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How to Download PC Financial Transactions to Use in a Spreadsheet

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PC Financial provides a quick and simple system to download your financial transaction history. You can download it to use in a spreadsheet like Excel, or to use with a financial program like Quicken or MS Money Sage 50. (It’s a little funny that PCF supports MS Money but Microsoft itself doesn’t anymore.Update March 3 2016 PCF no longer supports MS Money either. They don’t offer any direct download for Mint or other programs but you can probably import the data as comma separated values (CSV format.) There is one error in the downloaded data for credit cards to watch out for.

Here’s how to download your history and what to notice.

Sign In to Your PC Financial Accounts

  1. Go to http://www.pcfinancial.ca/
  2. Make sure Online Banking is selected from the drop down list in the top right corner of the screen, then
    Click the Go button.
  3. In the Card Number field, type the number on your ABM card.
  4. In the Password field, type the password you set up for online banking.
  5. Click on the Sign In button.

Downloading your PC Financial Account History

  1. From the link list on the left side of the screen, click on: account activities From the sub-list, click on:
    download transactions
  2. If you are going to use Sage 50 Money or Quicken for the first time, it’s worth reading the PC Financial Tips at https://www.txn.banking.pcfinancial.ca/a/banking/accounts/downloadTransactionsTips.page
  3. From the drop down list, select the account for which you want to download the history.
  4. Choose which transactions you want by selecting either
    • All since last download; or
    • All available
    • All within date range
      If you choose this one, you need to select the month, day and year for the start and end dates.
    • PC Financial recommends you choose “Since last download” the first time you download your data.
    • If you want to see the data before you download it, select the Yes radio button.
      Otherwise, select the No button.
  5. UPDATE: March 3 2016: If you want to download the numbers to use in a specific listed program, click the radio button beside
    • Intuit Quicken
    • Sage 50  Money (Updated March 3 2016) ; or
    • Spreadsheet (CSV) which means Comma Separated Values, which you use for MS Excel and similar programs.
  6. Click on the button called: Download Transactions
  7. If you selected Preview, you will see a list of the date, description and amount that moved in or out of your account.
    If the Preview looks ok, click on the button: download transactions.
  8. When the Opening PCF.csv dialog box opens, you can either select the radio button to
    • Open the file with Microsoft Office Excel (or select another program from the drop down list); or
    • Save File

    Then click on the OK button.

  9. If you clicked Save File, you will either get prompted to ask where to save the file, or your file will be automatically saved to your Downloads folder.

If you open the file using a program like Microsoft Excel, you will probably find it’s full of fields with ##### in them. That just means the column is too narrow to display the info.  Hover the cursor over the little line between the Column Name Letters (like A | B) at the top of the screen, then click and hold the mouse button down while you drag the line sideways to make the column wider.

What’s In the CSV “Other” File Format?

The file will contain a line for each transaction. The line will list

  • the date
  • a description of the item, for example Cheque #3 in the Transaction details column
  • if the funds moved out of the account, the amount in dollars and cents with no symbols in the Funds Out column
  • if the funds moved in to the account, the amount in dollars and cents with no symbols in the Funds In column

A Useful Tip from the PC Financial Tips Window

“Please note: Transaction data is accurate as of 11:00 p.m. local time on the previous business day. However, your account balance [as you can see when looking at your account online] is accurate up to and including your latest transaction, which could be the current day. As a result, the opening balance which your PFM calculates may not be accurate. See adjusting the opening account balance below.”

For more details open the Tips window from the link on the Download Transactions screen.

One Notable Error in my PC Financial Transaction History

Strangely enough in my CSV file there is one type of recurring format error. This error shows up when I open the downloaded Transaction History in Excel.

If I paid an AMEX bill, in the Funds Out column it lists to which bank the payment was made.

For example if I paid my BMO AMEX, it will say BMO in the Funds Out column.

The actual payment paid ends up listed in the Funds In column!

It would be great if AMEX was sending me money, but it isn’t true.

Strangely enough, this error does not show up in the Preview report.

This happens whether I download the Other format directly to Excel or to a Saved file which I then open in Excel.

When I open the CSV file in Word I can see the error. Instead of a line being
06/29/2013,INTERNET BILL PAYMENT AMEX BMO   ,109.77

it is listed as:
06/29/2013,INTERNET BILL PAYMENT AMEX, BMO   ,109.77

That extra comma before the BMO is causing the error in Excel.

