000 from your RRSP to help fund your first home purchase as part of the First-Time Home Buyers Plan.
EQ’s RSP is just about the safest place to grow your funds. At 1.25% EQ’s RSP Savings Account currently earns the highest interest rate for a registered savings account in Canada, but, like the TFSA, it drops to 1.25% on May 26, 2021. (It’s important to consider that while your deposits are safe in an RRSP savings account, earning a rate of return that’s less than inflation means your money is losing value in real terms. If you choose the EQ Bank RSP Savings Account, you may want to have a higher-earning RRSP account to complement this one.)
As with its TFSA, you’ll need to open a regular savings account with EQ Bank in order to open an EQ Bank RSP Savings Account. The RSP Savings Account doesn’t offer joint account options.
Open the EQ Bank RSP Savings Account *
EQ Bank’s Guaranteed Investment Certificate (GIC) rates are among the best in the industry—the 3-month GIC rate is currently at 1.50%—but only people who’ve opened an EQ Bank Savings Plus Account can take advantage.
Aside from that one condition, EQ Bank GICs* are very accessible, since the minimum amount is just $100 per GIC (the maximum amount is $100,000). You can buy up to 20 GICs, choosing in an array of term lengths (the minimum is 3 months, the maximum is 10 years), so you can choose one that suits the timeframe of your investing goals, or put together several to create a GIC ladder.
It’s important to note that EQ Bank’s GICs are non-redeemable, which means you’ll pay a penalty if you cash them out before their maturity date.
Wondering how much you’ll earn by purchasing an EQ Bank GIC? Check out the free tool on their site that calculates that amount for you based on the term (and interest rate) you choose, as well as your investment goal’s time horizon.
Get more information about EQ Bank GICs*
EQ Bank is one of the newer players on the Canadian banking scene (they opened in January 2016), but their parent company, Equitable Bank, is the ninth-largest domestic bank in Canada, and has provided financial services since 1970—so this digital bank is backed by decades of experience. And any money that is deposited into EQ Bank, up to $100,000 in Canadian funds, is insured by the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC).
In a word: Yes. EQ Bank is owned by Equitable Bank, the ninth-largest domestic bank in Canada. EQ is trusted to manage over $35 billion in assets and has more than 900 employees. Deposits in EQ Bank are insured by the CDIC. Since CDIC was launched, no Canadian has lost $1 due to a bank closure. And finally, EQ Bank has comprehensive online security with two-step verification, the ability to set personalized alerts to notify you of larger transactions, the latest encryption technology standards with PCI-DDS and SOC2 compliance as well as HTTPS 256-bit and AES-256 encryption.
After you open an account with EQ Bank, you set up a link to a conventional bank account that you already hold and use Interac e-Transfer or an Electronic Funds Transfer to deposit money from that linked account into your EQ Bank high-interest savings account (the Savings Plus Account). You can also deposit cheques directly into your EQ Bank account using their mobile app.
From there, you can simply allow those funds to earn interest; purchase GICs; use your EQ Bank account to fund international money transfers; pay bills; or fund your RRSPs or TFSAs held at EQ.
You can also do the reverse—transfer any money you need out from your EQ Bank account to your linked account.
Aside from serving as a high interest savings account, EQ’s Savings Plus Account effectively acts as a conduit account and all transfers within EQ Bank or to other banks can be done through the Savings Plus Account. For example, if you want to contribute $5,000 from another bank to your EQ Bank TFSA Savings Account, you can transfer the money to your EQ Savings Plus Account then do an internal transfer to the TFSA Savings Account.
If you hold an RRSP or TFSA GIC with EQ Banks, once the GIC reaches maturity, your money will be deposited in either EQ’s RSP Savings Account or TFSA Savings Account respectively. This is to ensure your contribution room isn’t affected once your GIC reaches maturity.
To facilitate international money transfers for its clients, EQ Bank has partnered with Wise, a third-party money transfer platform. Everything is integrated, so you can easily create a Wise account through your EQ Bank online banking account or mobile app, provided you have an EQ Bank Savings Plus Account*. And you can check the status of your transfer on the International Transfer dashboard on the site or the app.
Even though EQ Bank works with a third party to process transfers, the bank is committed to low pricing and pricing transparency. You’re only charged once, and the exchange rate is calculated on what’s called the real exchange rate, which you can look up on a calculator on the EQ site. There is no markup or commission charged on this rate. Based on these factors, EQ Bank says, their international money transfers are up to “8 times cheaper than other banks.”
There are some restrictions. Currently, you can send a maximum of $9,500 (CAD) per transaction every 24 hours, to your choice of 70 countries and regions in 32 currencies.
If EQ Bank’s high-interest savings account, GICs and international money transfers are tempting you, read on to find out what the requirements are to sign up for an account, as well as the process, which is quite straightforward.
Opening a Savings Plus Account* at EQ Bank is fairly simple; however, in order to sign up, you need to be a Canadian resident, be of the age of majority where you live, and have a Social Insurance Number (SIN). Unfortunately, Quebec residents aren’t able to bank with EQ Bank.
