I came across a really hot deal the past summer: CIBC was offering $400 cash to new clients. To qualify:
– Get approved for a Tim Horton Credit Card
– Sign up for a CIBC Everyday chequing account
– Complete 1 bill payment
– Complete 2 pre authorized debt transactions
Within 2 months of completion, I received the following:
– $400 deposited into my chequing account
– $30 Tim Horton gift card
Here is the timeline of events on my CIBC card. Many people simply churned this deal, closing the account once the bonus was deposited. A funny thing is, many people rumoured that the VP in charge of this promo was fired because everyone just churned it!
This deal was smoking hot. The chequing account typically has a $10/month fee, but it was somehow waived on my account – so I didn’t get charged at all. It probably took around 2 hours of work in total, for a net gain of $430.
$215/hour is not too shabby. It computes out to around $350,000/year!
Whenever a bank offers a promo for new clients, they should offer a minimum of $200 to sign on. For the past few years, Tangerine, RBC, BMO and TD have all done so.