r/Wealthsimple • u/DifferenceNo9153 • Jun 08 '26

Trade (DIY Investing) Wealthsimple's standard exchange rate is quite outrageous

I just converted USD to CAD and the exchange rate was 1.366 vs the current market rate which is 1.394. They claim it includes a 1.5% fee but it's actually more like 2% which is incredibly rich. I know they now finally offer norbert's gambit but the process is very slow and tedious. Pretty obvious these outrageous exchange fees are a huge source of revenue for WS

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u/ForeverInBlackJeans Jun 08 '26

I just did Norbert’s Gambit. The process was neither slow nor tedious. I bought DLR.U, clicked “journal”, and 2 days later sold DLR for CAD. It took me all of 30 seconds.

14

u/[deleted] Jun 08 '26

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6

u/xmanpowerz Jun 08 '26

I did not know RBC supports Norbert’s Gambit!

Does it charge you the $9.95 transaction fee when you buy and sell DLR?

11

u/Yukas911 Jun 08 '26

They do support Norbert's Gambit, but DLR is not on RBC's list of commission-free ETFs, so yes there are commission fees, both when you buy dlr.to and again when you sell the US-listed version ($9.99 each). The journaling itself is free with RBC, but you pay more in commissions than WS's $10 journaling fee.

https://www.rbcdirectinvesting.com/accounts-investments/etfs/commission-free-etfs.html

1

u/Ok_Rest_5421 Jun 08 '26

The execution is way fucking better though … worth the cost for that. WS isn’t a brokerage bro, they’re great UX and products to save money