You will also need government-issued photo ID, and if that piece of ID doesn’t list your current address, you will have to provide a proof of address document, such as a recent utility bill or your most recent income tax assessment (a full list of options is posted on the EQ Bank site).
In addition, the account you plan to link to your EQ Bank account must be with an approved financial institution. Those include the Big Six Canadian banks, as well as several others, such as Tangerine, Laurentian and Vancity credit union. A full list of approved banks is available in the FAQ section of the EQ Bank site.
The first step when applying to open an EQ Bank account is to visit their website to start the process. Make sure you have your Social Insurance Number ready; it’s required information for anyone opening a bank account that earns interest.
To verify your identity, they will perform a soft credit check, which won’t affect your credit rating. If they’re not able to confirm your identity that way, you’ll need to visit a Canada Post outlet to verify that you are who you say you are. When you do so, you’ll be asked to show a piece of government-issued photo ID. If that ID doesn’t list your current address, you will also have to show a proof of address document, as well as what’s known as a Canada Post DSS number, which will be emailed to you.
Once everything is set up, you’ll need to connect your current bank account to EQ Bank to verify your identity and simplify money transfers. Your other account’s banking details are not shared with anyone, including EQ Bank, and the process is completely secure.
Get more information about EQ Bank*
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No joint accounts – always planning… never doing!
It is unfortunate that EQ doesn’t have joint accounts. We were going to transfer money several months ago, but due to no facility for a joint account, didn’t proceed.
Can you please provide an alternative option for Quebec residents since EQ Banking is not available for Quebec residents.
Hi Guys
It is much better for you to place your money in a mutual fund – much higher interest and you can get your money back at any time with 24 hr notice. I found EQB’s service terrible. They are trying to increase their liquidity by taking your money. Put your money elsewhere. There are better options.
It is inappropriate to compare a Savings account at EQ Bank with a Mutual Funds account at a regular bank. Savings account carries no risk and no fees. Mutual funds carry risk and the fees are generally around 2.5%. It is actually not appropriate to invest in mutual funds these days and EQ Bank does have a Joint Account. Simplify your life by:
1. Banking: Do all your banking at an online-only bank like EQ Bank, but maintain a cheap regular bank account for cash withdrawals
2. Investing: Invest your savings at a Robo advisor (like Nestwealth or Wealthsimple) if you need someone to hold your hand or go with QuestTrade or QTrade. After you Emergency Fund is funded contribute to the fullest in RRSPs, RESPs, TFSas and invest only using index-based ETFs
3. Credit Card: Have only one credit card that pays cash-back
Kim – comparing mutual funds to EQ’s HISA is like comparing apples to oranges. Mutual funds often come with high MERs (2-2.5%) that eat away at any return one may make, which is not guaranteed. EQ’s HISA on the other hand has no fees, so a person can easily calculate their return using 2% and this return is not as volatile. I can only assume you are a financial advisor or some other broker who makes money by selling people mutual funds. Btw, Balanced ETF Portfolios (VBAL and XBAL) are far better than mutual funds, since their MERs are often cheaper (VBAL = .25% and XBAL = .20%), which makes ROIs higher.
Sumar – completely agree!
Is there a minimum time the money has to be in your account to earn the 1.7% rate and is there a penalty or fee for withdrawing at any time.
Early redemption of GIC’s due to Compassionate Reasons.
Warning about EQ Bank
I checked with my different banks about early redemption of GIC’s for care and living expenses of this awful, terminal disease called Cancer.
Being terminally ill with Cancer means nothing to EQ Bank, and they will not redeem your GIC early.
My first reach out to all the banks was in June and the EQ Bank response was this:
“Thank you for being a valued customer at EQ Bank.
Sorry to read about your recent health concerns. For early GIC redemptions, customers would need to send us any details regarding their hardship in a cover letter or e-mail format to “[email protected]”. All GIC redemption requests are reviewed and determined by our management team. ”
Looked promising right?
They have finally (after many emails on my part, they tend to ignore a lot) 4 months later made their decision: “Our Management has reviewed your request for premature termination of your GIC, but unfortunately has declined your request.” They knew in advance they were going to deny my request!
So just a heads up for ANYONE, EQ Bank DOES NOT HAVE COMPASSION FOR DYING PEOPLE. Do not give them your money, because if you die sooner than expected, you will never see the money you put in their care. It is not as if I was asking for a loan or charity, THIS IS MY MONEY TO BEGIN WITH. I was prepared to pay an early redemption fee.
How sad and pathetic is a company that won’t allow you to redeem early for medications and living expenses when you are terminal. If they are in financial difficulty and just don’t have it, just be honest with people and let them know. Supposedly they are very well funded, so why won’t they let me have my money back to live on? Of all the banks I checked with they are the only ones who don’t care if you are dying or not, and will not early redeem! Their email address is [email protected] Please stay away from this bank!!
