TD Waterhouse - Put it in my retirement account:
Friday July 21, 11:02 am Eastern Time
Press Release
SOURCE: TD Bank Financial Group; TD Waterhouse Group, Inc.
TD Waterhouse sets new benchmark with one million Canadian accounts
Dramatic growth for Canada's industry leader since 1999 IPO
TORONTO, July 21 /CNW/ - TD Waterhouse Investor Services, Canada's industry leader for self-directed investors, today announced it has surpassed one million Canadian client accounts.
Canada's leading discount broker has experienced dramatic growth since TD Waterhouse Group, Inc. went public in June 1999. Now the world's second largest discount broker, TD Waterhouse Group has added 340,000 Canadian client accounts and more than $20 billion in assets under administration since its IPO just over a year ago. This brings its total assets under administration to more than $50 billion in Canada alone.
"Our tremendous growth is fueled by imagination, innovation and inspiration," says John See, President and Chief Executive Officer at TD Waterhouse Investor Services (Canada) Inc. "We've focused on delivering superior customer service and client-driven innovation ever since our humble beginnings as a six person operation in 1984. Canadians are now taking control of their financial futures in unprecedented numbers and they count on us for the investor-friendly services, support and access they need to effectively accumulate and preserve their wealth."
Raising the bar
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"We're always looking for new and better ways to empower our clients to make informed and timely investment decisions," says Mr. See. "We've raised the bar for self-directed investing by delivering a series of client-driven innovations over the last year," he adds. These innovations include:
- Wireless Investing: TD Waterhouse's comprehensive, new wireless
investing service, launched November 1999, allows investors to stay
up-to-the-minute on market developments and efficiently manage their
investment portfolio, anytime, anywhere from the screen of their Mobile
Browser-enabled PCS phone.
- Online Research: TD Waterhouse now offers exclusive access to the
widest variety and best quality online research services available in
the Canadian discount brokerage industry. Launched in October 1999, TD
Waterhouse offers its customers access to research from 13 separate,
high profile publishers, ranging from in-depth market commentary and
buy/sell recommendations, to effective and easy-to-use mutual fund and
stock selection tools.
- Doubling Call Centre Capacity: TD Waterhouse will double its call
centre capacity by Fall 2000. It has already opened a new call centre
in Markham, Ontario; and is planning to open a similar facility in
Edmonton, Alberta in Fall 2000. In addition, existing call centres will
be expanded to accommodate TD Waterhouse's growth.
- After Hours Trading: This new service allows clients to place Limit
Orders for most Nasdaq stocks and certain listed securities after the
major North American markets are closed. Introduced in January 2000,
the sessions run between 4:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. (EST), Monday through
Friday.
Canada's biggest -- and best
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Named Canada's Best Discount Broker in Canadian Business Magazine's September 1999 review of 11 Canadian discount brokers and The Best Place to Master Your RRSP by the Globe and Mail in January 2000, TD Waterhouse is Canada's leading discount broker based on:
- number of client accounts -- more than one million;
- assets under administration -- more than $50 billion;
- number of Investor Centres to serve clients -- 38 from coast to coast;
- ways to invest -- WebBroker (online), TalkBroker (voice recognition
telephone), Telemax (touch tone telephone), and through more than 1,200
fully trained Investment Representatives;
- number of educational investment seminars provided -- more than 1,000
across Canada every year.
About TD Waterhouse
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TD Waterhouse Investor Services (Canada) Inc. is a subsidiary of TD Waterhouse Group, Inc., a subsidiary of TD Bank. TD Waterhouse Investor Services (Canada) Inc. -- Member CIPF. Worldwide, TD Waterhouse currently services 4.2 million customer accounts in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan and India. TD Waterhouse Group, Inc. trades on the New York and Toronto Stock Exchanges under the symbol `TWE` and can be found on the Internet at www.tdwaterhouse.ca.
This release may contain forward-looking statements. Our statements, which reflect management's beliefs and expectations, are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from these statements. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, please refer to the documents we file from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
For further information
For media inquiries and/or to arrange an interview, please contact: Gareth Pettigrew or Catherine Héroux at Strategic Objectives, TEL: (416) 366-7735, FAX: (416) 366-2295, E-MAIL: gpettigrew@strategic-objectives.com OR Jessica Mossman, TD Bank Corporate and Public Affairs, TEL. (416) 982-2469 |
