Questrade Review for Canadian Traders

Is Questrade safe? CIRO membership, Questrade Inc.

Yes, Questrade Inc. is a CIRO investment dealer and a CIPF member, and your account is opened with Questrade Inc. I checked both listings before writing this section.

CIRO registration and global licences

The CIRO dealer directory lists Questrade Inc. in the category Investment Dealer (https://www.ciro.ca/investors/choosing-investment-advisor/dealers-we-regulate/questrade-inc). Questrade Inc. states it is a registered investment dealer, a member of the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) and a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF), the benefits of which are limited to the activities undertaken by Questrade Inc.; it is also a registered derivatives dealer, and derivatives offered to clients are authorized by the Autorité des marchés financiers (Relationship Disclosure, Sections 9 and 11). The relationship disclosure publishes no province-by-province registration list; the only jurisdiction it names for FX and CFDs is Quebec (Relationship Disclosure, whole document). Questrade Inc. is on CIPF’s current members list as an Investment Dealer member (https://www.cipf.ca/member-directory/current-cipf-members/questrade-inc).

CIRO enforcement history

A search of CIRO’s enforcement database for Questrade on September 26, 2026 returns three concluded proceedings. Re Questrade Inc, 2008 IIROC 12 was a settlement dated September 30, 2008 over risk adjusted capital below zero on or about May 31 and June 1, 2007, with a $30,000 fine and $2,500 costs. Re Questrade Inc., 2009 IIROC 49 and 2010 IIROC 17 concerned margin rates advertised below the IDA and IIROC minimums from December 2006 and margin not obtained from clients in foreign exchange spot trading, with a $150,000 fine and $50,000 costs; the panel noted no harm to individual clients. Re Questrade and Eydelman, decided May 13, 2013, concerned inadequate supervision to prevent and detect potential artificial bid prices from August 2009 to February 2010, with a $70,000 fine and $10,000 costs (CIRO enforcement search, decisions at ciro.ca/media/2415, 2511, 2512 and 2902).

Where a Canadian client’s money is held

As of January 1, 2013, Questrade became self-clearing: a self-clearing (or carrying) broker provides custody, clearing, settlement and record-keeping services (Relationship Disclosure, Section 6). The statement is made for the firm generally; no public page states where FX and CFD client cash is held.

Who a Canadian client contracts with

The account is opened with Questrade Inc. The relationship disclosure’s section on FX and CFD clients says Questrade has partnered with a bank to give FX and CFD clients access to FX and CFD trading; that bank is the liquidity provider and issuer of the CFDs, and Questrade is the broker/dealer providing order execution services. Questrade names counterparty risk, the default risk of the CFD provider, as a CFD risk (Relationship Disclosure, the section on FX and CFD clients). The benefits of CIPF membership are limited to the activities undertaken by Questrade, Inc., and affiliate Questrade Wealth Management Inc. is not a member of CIRO or the CIPF (Relationship Disclosure, Section 9). CIPF’s Coverage Policy states that “Accounts with entities other than a CIRO Member (but including, for greater certainty, a CIRO Member’s affiliates or related organizations) are not Accounts for the purposes of this Policy” (CIPF Coverage Policy, s.C.2).

How to complain, and who hears it

The relationship disclosure’s complaint handling section says the detailed complaint resolution process is in the account agreements and disclosures document in the client portal, and the firm provides CIRO’s brochure Making a Complaint: A Guide for Investors. The FX and CFDs support desk is on 1.866.980.9591, Monday to Thursday 8 AM to 8 PM EST and Friday 8 AM to 5 PM EST (https://www.questrade.com/learning/support, FX and CFDs block).

Questrade client money protection and dispute scheme

CIPF states its limit for an individual as $1 million for all general accounts combined, such as cash accounts, margin accounts, TFSAs and FHSAs, plus $1 million for all registered retirement accounts combined, plus $1 million for all RESPs combined where the client is the subscriber. CIPF covers property a member firm holds for a client that is not returned after the firm’s insolvency; it does not cover a drop in value for any reason, and claims are filed within 180 days of the insolvency (About CIPF Coverage, https://www.cipf.ca/cipf-coverage/about-cipf-coverage). No Questrade or CIPF document I read states whether your coverage extends to FX or CFD positions whose issuer is the partner bank.

