Coast Capital Savings is Canada’s second-largest credit union based on assets under management. It is also the largest federally regulated credit union in Canada.
Read this Coast Capital Savings review to learn about its banking products and services and how you can benefit from becoming a member.
Who is Coast Capital Savings?
Coast Capital Savings is one of the largest credit unions in British Columbia and Canada. It was founded in the 1940s with over 600,000 members and over $20 billion in assets under management.
Coast Capital Savings became a federal credit union in 2018, allowing it to expand nationally.
Members of the credit union have access to over 4,000 “ding-free” ATMs through The EXCHANGE Network in Canada as well as over 500,000 ATMs in the United States through the ACCEL Network.
In British Columbia, Coast Capital has 52 branches in Metro Vancouver, Fraser Valley, Vancouver Island, and the Okanagan.
Coast Capital Savings was the first full-service financial institution to offer a free chequing account.
Coast Capital Savings Accounts: Personal Banking
Coast Capital Savings offers a full suite of banking products, including chequing accounts, savings accounts, credit cards, mortgages, loans, and investments.
Free Chequing, Free Debit, and More Account
This free chequing account has no monthly fees and no minimum balance requirement.
- No monthly fee
- Unlimited free transactions
- Surcharge-free withdrawals and deposits at 4,000+ ATMs
- Free eStatements
Coast U.S. Chequing Account
This account has no monthly account fee, 1 free transaction per month, $1/transaction after (waived with a $1,000 minimum monthly balance), and free eStatements.
Coast Chequing Classic Package
- $11 monthly fee (waived if a member is 59+)
- 40 free transactions every month
- Free cheques
- Free Canadian and U.S. bank drafts
- $10 discount on a safety deposit box rental fee
- Free eStatements or paper statement
Coast Chequing Prestige Package
- $21 monthly fee (or $10.50 for members over 59 years). The monthly fee is waived with a $5,000 minimum monthly balance
- Unlimited free transactions
- 8 free withdrawals at non-ding free ATMs in Canada and abroad
- Free personalized cheques
- Free eStatements or paper statements
Related: EQ Bank High-Interest Savings Account.
Coast Capital High-Interest Savings Account
This savings account offers:
- No monthly account fee
- 2 free monthly transactions and $5 / transaction after
- No minimum balance requirement, and free eStatements
Coast Capital Savings Credit Cards
Coast Capital Savings Credit Union has five credit cards:
1. Coast Visa Elegance Gold Card
- No annual fee
- Earn 0.50% in bonus dollars
- 3-day complimentary travel insurance
- 19.90% interest rate
2. Coast Visa modulo Gold Card
- $50 annual fee
- 10.90% interest rate
- Earn 1% bonus dollars
- 3-day complimentary travel insurance
- Mobile device insurance
- Purchase protection and extended warranty
3. Coast Visa Odyssey Gold
- $110 annual fee
- 19.90% interest rate
- Earn 1% bonus dollars on purchases
- Mobile device insurance
- Purchase protection and extended warranty
- Comprehensive travel insurance (up to 60 days)
- Auto rental collision/loss damage insurance
4. Coast Visa Platinum
- $169 annual fee, and you can apply by invitation-only
- 9.9% interest rate
- Earn 1% in bonus dollars + an additional 1% in cash back (after $20,000 spent)
- Comprehensive travel insurance, including emergency health, trip cancellation, auto rental collision/loss damage, baggage, and travel accident insurance
- Purchase protection and extended warranty
Mortgages: They offer fixed and variable-rate mortgages with varying terms.
Loans: Personal loans (1-10 year terms), RRSP loans (2-7 year terms), lines of credit (personal and HELOC), and car loans.
Investments: Invest in a variety of accounts, including TFSA, RRSP, RESP, RRIF, and non-registered investment accounts using:
- Term deposits and GICs
- Mutual funds (via Fidelity Guardian Capital, CI, and others)
- Online Investing
Coast Capital Savings: Business Banking
Their business offerings cover chequing, savings, credit cards, investments, and business financing.
Business Chequing Accounts
- The Deposit-for-free Business Account
- The One Small Fee; the Rest is Free Business Account
- Coast Community Chequing
- Coast US Business Chequing
- Coast Business Chequing Trust
Business Savings Accounts
- The High-Interest Business Savings Account
- Coast Business Savings
- Coast Business Savings Trust
Business Credit Cards
- Coast Visa Business Card
How To Open a Coast Capital Savings Account
You can become a member of Coast Capital Savings by calling them at 1-888-517-7000: Monday-Saturday (8am to 8pm) and Sunday (9am to 5:30pm).
Other options are to visit one of the 50+ branches in British Columbia or apply online (have your SIN handy).
To be eligible for membership, you must be:
- Over the age of 19
- A resident of B.C.
- Purchase $5 in membership equity shares
Coast Capital Savings has an app for digital banking that you can download for iOS and Android.
Coast Capital Savings Credit Union Fees
There are some other fees you should be aware of that may apply in addition to the basic account fees (where applicable) for personal banking:
- NSF fees: $48/item
- Stop payment: $18
- Overdraft protection: $5/month + interest charges
- Dormant account (no activity within two years): $50/year
- Closing an account: (> 90 days): free
- Dormant account (< 90 days): $25
- Paper statement: $2/membership/month
- Lost debit card replacement: $5/card
- Interac e-Transfer (receiving): Free
- Interac e-Transfer (sending): $1.50
**Check their website for other fees that may apply.
Is Coast Capital Savings Federal Credit Union Safe?
Coast Capital Savings became a federal credit union on November 1, 2018. It is a member of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation, which means that your deposits are protected by up to $100,000 per insured category.
Categories of deposits insured separately by CDIC are:
- Deposits held in one name: insured up to $100,000
- Deposits held in more than one name (joint deposit): insured up to $100,000
- Deposits in an RRSP: insured up to $100,000
- Deposits in an RRIF: insured up to $100,000
- Deposits in a TFSA: insured up to $100,000
- Deposits held in trust: insured up to $100,000
- Deposits held for paying taxes or mortgaged properties: protected up to $100,000
Conclusion
Canadians can save money on their banking fees. This is possible through alternatives to traditional banks, such as the hundreds of credit unions and new digital banks like EQ Bank, Tangerine, and motusbank.
While Coast Capital Savings is currently only available in B.C., it plans to grow its services and cater to Canadians from coast to coast as a federal credit union.
This review is part of a series of the best credit unions in Canada.
Related:
I have been a member for 30 years. Unfortunately the credit union I was very happy with for many years is no longer there. There have been constant and major problems with the on line system. Some people were locked out for 6 weeks. Bill payments were an issue in January for me. Recently they chose to add my grown daughter’s personal Visa account to my account without my knowledge. I’m pretty sure that has to violate some privacy laws.
They used to have a great customer service approach, however now every is the member’s fault. They have become one of the “big banks”.
Almost every time I’ve tried to use my debit online, it’s not accepted.
Before you go advertising the Coast US Chequing account, you should ask CCS if that product even functions like a credit card! I opened one and after a 10 day hold, CCS finally deposited my cheque. After that, the money was stuck in the US Chequing Account. There was NO WAY to transfer it to other USD accounts. The ONLY way Coast Capital Savings releases their customers funds from the Coast US “Chequing” account is if you transfer it to your Coast Capital CAD accounts… for which they charge a 4% processing fee! CCS falsely advertises. Don’t fall for their lies and recommend your poor readers to get this terrible product.