Do you have a similar situation with your bank, please post it so we know who to stay away from!
Stuart Martin
Something to keep in mind if jumping into this. Be very aware of the amounts of money you are transferring. If you are like me you have a reoccurring deposit transfer amount (from another bank) which is kept ON HOLD for a few days. Triple… quadruple check that none of the total amount funds you wish to transfer is on hold. Otherwise you will get an NSF. Rookie mistake I know, but hope to save someone the $45 Tangerine just charged me for my own money. 20 months of interest lost just in that little caricature action by Tangerine. Tangerine (Owned by Scotiabank now) sucks, big, big, big time! EQ Bank has great rates.
How can nobody even answer a damn email…chat doesnt work…and I have been on the Phone for 90 mins and counting…this is soo bad.I just need help cancelling a etransfer..(code 000014061410).
Terrible service I will be closing my account after I get my $1000 E-transfer back unreal
Perhaps the best interest rates around, but horrible customer service. I’ve tried to contact them by phone, but get put on hold indefinitely and eventually give up. I’ve been waiting a week for a reply to my email.
uhhhhh, yes they do offer tfsa’s and at 2.3%
Who wrote this article??
Thanks for letting us know. We will update this as soon as we can. Our goal is to have the most up-to-date information. We do our best to fact check all our content before it gets published and make updates regularly, but some things may get missed. We would like to remind our readers to do their own fact checking before making any personal finance decisions.
It’s very disappointing how EQ bank handles customer requests and complaints !!! EQ Bank business practices are very effective at ignoring customer needs by maintaining a reduced number of employees to answer phone calls.
In my particular case, I arranged on EQ bank website a funds transfer from another banking institution. A few minutes later I became aware that I incorrectly selected the bank where the funds were being withdrawn from. In order to reverse the banking transaction, l tried to stop the transfer in the website, but my efforts were futile as the option is disabled. Then I attempted to contact EQ Bank customer service four (4) times – holding on the phone 45 minutes to 1 hour each time – during the same day of setting up the funds transfer. The following day, after 1 Hour and 36 minutes, I was able to reach EQ bank, customer service agent Anmos. In the recorded conversation I was informed that EQ bank was not “capable” of helping me with the funds transfer reversal. Even after explaining to Anmos that l made all the possible efforts to contact customer service with my request the reversal of the previously noted transaction on the same day of arranging the procedure on the bank’s website, I was told that they could only reverse the transaction during the same day of placing the request!!!
As I requested to talk to a manager, Anmos said that a manager will CALL me within 48 hours of setting up my request…No call was received… An email from someone named HERMINIA was received 10 days later with no solution…
I had to pay a $45 NSF charge… thanks to the deceiving business practices of EQ bank…
EQ has the worst customer service and banking policies in Canada. They are only interested in hoarding your money, benefitting from it for days to a week before depositing the funds into your account so they earn interest instead of you. If you start a chat on a difficult issue they block you off the chat to force you to call and wait in line for your turn. They are the only bank in Canada who will hold your funds for a FULL 5 business days before you can use them, regardless if they receive the funds from your other bank on Day 1. This is not ETHICAL.
Hi there,
I am with EQ bank for almost two years now and so far I am quite happy with them. Although I did not have a real issue to be resolved yet and contacted them only to inquire general information, I do have the feeling that they are trying to improve customer service after a recent survey (i.e. mobile app was finally updated, response time in chat and email seem to be faster now). That being said, if you are looking for great customer service I would probably keep on looking.
However, if you are looking for great rates to safely park your emergency fund – I have not found a better bank so far (except for temporary promotion rates). This applies to the interest rate for the savings account (both single and joint!) as well as the international transfer rate that I started to make use of recently.
The latter I also compared to other online services such as Xe (i.e. not just ridiculously expensive banks) and while it was rather intransparent to me what part of the conversion costs are in a declared fee and what part are hidden in the conversion rate – the bottom line was that I paid about 20$ less for converting 5000CAD to EUR than with Xe.
In total I paid about 0.5%-0.6% for the conversion.
If you are looking to convert CAD to USD they now also offer a new USD account. However, the conversion rate there is about 1.5%. So this account is more useful to just keep USD that you might be earning without having to convert them to CAD. You also earn 1% interest on that account which is quite competitive (if not the best) for a USD account at a Canadian bank as well.
Cheers
I opened account with EQ Bank and the process was pretty easy (almost too easy). I opened a joint account and based on some of the comments I’m assuming this is a new feature.
I had no issues with customer service. I spoke to them twice via chat. I found their service to be no different than any other bank.
I’m only using EQ Bank for short term savings / emergency use. I have no plans to use them for my investments or day to day banking.
I wasn’t too keen on the way they implement external bank accounts to require you to enter your bank creds on their site. So instead I used my other bank account and set EQ Bank as an external bank account there and will initiate transfers from them instead.
As a bonus, they have email alerts for debits and credits. This is something that a LOT of other banks don’t offer.