5-Year GIC - CDIC coverage

[marketwatcher]

Hi guys - i have a question regarding CDIC and wish someone could help me out here. If I have my amount is greater than 200,000 with the same credit union or bank, will this be fully covered by CDIC or it's only covered for $100,000?! Thanks a lot

[CanadianCapitalist]

It's hard to answer your question without knowing more details. Is the entire amount in your name or is it jointly owned? Do you hold other accounts with the same credit union or bank?

Anyway, the CDIC webpage should help you answer your question. You can find it here:

http://cdic.ca/e/depositinsurance/faq.html

[marina628]

This is very good question and We have much more than the limit at TD bank.I have been considering opening up a hisa at another bank but then I think what are odds TD will go bust.

[CanadianCapitalist]

This is very good question and We have much more than the limit at TD bank.I have been considering opening up a hisa at another bank but then I think what are odds TD will go bust.

Your cash holdings should be absolutely safe. I sincerely hope TD will never go bust as well but hope isn't a strategy. What's stopping you from opening accounts at different institutions to get full deposit insurance coverage? Or at least parking the cash in various institutions through HISAs available at TDW. And if you still have many 100 Gs left over, you can always buy some T-bills. Granted you'll get anemic interest but you get absolute safety.

[marina628]

Nothing stopping me just laziness I suppose .

[marketwatcher]

That said - I have a million and will only go under my name (1 person). What are the good ways to put this 1 M? MAXA is offier 5 years GIC at 3.25% but they are not secured by CDIC. I called Coast capital today and they told me they used to cover only $100,000 but now they have changed it to unlimited. TD is my major bank; however, their GIC rate is so low ~ Any suggestions - Should I put in different banks or just one bank? Thanks

[OhGreatGuru]

You are asking 2 different questions;
1. How to remain CDIC insured; and,
2. How to find decent GIC rates in the current environment.

1. If you want to be CDIC insured, I believe the limit is $100k per person per institution. So you would have to divide it between 10 institutions. (I won't go into why you would want $1M in GICs, nor whether there is any real risk of one of our major institutions defaulting on its GICs.)

2. Try a brokerage like Heritage Financial in Ottawa to find the best rates, and also to place your money with different institutions.

[Eder]

I just opened another HISA, this time at Canadian Tire to ensure my cash is CDIC insured...I have GIC's spread all over the place to make sure they are insured. I don't know if I would trust TD not to go belly up, but that's probably an unfounded fear.

[marketwatcher]

Eder- I do have HISA with Canadian Tire and ally. They dropped the rate from 2 to 1.8 last month. I think spread all around would be a good idea. So what do you think about MAXA or ACHIEVA FINANCIAL? They offer 3.25% for 5 year GIC... The best rate in BC is around 2.45 ~ 2.7%

OhGreatGuru - Thanks for the feedback. I will check with them too.

Appreciate any feebacks...

[Spudd]

I heard that the Manitoba credit unions are covered by Manitoba deposit insurance, which covers unlimited amounts. Do your own research but if I ever get that much $ I will certianly be looking into it.