TORONTO, ON–(Marketwired – July 27, 2017) – Questrade Wealth Management Inc. (“QWM”) and its sister company, Questrade, Inc. (“Questrade”), Canada’s fastest growing online brokerage, today announced that they have entered into a series of agreements with WisdomTree Asset Management Canada, Inc. (“WisdomTree Canada”), and WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc. (“WTAM”).
- As part of the agreements: WisdomTree Canada will become a premier provider of exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) available for purchase on a commission-free basis on Questrade’s self-directed platform. This will include all available Canadian WisdomTree ETFs. In addition, the parties will work together to develop and deploy a variety of ETF-focused educational initiatives and resources for Questrade clients, including webinars, newsletters and reports on investing topics.
- WTAM will become a consultant for QWM’s Portfolio IQ, a professionally and actively-managed low-cost online investment service.
- WisdomTree Canada has agreed to acquire all of the ETFs currently managed by QWM, representing approximately CAD $89 million in assets under management, which include:
- Questrade Russell US Midcap Growth Index ETF Hedged to CAD (TSX: QMG)
- Questrade Russell US Midcap Value Index ETF Hedged to CAD (TSX: QMV)
- Questrade Russell 1000 Equal Weight US Technology Index ETF Hedged to CAD (TSX: QRT)
- Questrade Russell 1000 Equal Weight US Industrials Index ETF Hedged to CAD (TSX: QRI)
- Questrade Russell 1000 Equal Weight US Health Care Index ETF Hedged to CAD (TSX: QRH)
- Questrade Russell 1000 Equal Weight US Consumer Discretionary Index ETF Hedged to CAD (TSX: QRD)
- Questrade Fixed Income Core Plus ETF (TSX: QCP)
- Questrade Global Total Equity ETF (TSX: QGE)
The acquisition is subject to regulatory and unitholder approvals, and it is expected that for most of the funds, the Questrade ETFs will merge into existing ETFs managed by WisdomTree Canada, while WisdomTree Canada will become the trustee and manager for one of the existing Questrade ETFs. In either case, this will result in a change of the fund manager for those Questrade ETFs. Questrade will provide unitholders with further specific details of these transactions, including the record date and timing for the unitholder meetings to approve the change of trustee and manager and related mergers, as applicable, of the Questrade ETFs, will be issued at a later date.
“Questrade is committed to delivering the highest quality investment options to Canadian investors,” said Edward Kholodenko, president and CEO of Questrade. “We believe that these strategic agreements with WisdomTree will continue to provide investors with access to cost-effective and innovative ETFs, as well as valuable investor education.”
Kurt MacAlpine, Head of Global Distribution, WisdomTree Investments, Inc., stated: “We’re excited to be joining forces with Canada’s leader in the online investing space and to be able to offer our suite of Canadian ETFs to Questrade clients. Last year, we launched our first set of equity ETFs in Canada, and just recently, our first set of smart beta fixed income ETFs, which have been very well received. Today’s announcement is another milestone for the growth of our business in this key market and reflects our strong commitment to Canada.”
WisdomTree pioneered the concept of fundamentally weighted indexes and is currently an industry leader in the category. Today, WisdomTree is among the top ten ETF providers in the world with Canadian ETFs spanning a variety of asset classes and geographies.
About WisdomTree
WisdomTree Investments, Inc., through its subsidiaries in the U.S., Europe, Japan and Canada (collectively, “WisdomTree”), is an exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) and exchange-traded product (“ETP”) sponsor and asset manager headquartered in New York. WisdomTree offers products covering equities, fixed income, currencies, commodities and alternative strategies. WisdomTree currently has approximately $45.4 billion in assets under management globally.
WisdomTree® is the marketing name for WisdomTree Investments, Inc. and its subsidiaries worldwide.
About Questrade
Questrade (www.questrade.com) is Canada’s fastest growing online brokerage that is changing the Canadian financial services industry by leveraging technology to lower fees, and providing a viable alternative to traditional financial investment options, thereby allowing Canadians to “Keep More of their Money”. As a leader and innovator in fintech, Questrade is a trusted ally that advocates for consumers, focused on improving value. With 17 years of challenging status quo as Canada’s leading, non-bank online brokerage, over $5 billion in assets and more than 30,000 accounts opened every year, Questrade and its companies provide financial products and services: securities, foreign currency investment, and online wealth management. Questrade has recently been named one of Canada’s Best Managed Companies for the sixth year in a row. For more information visit www.questrade.com, or follow on Facebook and Twitter @Questrade.
Questrade Wealth Management Inc. (QWM) and Questrade, Inc. are wholly owned subsidiaries of Questrade Financial Group Inc. Questrade, Inc. is a registered investment dealer, a member of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) and a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF), the benefits of which are limited to the activities undertaken by Questrade, Inc. QWM is not a member of IIROC or the CIPF. Questrade Wealth Management Inc. is a registered Portfolio Manager, Investment Fund Manager, and Exempt Market Dealer. Portfolio IQ is a service provided by QWM. ©2017 Questrade Financial Group Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Media Contacts:
For Questrade:
Susan Willemsen
The Siren Group Inc.
+1.416.461.1567
[email protected]
For WisdomTree:
Canada Media
NATIONAL Public Relations
Suzanne Diab
+1.416.848.1399
[email protected]
U.S. Media
WisdomTree Investments, Inc.
Jessica Zaloom
+1.917.267.3735
[email protected]
