Many Canadians want the autonomy to manage part of their portfolios on their own while also counting on professional guidance as assets grow.izusek/iStockPhoto / Getty Images
The surge in do-it-yourself (DIY) investing highlights a fundamental shift in how Canadians want to engage with their money and build wealth.
During the past decade, instant access to information, lower trading costs and smarter trading platforms have made investing easier than ever before.
A 2025 study by the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) confirms this momentum, finding that a primary driver of the rise in DIY investing is the desire for greater autonomy and control.
Previously, most retail investors held relatively simple stock-and-bond portfolios. Today, DIY investors are exploring sophisticated strategies previously reserved for wealth managers or institutional investors, including options, Canadian depositary receipts, inverse or levered exchange-traded funds (ETFs), structured notes, and other alternatives designed to fine-tune exposures and manage risk more precisely.
While DIY investors have been empowered by the information now available at their fingertips, the explosion of social media, forums, influencers and AI-generated tips can blur the line between credible insight and speculation.
This environment can be especially challenging for novice investors. A 2025 survey by CIBC Investor’s Edge found that 45 per cent of Gen Z and millennial investors said they rely on instinct rather than data and analysis when making investment decisions.
But when instinct meets unreliable information, it becomes easier for speculative behaviour to take hold, as seen during the hype around meme stocks and the new trend of mixing in prediction markets with traditional investing.
Yet, this landscape has led many investors to reassess how they build wealth and to seek tools and guidance that help them feel confident about their investment decisions.
How DIY platforms are evolving
The baseline capabilities of self-directed platforms today include educational tutorials, charting tools, risk and performance metrics, and basic filtering tools for stocks and ETFs. More sophisticated platforms, such as those backed by an institutional equity research team or an economics department, go even further.
These platforms provide clients with access to professional-grade equities research and economic perspective at no additional cost, giving DIY investors broad economic analysis, sector-specific research and detailed evaluations of individual companies.
Last week, CIRO expanded what information self-directed platforms are allowed to provide. The new framework for order-execution-only dealers clarifies the long-standing rule preventing self-directed platforms from making recommendations or endorsing specific investment decisions, confirming they can offer more robust educational resources and self-help tools for Canadian investors.
In practice, this will allow platforms to introduce additional features such as:
- sample portfolios with rebalancing tools;
- customizable stock, sector and thematic screeners;
- self-assessment tools such as risk tolerance questionnaires;
- and automated alerts that flag when portfolios use significant leverage.
Overall, the proposed regulations support better financial literacy and more disciplined decision-making within a regulated environment.
What these changes mean for advisors
For financial advisors, the evolution of DIY investing highlights the importance of differentiating and articulating their value clearly. As investors gain access to credible information and improved tools, a strict emphasis on security selection in an advisor’s practice is likely to wane.
Advisors who stand out will be those who can deliver personalized support and holistic planning, from tax efficiency to estate planning, strategic use of credit, insurance, and intergenerational wealth strategies.
Many Canadians want the autonomy to manage part of their portfolios on their own while also counting on professional guidance as assets grow, career or family pressures mount, or financial situations become more complex.
That creates opportunities for full-service firms that prioritize relationships and can meet clients’ evolving needs across self-directed and advised investing services.
What’s clear is that the bar is being raised for what Canadians expect from their investing experience. Meeting those expectations requires more than convenience or low-cost access; it requires building trust.
Investors may want autonomy, but they also want the confidence that the platforms they rely on are built with the same discipline and prudence that define Canada’s leading financial institutions.
As the industry advances, these institutional safeguards will become an increasingly important differentiator, combining innovation with credibility. Those who embrace this shift and build the capabilities their clients need will be well positioned to succeed in the years ahead.
Luka Marjanovic is managing director and head of CIBC Investor’s Edge in Toronto.