New Issues & IPOs

When going public for the first time, on their opening day companies offer an issuance of securities for sale to the public; this is known as an initial public offering (IPO). Alternatively, companies that have already gone public may offer an additional issuance of their securities; this is known as a secondary offering or a New Issue. 

Companies that go public do so for a variety of reasons, including to raise capital for future business expansion, to pay down debt they acquired pre-ipo or to finance other corporate activities.

Every investor has heard numerous stories of people who have gotten wealthy with IPOs. A little caution is advised. Not all IPOs are rockstars. The fact is, IPOs are speculative investments and may not be appropriate for every investor. While an IPO might in some circumstances provide exceptional returns, especially when public markets are up, there’s no guarantee your investment valuation will be profitable.

Remember, investing in new issues is like buying any investment - you should do your research before you buy. Consult Reuters reports on public companies and private companies and their IPO date, if you can. Be sure to review the prospectus and/or term sheet, as they contain important information about the issuing company and the offer.

Scotia iTRADE participates in hundreds of Canadian new issues annually. Our sector coverage is vast and includes technology, agriculture, commodities and healthcare, to name a few. We also offer you a wide range of preferred shares, common shares, trust units, limited partnership units and convertible debentures.

No, Scotia iTRADE does not offer U.S. IPOs or new issues because U.S. underwriters typically do not file the documentation required to market an issue in Canada.  Unless the prospectus is filed in Canada, no Canadian brokerage will have access to the IPO or New Issue.

We charge $0 commission on all purchases.  However, standard commission pricing is charged on all sells.

An indication of interest (IOI) signifies your firm order to purchase a specific number of shares in an IPO or New Issue.  By placing your indication of interest, you agree to purchase the specified number of shares, subject to any applicable securities regulations.

To place your indication of interest, simply log in to your account and visit the Current New Issues page located in the 'IPOs & New Issues Centre' section of the Trade tab. Next review the offer details and place your order. Alternatively, go straight to the 'New Issues Order Entry' page in your account by following these tabs: Trade > New Issues > New Issues Order Entry.

Be sure to review the prospectus and or term sheet before placing your order, as these documents contain important information about the issuing company and the offer.  IPOs & New issues are considered speculative investments and as such, may not be appropriate for every investor.

Placing an indication of interest does not guarantee that you will get access to shares since new issues are allocated on a first come, first serve basis. When you place an indication of interest, you must be willing to accept a full fill, partial fill or no fill on your order. Once the allocation is complete, a confirmation email will be sent to you with your order details.

Indications of interest for IPOs & New Issues are accepted on a first come, first serve basis.  Because the demand for securities may exceed the supply available to distribute, placing an indication of interest does not guarantee an allocation of securities. When you place an indication of interest, you must be willing to accept a full fill, partial fill or no fill on your order. However, our goal is to fill your entire indication of interest.

Once the allocation is complete, a confirmation email will be sent to you with your order details. To participate in the allocation process, you must have sufficient buying power in your account when you place your order.

In securities underwriting, this is a firm commitment by an underwriter or underwriting group to purchase an entire issue outright from the issuing company.  Then, all members of the underwriting group resell the issue to individual and institutional investors at a pre-set price.

In this type of underwriting, there is no commitment made by an underwriter or underwriting group to purchase the issue outright from the issuing company. The issue is typically marketed over a period of several days or weeks to potential investors on a best efforts basis by the underwriters.

New issue email alerts provide notification when IPOs & New Issues are available at Scotia iTRADE.  It is important to keep your brokerage email address up to date, so that we can send you important information and updates about New Issues, and the indication of interest that you place.

To change your brokerage email address, log in to your account and amend in your Personal Profile.

Sign up for email alerts and stay up-to-date on New Issues and IPOs.

Scotia iTRADE clients gain access to exiting and upcoming IPOs and new issues in a vast array of industry sectors. You’ll find everything from preferred shares and common shares to trust units and limited partnership units, plus convertible debentures and more.

To ensure that you are notified of the latest offerings and other updates:

• Sign up for email alerts by signing in

• Visit our IPOs & New Issues Centre

Yes, you have up to two (2) business days once your indication of interest has been placed, subject to any applicable securities regulations, to reduce your order by any amount; email instructions will not be accepted.

To amend, reduce or cancel your order, contact Scotia iTRADE at 1-888-872-3388 option 4, Monday-Friday between 8.00am-4.00pm.

For help regarding IPOs & New Issues, contact Scotia iTRADE at 1-888-872-3388 option 4.