Two Canadian-based robo-advisors are making changes to their client offerings.
Bank of Montreal (BMO) on Tuesday announced a series of changes to its BMO SmartFolio service, including a reduction in its account minimum to $1,000 from $5,000, and the elimination of its $60 minimum account fee.
In additionally, the firm is redesigning its site in an effort to make the client experience, “simpler, more interactive and personalized,” BMO says in a news release.
“Canadians are much more comfortable with digital investing and the increased demand for digital investing solutions is age agnostic. Having been in-market with BMO SmartFolio for two years, we’ve gained valuable investor insights. This is an area of focus for us and we will continue to evolve our digital investing experience to inspire even more Canadians to invest smarter,” says Silvio Stroescu, head of digital investing at BMO Wealth Management, in a statement.
Also Tuesday, the U.K. division of Toronto-based Wealthsimple Inc. announced the launch of a series of socially responsible investing (SRI) portfolios, which will hold ETFs that incorporate SRI factors. The company, which has offered SRI portfolios in North America since 2016, says that the new offering stems from client demand.
“We always look to our clients for feedback on which features they want to see next, and SRI has been requested from the first day we launched in the UK. It’s reflective of what matters to investors today, and we’re really excited to be the first digital wealth manager to introduce an SRI offering, and to make it incredibly simple and accessible,” says Toby Triebel, CEO Europe, Wealthsimple, in a statement.