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“I do think that there’s strong reasons for firms to try to attract new clients through eventually reducing trading fees to zero,” Foy said. “And I think that’s increasingly going to be the expectation. I do think that Canada will get there, too.”

Asked if he sees the zero-commission trend coming to Canada, Glenn LaCoste, president and CEO of research company Surviscor, replied “my immediate answer is not immediately.”

I would expect that that's going to come to be a broader offering in the market in time. Mike Katchen, co-founder and CEO, Wealthsimple

“We had enough trouble to getting to $10 over time,” LaCoste said. “We don’t have order flow like the U.S. has.”

There are expectations that the latest round of fee reductions could put pressure on other U.S. brokerages to follow suit.

“We wouldn’t be surprised to see other large private and public firms respond,” a Morgan Stanley note said Wednesday.

The steps taken by Schwab and TD Ameritrade also followed those of another competitor, Interactive Brokers Group Inc.

On Sept. 26, Greenwich, Conn.-based Interactive announced a new service called IBKR Lite that offers zero commissions on U.S. exchange-listed stocks and ETFs. A spokesperson told the Financial Post on Wednesday that they are initially making IBKR Lite available to residents in the U.S. and India, but that there could be an opportunity for some Canadians.

“Introducing Brokers — including iBrokers in Canada — may make it available to their clients if they wish to do so,” wrote Kalen Holliday in an email.

An introducing broker can set pricing, which may mean clients end up paying in some way, Holliday wrote. But about a third of the firm’s clients are introducing brokers, and they can opt to use IBKR Lite for clients.

• Email: gzochodne@nationalpost.com | Twitter: GeoffZochodne