Questrade names no dispute service on its public pages; its detailed complaint process sits in the account agreements behind the client login (Relationship Disclosure, Section 8). CIRO states that all CIRO dealer members must be members of OBSI, and a client not satisfied with a member’s response, or with no response within 90 days, can file the complaint with OBSI at no cost (CIRO, How to make a complaint).

Questrade at a glance: 14 key facts

The table below pulls each fact from where it was published: the CIRO dealer directory, the CIPF member list, CIRO’s complaint guide, and the firm’s own Canadian documents, including its relationship disclosure and pricing pages. Every entry names the page it came from.

Questrade spreads and commission

Questrade Inc. publishes target spreads for its Forex and CFDs account, and the firm states the spread you pay may vary from the target (Forex and CFD pricing). There is no FX commission: the firm states Questrade is compensated for its services from the bid-ask spread. Target spreads on other pairs are USD/CAD 2.5, GBP/USD 2.0, USD/JPY 1.9, and EUR/CAD 4.4 pips, as the firm states (Forex and CFD pricing, Foreign exchange list).

Forex and CFDs account

The firm states a EUR/USD target spread of 1.9 pips under normal market conditions (Forex and CFD pricing, Foreign exchange table, EUR/USD row). The firm states the spread paid may vary from the target spread.

What it costs to trade with Questrade

At the 1.9 pip target, one standard lot of EUR/USD (100,000 units) costs you US$19 in spread per round trip, and the spread you pay may vary from the target (Forex and CFD pricing, EUR/USD row, derived). Canadian stock CFDs cost 1 cent per share with a $9.95 minimum, and US stock CFDs 1 cent per share with a US$9.95 minimum (Forex and CFD pricing, List of stock CFDs).

Other fees a Canadian trader should check

There are no inactivity fees on FX and CFD accounts (Forex and CFD pricing, FAQ). A rollover cost applies to any position open after 5 p.m. ET and varies by product; non-expiring CFDs carry an overnight finance charge on the traded value and expiring commodity CFDs a carrying cost, with rates given by phone. EFT withdrawals are free, a CAD wire costs $20, a USD wire US$30, and a transfer out to another institution costs $150 (Administrative fees, Transfers and Withdrawals table).

Questrade funding methods and withdrawal times

You fund your Canadian FX and CFD account with Questrade Inc. by instant deposit by Interac or Visa Debit (CAD only), online banking bill payment (CAD, 1-2 business days), pre-authorized deposit (CAD and USD), wire transfer (CAD and USD, 1-2 business days) and non-certified cheque (Funding overview). Credit cards, payment processors, cash and third-party deposits are not accepted, and transfers from another broker are not supported for FX and CFD accounts.

Deposit methods

Pre-authorized deposit supports CAD and USD, and wire transfer supports CAD and USD. Online banking bill payment is CAD only, and non-certified cheques are accepted in CAD and USD (Funding overview, funding table).

Withdrawals

Withdrawals go by EFT to a Canadian bank account (CAD to CAD, USD to USD) in 3-5 business days, or by wire (CAD or USD, can go abroad) in 1-3 business days; a currency conversion adds 1 business day (Withdrawals overview, EFT and Wire table). The page is general Questrade guidance, not specific to FX and CFD accounts.

Questrade account types and minimum deposit

Questrade offers Individual Forex and CFDs and Corporate Forex and CFDs accounts (forex page). You can log in and add a new FX and CFD account from your Summary homepage when you already have a TFSA, RRSP, Margin or other account type with Questrade (FX and CFDs overview). To open a forex and CFD account, you need to provide a government-issued ID and SIN and answer some questions about your financial situation (What are CFDs, FAQ).

Minimum deposit

No minimum is stated: it costs $0 to open a self-directed account. A risk capital limit, approved by Questrade at opening, sets the maximum amount you can deposit to the trading account over its life (What are CFDs, FAQ; Risk capital).

