Savings Investments
Savings investments include interest-bearing savings or chequing accounts, which offer withdrawal/chequing privileges and allow you to access your money at any time. Interest earned on these accounts is considered 100% taxable income. Scotiabank offers a range of savings investment accounts.

Guaranteed Investment Certificates (GICs)
GICs are investments you deposit for a fixed length of time. The rate of return, or interest rate, is guaranteed for the term of the investment, so you don't need to worry about fluctuations in interest rates during the investment period. Interest earned on GICs is considered 100% taxable income. Scotiabank offers a range of GICs - including Non-Redeemable, Cashable and Stock-Indexed GICs - for various terms at competitive interest rates.

Mutual Funds
A mutual fund pools the money of many individuals and invests in a range of investments according to established guidelines and specific investment objectives. Most mutual funds invest in stocks, bonds, mortgages or money market instruments or some combination of these. Because professional portfolio advisors manage them, mutual funds allow you to invest prudently even though your investment knowledge may be limited. And because thousands of other investors (with similar objectives to your own) are participating in the "pool" of money the portfolio advisor is managing, you may achieve a higher level of diversification within the fund than if you were to assemble your own portfolio of securities. This in turn may lead to higher returns and reduction of risk.

Mutual funds can play an important role in helping you meet your long-term financial objectives. Even if you have a small amount of money, you can invest in securities markets in Canada and abroad through mutual funds.

Depending on the type of investments held in its portfolio, a mutual fund may generate interest income, capital gains or dividend income. Interest income is considered 100% taxable, however, you are only taxed on 50% of the gains generated from the sale of any capital assets. Canadian dividend income also receives favourable tax treatment due to the dividend tax credit. Tax implications will certainly be an important consideration when making investment decisions, so be sure to consult your tax advisor or Canada Customs and Revenue Agency. Scotia Securities Inc., offers a family of 49 "no-load" Scotia Mutual Funds.

Other Products
Individuals with more specialized investment needs may consider a much wider range of available investments, including common and preferred stocks, bonds, strip bonds, mortgage backed securities, debentures, options, futures, etc. These investments can all be purchased through our ScotiaMcLeod Direct Investing and ScotiaMcLeod.