Vanguard Makes Its Move
You knew it was coming: Vanguard Canada has dramatically reduced the fees on 11 of its ETFs. The announcement came this week, and it affects some of the most popular funds in the Vanguard lineup: ETF [...]
Ask the Spud: Should I Use Global Bonds?
Q: I was surprised to see a Vanguard infographic pointing out that international [non-US] bonds are the largest asset class in the world. Do you have any thoughts on why Canadians have not embraced in [...]
ShareOwner: Canada’s First ETF Robo-Advisor
Back in February I wrote about the rise of robo-advisors, the online services that allow you to build an ETF portfolio that’s maintained by a computer. These services are already operating in the US, [...]
Vanguard Goes Global With New ETFs
[Note: This blog post was updated several hours after it was published, as new information became available.] The Vanguard Total International Stock ETF (VXUS) has long been part of my Complete Couch [...]
How Low Can ETF Fees Go?
Less than a month ago, BlackRock aggressively cut the management fees on several of its core ETFs. The boldest move was to slash the fee to just 0.05% on its broad-market Canadian equity fund, the iSh [...]
iShares Cuts Its Fees to the Core
That sound you just heard was the latest shot fired in Canada’s ETF price war. iShares has just slashed the management fees on several popular equity and bond ETFs—and just like that the country’s old [...]
How Pension Funds Think About Bonds
With the bond market up about 3% year-to-date, the bears have been growling less than usual. But I still get a steady stream of email from readers who think bonds “make no sense anymore” because they [...]
Why Currency Hedging Doesn’t Work in Canada
In the last two years, Canadian ETF providers have finally launched US and international equity ETFs that do away with currency hedging. Yet the strategy remains hugely popular: the hedged versions of [...]
Currency Exposure in International Equity ETFs
My last post explained that Canadian investors are exposed to currency risk any time they hold US equities, even if their holding is an ETF or mutual fund that trades in Canadian dollars. In my exampl [...]
Norbert’s Gambit: The Complete Guide
[This post was updated in February 2015 to reflect recent changes at some brokerages.] Norbert’s gambit remains the least expensive way to convert Canadian and US dollars at a discount brokerage. For [...]
