BMO InvestorLine Retains The Overall Top Ranking; TD Waterhouse, E*Trade
Remain Two and Three, Respectively
TORONTO, AUGUST 26, 2002 – Despite continuing market volatility, competition among online
brokers remains fierce as evinced by ongoing efforts by leading firms to expand functionality and elevate site
usability to ever-higher levels, according to the Q3 2002 Internet Broker Scorecard launched today by G�mezCanada,
the Internet Quality Measurement firm.
BMO InvestorLine, operated by the Bank of Montreal, maintained its lead over its
competitors to once again secure first place in G�mezCanada�s twice annual ranking
of online brokers. �The addition of asset allocation models and improved analytics
as well as exceptional customer service, enabled BMO InvestorLine to maintain its
lead,� said Guy van Rooyen, senior analyst with G�mezCanada.
TD Waterhouse and E*Trade were second and third respectively with E*Trade
maintaining its dominance in the Active Trader and Serious Investor categories.
Particularly noteworthy was the rapid rise of Qtrade, a relative unknown within
Canada, which achieved fourth place overall.
“While the markets� downdraft have impacted self-directed brokers and the industry
as a whole, this has not stopped firms from improving site usability and utility in
preparation for the eventual market turn-around,� said van Rooyen. �The central
focus of these efforts has been on providing improved planning functionality to
attract and retain the growing Life Goal Planner segment.�
G�mezCanada’s Scorecard analysis also revealed:
-
Over 50% of Scorecard firms now provide some form of financial planning
tools online, up from 23% six months ago -
Life Goal Planners continue to dominate the marketplace, constituting 64.9%
of Active Online Investors, as affirmed by our upcoming research report State
of Online Investing: Canada II -
Customer service across the industry showed a marked improvement from
previous Scorecards across both phone and e-mail channels
Another trend captured by the latest G�mezCanada Scorecard: the focus placed on
customer segmentation strategies. �This is reflected by CIBC�s push to attract
Active Traders and by Scotia�s focus on the Life Goal Planner and One-Stop
Shopper segments,� said Don Rolfe, managing director, G�mezCanada.
Rankings in the Q3 2002 Internet Broker Scorecard are as follows (previous
Scorecard finish in parentheses):
- BMO InvestorLine (1st)
- TD Waterhouse (2nd)
- E*Trade (3rd)
- Qtrade (7th)
- Scotia McLeod Direct (8th)
- CIBC Investor’s Edge (5th)
- Royal Bank Action Direct (6th)
- Merrill Lynch HSBC (10th)
- National Bank Invesnet (11th)
- Credential Direct (12th)
- eNorthern(9th)
- Sun Life Securities (13th)
- Disnat (New entrant)
Rankings in the Q3 2002 Internet Brokers Scorecard by profile are as follows:
About G�mez
G�mez provides financial services firms and other leading companies committed to
the Internet with competitive intelligence, benchmarking and expertise that enable
effective business prioritization and alignment. Only G�mez integrates actionable
research and applied analytics with performance measurement services to provide a
comprehensive view of the entire customer experience.
G�mez Performance Network (GPN) is a leading provider of Web page and
transaction performance monitoring solutions to Fortune 1000 companies. GPN
enables companies to measure the performance of their global Web sites in
real-time, enabling them to continuously monitor site availability and
responsiveness, worldwide. G�mezPro provides actionable research and competitive
benchmarking and industry insight to help companies optimize online customer
experience relative to consumer expectations, competitive offerings and alternative
distribution channels.
G�mez, G�mez.com, G�mezPro, G�mez Scorecards, G�mez Performance Network,
Performance Media and Internet Quality Measurement are trademarks and/or
service marks of G�mez, Inc.
