Spring 2019 teaser | motusbank | Discussion forum

It sounds very similar to Canadian Western Bank's Motive Financial and Alterna Savings & Credit Union Ltd's Alterna Bank, with respect to no monthly fees, competitive high interest savings account ("HISA") rates, and unlimited free Interac e-Transfers.

I think, ultimately, this puts further pressure on EQ Bank to increase from five (5) to unlimited free Interac e-Transfers and for Tangerine Bank to make free its Interac e-Transfer functionality.

Still, these companies all offer remarkably similar product suites.

One notable difference to Meridian Credit Union Ltd and its motus bank subsidiary: Surcharge-free ATM access would be for both Acculink (credit union) and The Exchange for Meridian and The Exchange only (not all credit unions, particularly those in the western provinces) for motus bank.

Reason is because Canada's credit union system currently control the Acculink ATM network and its membership is limited to provincially- and federally-regulated credit unions. (Another reason, aside from the requirement to maintain only one set of capital buffers, why I think Meridian should've reincorporated federally as Meridian Federal Credit Union, but whatever.)

Also, I do think motus bank will be incredibly challenged trying to grow and acquire customers (unless customers don't require ATM access and want just to do EFT transactions between another bank account) in the western provinces. I expect them to have little to no customer uptake outside of Metro Vancouver, Victoria, Nanaimo, Metro Kelowna, Prince George, Kamloops, Edmonton, Calgary, Saskatoon, Regina, and Winnipeg where Canadian Western Bank and HSBC Bank Canada (Exchange members) have branches. Most of their customer base will likely be in Ontario, atlantic Canada, and major metropolitan Canadian cities elsewhere. If they don't permit Quebec customers out of the gate, that's going to significantly impair their growth from the outset. To use a nickname given to me by a social media commenter in reply to one of my posts, sorry to be a bit of a "Dougie downer" here.

Cheers,
Doug

SG said
Alterna Bank has access to both the Acculink and Exchange networks for free.. It's not heavily advertised... But it's free as I use the MB credit union ATMs all the time for free.  

Hrm, can you confirm the names credit union ATMs you've used personally so I can confirm whether indeed they're an Acculink member and not an Exchange network member also?

Edit: I see you use Manitoba credit union ATMs, with your Alterna Bank (not Alterna Savings and Credit Union, right?) debit card. Yes, that's correct. Very interesting! This does potentially change the thesis on motus bank, then. If motus bank gives access to Acculink, because they're a Meridian subsidiary, then this gives them an edge against Motive Financial but not much (if any) over Alterna.

Thanks,
Doug

Thanks, SG. Alterna was always, to my knowledge, a member of the Acculink ATM network, so I suspect they just added that reference to Acculink in the statement of disclosure/service charges brochure in June 2018? That's helpful to know your Alterna Bank debit card has both Acculink and Exchange logos - that means you can definitely use both networks.

It's neat that Alterna Bank, a non-credit union, can still use Acculink, but I guess there's provisions in Alterna's agreement that lets them extend that to wholly-owned subsidiaries. Either that, or since Alterna Bank just uses the same banking platform, Acculink treats them as one institution and Canada's other credit unions don't realize there is a bank on this network.

Addition of Manulife ATMs at Circle K/Mac's locations definitely helps, but as far as I know, you can only do cash withdrawals. The reason I usually use the ATMs is for deposits. Also, I hope Manulife doesn't decide to give up the Circle K/Mac's contract - or that they don't get outbid by another bank (i.e., Scotiabank, CIBC, TDCT, or RBC Royal Bank).

Cheers,
Doug

Loonie said
Doug, I'm not sure why you think the uptake in the west will be more limited than elsewhere, but you live there and I don't.

I based this statement largely on surcharge-free ATM network coverage (many prairie province and rural B.C. credit unions withdrew from The Exchange a number of years ago). With the ability to use Acculink (credit union) ATMs with an Alterna Bank debit card, this is mitigated substantially.

Still, consider that provincial credit unions in Saskatchewan and Alberta have the ability to do shared in-branch banking at another credit union. That's quite compelling for many people and both Saskatchewan and Alberta have credit unions that offer free chequing accounts now.

Nonetheless, since you think it will appeal to all the larger centres in the west, that plus Ontario and whatever else they pick up in other areas will cover most of the population. So I don't see a problem. I also would anticipate that they will cover Quebec. What's the point in going to all the bother of opening a federal if you don't operate "federally"? They're already the biggest CU in Ontario, by far.

I agree with you, but was basing this on a presumption that, like so many virtual FIs that don't want the hassle of complying with Quebec's added financial consumer protection laws, they end up like Motive Financial and Simplii Financial, which don't operate in Quebec. I'm not sure if Alterna Bank is accessible in Quebec?

I do see, as you do, though, that there doesn't seem to be much differentiation between a lot of the "alternative" FIs. I don't use their ATMs at all, and push all bills through BigBank. They all look pretty similar to me. The differences that matter to me are in rates (always fluctuating), quality of customer service, ease of operation, meaningful 24/7, security (hard to assess), withdrawal limits, how much insurance coverage I can get (joint accounts needed), etc - things they don't talk about in their promotions.
I hope somebody at some FI somewhere is listening!!!  

Agree with you there. 🙂

Cheers,
Doug

Loonie said
I think that AlternaBank does operate in Quebec. They are headquartered in Ottawa and I think they have a physical branch in Gatineau. But that would need to be confirmed. Being located in Ottawa might have made them more sensitive to the QC market.

I think that the whole banking scenario is different in QC because of the popularity of the home-grown caisses populaires and Desjardins.  

Desjardins likely does enjoy popularity in Quebec, especially in the smaller towns. National Bank of Canada, too, has a strong presence. That said, Quebec has separate rules with respect to overdraft, line of credit, and credit card fees and interest chargeability. So, all of those rules mean separate disclosure statements and rules to adhere to, so I believe that plays a role in certain FIs not operating there. The Manitoba CUs are somewhat different in that they don't provide mortgages or credit products thru their virtual banking divisions, so it's easy for them to operate in Quebec.

If Alterna Bank is available in Quebec, and it looks like they are, then it's likely Motus Bank (I think we can safely refer to them with capital letters as that's how it's stylized on their Letters Patent and listed at OSFI, even if branding wise, they go by motusbank and motus bank) will also operate in Quebec.

So, I have to modify my initial negativity and think Motus Bank has some attractive qualities similar to Alterna, especially if they really do offer an easy online mortgage application and pre-approval process and client onboarding.

Cheers,
Doug