Wealthsimple ‘For Nerds Only’ Event: All the New Features Announced

Toronto-based Wealthsimple unveiled several new products at its “For Nerds Only” event today, introducing fresh tools aimed at helping Canadians invest smarter — and earlier—while cutting costs across the board. The event spotlighted new investment strategies, digital portfolios, and even a modern way to buy real gold. Just this month, Wealthsimple also hit a milestone by passing $100 billion in total assets, announced CEO Mike Katchen.

The first big feature for traders is new $0 options, starting today, offering no trade commissions and no contract fees. This announcement saw the audience go wild. “We’re the only brokerage in Canada doing this,” said Wealthsimple, which saw more accounts and more trading volume than any other online Canadian brokerage last year.

Crypto fees are now down to as low as 0.05% too. As for AI research, that’s coming to provide way more real time trading info for traders.

Wealthsimple Adds Norbert’s Gambit for Active Traders

Wealthsimple is adding Norbert’s Gambit to its trading platform in January, giving investors a way to cut foreign exchange fees to nearly zero.

“This is another one you’ve all been asking for and for a very long time,” said the Wealthsimple presentation. “For people who might not be familiar, Norbert’s Gambit is a trading strategy that drops your FX fees to basically zero.”

To mark the launch, the company brought out Norbert Schlenker, the man behind the method. “Norbert’s Gambit is really a simple process,” he told the crowd. “Any one of the smart Canadian investors that I first explained it to 25 years ago could have noticed and used it before I did.”

He explained that instead of paying high conversion fees, investors can buy a stock in one currency, “journal the shares” to the other side, and sell in the other currency. “It’s magic,” Schlenker said. “What could cost you $1,500 if the broker did it for you will cost likely under $100.”

Wealthsimple says the new feature will make cross-border investing far cheaper for active users.

Rethinking Leverage: The Retirement Accelerator

Wealthsimple opened the event by addressing a growing challenge: rising housing prices leaving many Canadians unable to build wealth through home ownership. “Seven times the average salary,” said one speaker. “That means a lot of people will miss out on the benefits of one of the most traditional forms of leverage, the mortgage, and the wealth building that comes with it.”

The company’s answer is a new product called the Retirement Accelerator, designed to help investors use leverage in a different way — not to buy a home, but to grow their retirement savings.

“A lot of what we’re building is based on an interesting theory developed by a couple of Yale professors we partnered with,” the presenter explained. “Their theory is called Life Cycle Investing, and the gist is pretty simple. We have been doing things backwards. We invest the most money later in life when it has the least amount of time to grow.”

The Retirement Accelerator lets Canadians borrow to maximize their RRSP contributions, capturing more market growth earlier in life. “If you maxed out your contribution on the first day of the year, as opposed to the deadline, with the Retirement Accelerator, in only 20 years, you’ll have nearly a million dollars saved,” the company said. “But if you invest only 60% of your max at the last minute, that number shrinks to just under $600,000 — or 40% less.”

Wealthsimple said the product will start small, focusing first on helping investors borrow responsibly to top up RRSPs. “With our Retirement Accelerator, you are in full control,” the presenter added. “You decide how much to borrow… the terms are your terms, and the timeline is your timeline.”

Summit Portfolio: Access to Alternative Investments

Wealthsimple’s next announcement was the Summit Portfolio, described as its “boldest, most innovative portfolio yet.” The new offering provides deeper diversification, including exposure to real estate, private equity, and private credit — assets that were once “reserved for institutional investors and the ultra-wealthy.”

“The Summit portfolio is rolling out to clients in beta starting today,” the company said. “It’s going to be available to everyone by the end of the year with a minimum investment of $10,000.”

Direct Indexing: For the “Trading Nerds”

Wealthsimple also introduced Direct Indexing, a new portfolio option designed for investors who want the control of owning individual stocks instead of ETFs. “With Direct Indexing, you get the same market exposure as an ETF like SPY, but you actually own the underlying stocks,” they said.

The feature enables automated tax-loss harvesting, a strategy typically used by professional investors to reduce taxable gains. “The beauty of our Direct Indexing portfolio is that you don’t have to do any of that work,” they said. “We’re going to do it for you.”

Wealthsimple says the feature could “boost your annual returns by up to a half a percentage point per year,” translating to about $8,000 in extra returns for every $50,000 invested over 10 years.

Full-Service Wealth Management

The event wrapped with the launch of full-service wealth management, offering personalized advice without the traditional high wealth requirements. “This next feature is for those of you who want a bit more of the human touch — your own personal nerd, if you will,” one presenter said.

“At the big banks and family offices, you need millions of dollars in assets just to qualify for this type of gold-glove service,” continued Brett and Polly’s presentation. “But we realized we could use technology to offer the same level of service to a much broader group of Canadians.”

Advisors will proactively manage client portfolios, flag RRSP overcontributions, and even accept messages via text. “Soon you’ll be able to just send a text anytime,” the company said.

Gold Trading, Reinvented

Wealthsimple also launched what it calls the most accessible gold trading platform in Canada. “You can trade real gold 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with as little as one dollar,” announced Paul Teshima, Chief Commercial Officer. “And all for the lowest fees in Canada.”

Unlike gold ETFs, which include extra management costs, the new platform lets investors directly buy and hold physical gold — stored by Wealthsimple for free. “If you want to actually own real gold, you’re usually out of luck. But not anymore,” said Teshima.

To demonstrate, Teshima opened the Wealthsimple app live on stage and purchased $10,000 worth of gold. “That’s it. We’re done. I own gold,” he explained.

Wealthsimple also revealed it has minted its own gold coins, available to buy starting in November. “We know a lot of you want to actually hold your own gold,” touted Teshima, showing off a $5,000 one-ounce coin. Customers will be able to redeem their digital gold holdings for physical coins and have them shipped directly to their homes.

To mark the launch, Wealthsimple is waiving trading fees on the first $50 million of gold bought or sold through the app and will give away several prizes, including a one-kilogram gold bar.

A Broader Mission: Making Sophisticated Investing Simple

Wealthsimple closed the For Nerds Only event by emphasizing its mission to make advanced wealth-building tools accessible to everyone. “We hope you’re as excited about these revolutionary new changes and offerings as we are,” concluded Teshima. “If you registered today, you’ll be among the first to try out advanced options, AI research, the Retirement Accelerator, and more.”

You can click here to sign up for Wealthsimple and get a free $25 bonus with your first deposit.

Check out a replay of the full Wealthsimple event below: