If you're already feeling gouged by bank fees, it may be time to check your statements. Almost all of Canada's big banks are doling out some kind of personal banking fee increase this year.
Bank fee hikes can easily make people angry, especially when those financial institutions are earning multi-billion dollar profits. But some experts argue the charges are just the cost of doing business.
They may be costly operations, but some also pull in plenty of cash. Last month, TD (T.TD) reported a second-quarter profit of $2.05 billion, up from $1.86 billion in the same period last year, thanks largely to retail bank earnings.
TD also hiked some fees on March 1. For example, the bank raised non-TD ATM fees by 50 cents to $2.00. It's also the last of the big banks to levy a fee — $75.00 — for transferring a tax-free savings account to another bank. TD said it introduced the fees "to remain competitive in today's marketplace."
CIBC (T.CM) was next in line with fee hikes. On April 1, it upped the minimum account balance needed to avoid a monthly fee for its Everyday Chequing Account from $1,000 to $2,000. Transaction fees associated with that account also went up.
CIBC is having a good year as well. The bank saw its second-quarter profit grow to $941 million, up 3.3% from the same period last year.
Nor is it just savings and chequing accounts: Scotiabank (T.BNS), BMO (T.BMO) and National Bank (T.NA) are all upping some credit card fees this year. BMO, for example, on Friday increased the charge for a missed credit card payment due to insufficient funds by $8.00 to $48.00.
This month, National Bank also raised some banking service fees by 25 cents. The bank explained that the changes are in line with their digital development