Account currencies

Accounts come in CAD and USD. The margin table has a CAD margin rate and a USD margin rate column, and the margin requirement is in the currency of the account (Margin rates, FX and CFDs tab).

Questrade trading platforms

Your FX and CFD account runs on Questrade Global, which is web-based and available as a desktop program for Windows, Mac, and Linux, with a mobile app for Android and iOS. Questrade Global is available for FX and CFD accounts only, and the firm’s other platform, Questrade Edge, is not stated as available for them (Questrade Global; Platforms overview). The platform page lists Trade Signals by AutoChartist, and FX and CFD clients get complimentary training sessions after opening and funding an account. No Questrade page I read lists MetaTrader, cTrader, or TradingView for FX and CFD accounts.

Questrade execution speed and slippage

Execution speed and slippage were not measured for Questrade Inc., and this page states no fill time. No execution figure is available for this dealer.

Questrade markets

The firm states over 110 currency pairs (Forex and CFD pricing). The CFD classes you can choose cover commodities, including metals, energy, agriculture, softs, and meats, with 22 in the margin table; index CFDs across North America, EMEA, and Asia/Pacific, with 23 in the margin table; and stock CFDs on 15+ markets including Canada, the US, the UK, Europe, Australia, and Hong Kong. The FX and CFD margin and pricing tables list no crypto CFD (Margin rates).

Questrade leverage and margin for Canadian clients

The firm states EUR/USD margin of 5% in a CAD account and 3% in a USD account, which equals 20:1 and 33.3:1. Its lowest forex margin is USD/CAD at 2.5% in both account currencies, which equals 40:1, the highest leverage in its forex table (Margin rates, FX and CFDs tab). A margin call starts when your margin utilization is over 100%, and all your positions are closed at over 200%, or after 120 consecutive trading hours in margin call (Margin rates, Margin call).

Under section 5460(1) of CIRO’s Investment Dealer and Partially Consolidated Rules, the margin a client must post for a foreign exchange position equals spot risk margin plus term risk margin, and sections 5461 to 5463, 5468 and 5469 also apply. CIRO Bulletin 25-0232, effective August 13, 2025, lists spot risk margin rates of 3.00% for the euro in CAD-base and USD-base accounts and 2.00% for the US dollar in a CAD-base account (CIRO’s Investment Dealer and Partially Consolidated Rules; Bulletin 25-0232).

How Questrade compares to OANDA and Interactive Brokers

On EUR/USD pricing, OANDA (Canada) Corporation ULC advertises 0.6 pips for typical order sizes on its platform page, and its Core pricing carries a minimum spread of 0 with a commission of CAD$1 per 10,000 units at a CAD$10K qualifying balance. Interactive Brokers Canada Inc. states no markup on quotes, spreads as narrow as 1/10 PIP, and a commission of 0.20 basis point x trade value up to USD 1 billion monthly, falling to 0.08 bp, with a USD 2.00 minimum per order. Questrade Inc. states a EUR/USD target spread under normal market conditions with no commission.

On scores, Interactive Brokers Canada Inc. holds 62.3 out of 100 on a global basis. Both dealers have their own Canadian reviews: our OANDA review for Canadian traders and our Interactive Brokers review for Canadian traders.

Should you open a Questrade account?

No, I do not recommend a Questrade Inc. FX and CFD account for spread-focused trading. I think it suits you if you already hold Questrade accounts and want FX and CFDs with no minimum deposit, no inactivity fees, and a broad currency range as the firm states. The target EUR/USD spread is the number I weigh most, and the firm states the spread you pay may vary from the target.

When I read the relationship disclosure, the sections I flagged for you were the FX and CFD clients section and the partner bank that issues the CFDs. In my opinion, the three concluded CIRO enforcement proceedings and the unpublished overnight rates are worth your attention before you deposit. Check the CIRO dealer directory entry for Questrade Inc. and the relationship disclosure on the firm’s Canadian site before you fund the account.