Bank Account Transfer on Employment
So, I'm fairly new to the industry, but wondering if this is normal (legal?)
I'm transferring to a new bank (Big 5 Canada), and they want me to transfer all of my existing bank accounts over to them. IE, direct deposit of paycheque to their retail branch, transfer of my existing GICs, RRSPs stocks and other holdings to their platform.
Is this normal? Can I get around this somehow?
I have no desire to do this at all as I have a 20+ year relationship with my existing primary bank, great service, accounts with "grandfathered" fees and terms, and good service reps who give me freebies and preferential rates. I've also got multiple accounts at 3 other banks as well, so executing all these transfers will be a pain in the ass. Plus I dont' want to have all my holdings at a single bank in case something happens - better to be diversified and covered by CDIC (Canadian FDIC equivalent).
Currently, I just have trading account statements sent to my existing employer from each of the accounts I hold, and these are reviewed for compliance purposes, without needing to actually transfer holdings.





This sounds very dubious....
This sounds very dubious.... I'd give them a call and say you dont want to this and see no reason to. I know someone working at a big London based retail/investment bank and he didn't have to transfer his funds over into one of their accounts!
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It is the industry standard
It is the industry standard to transfer all your trading accounts, although, there are plenty of exceptions. You would have to provide statements and get your manager's and compliance approval, but I guess it depends on how stringent your bank is. Requiring you to transfer all of your deposit accounts seems over the top though. It may be role dependent at that point.
The bank should have a list
The bank should have a list of approved companies at which you can hold your funds and transact trades. I know people who work at banks with large retail branches and they aren't required to switch over.
CompBanker