If I have time, I will try to report this error to PC Financial.

Is There a Security Risk in Downloading the PCF CSV File?

The data in the PCF comma separated file (the one you get by downloading Other) does not include any detailed information about your bank account numbers, billing account numbers, or passwords.

For example, my report says I paid Cogeco bill but it doesn’t give my Cogeco account number.

Even more importantly, when I pay my AMEX bill it does not list my credit card number.

This should reduce, somewhat, the security risk of having this data on your computer if your computer is hacked or stolen.

For increased security, print out the data and delete it from your drive, or save it to a disk or USB stick and don’t leave the disk/stick where it can easily be found and stolen.

If you are finished banking

  1. At the top right of the screen, click on the Sign Out button.
  2. Click on the OK button.
  3. Clear your cache and close your browser to increase the security of your banking information.

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Do you download your transactions into a financial program or a spreadsheet? Have you found any other quirks you’d like to warn us about? Please share your experiences with a comment.

How to Transfer Cash to an RRSP at ING Direct from another RRSP Using a T2033 Form

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Many years ago when RRSP season rolled around we didn’t have much cash available to make a contribution. We did, however, have compound interest Canada Savings Bonds with good long term rates. At that time the government offered a program called the Canada Retirement Savings Plan. This plan allowed you to hold Canada Savings Bonds directly in a RRSP account. There were no fees to transfer bonds into or out of the plan. (An actual withdrawal of the bonds or their equivalent value was taxable.) So we phoned the 1-800 number before the February RRSP contribution deadline and then mailed our bond certificates in to Ottawa. There the bonds sat continuing to churn out annual interest which was in turn reinvested and earned more interest. Until eventually, the bonds matured. Alas, the recent federal governments have regrettably been trying to shut down the Canada Savings Bond programs. So the days of decent interest rates are, at least temporarily, over. It is time for us to move our investments as they mature out of the Canada Retirement Savings Plan and into other places. This is how we transferred the cash from a Canada Retirement Savings Plan to our ING Direct, now Tangerine.ca, RSP Investment Savings Account.

This same procedure works for a transfer from any bank or financial institution to ING Direct Tangerine.

UPDATE: Please be aware that as of January 2015, Tangerine has started charging a fee if you transfer your RRSP or TFSA from Tangerine to another bank, credit union, brokerage or financial institution.

I would no longer transfer RRSP or TFSA money to Tangerine unless I planned to keep it there for the long term.

To Transfer Cash to a Tangerine RRSP from another RRSP

To Log In to Tangerine

  1. Go to tangerine.ca
  2. Click on the I’m a Client, let me in link.
  3. In the Log me in text field, type your Client Number, Card Number or Username.
  4. Click on the Go button.
  5. In the Answer field, type the answer to Your Secret Question.
  6. Click on the Next button.
  7. Verify Your Picture and Your Phrase are correct. Then In the Personal Identification Number field, type Your PIN.
  8. Click on the Go button.

***BONUS***
Unlike most financial institutions, ING Direct Tangerine will begin paying you interest on the cash you transfer to your ING Direct Tangerine RRSP starting on the date that the RSP Direct Transfer transaction request is completed. To receive the interest, the funds must be transferred by the other financial institution within 60 days after the request is submitted.

***BONUS***
At the time this was written in June 2013, ING Direct Tangerine does not charge any fee to transfer RRSP money out to another bank or financial institution. [It still doesn’t in March, 2014.] So for now we’re moving our money from the Canada RSP into ING Direct Tangerine. Then it may move again to CIBC Investor’s Edge or BMO InvestorLine or RBC Direct Investing. So many choices!

***BOO-HOO***
Unfortunately, at the time this was written ING Direct Tangerine will not generally pay any fees you may be charged by the other bank or financial institution for transferring money out of their RRSP plan. So, for example, if CIBC charges you $100 to transfer out your RRSP, ING Direct Tangerine will NOT reimburse you this amount.

To Get and Complete the T2033 Form from Tangerine

  1. From the links listed on the left side of the screen, click on Transfer RSPs.
  2. Read the instructions. You will complete the form online, print it out, sign it and mail or fax it to Tangerine.
  3. Click on the Next button.

For the Amount section

  1. Click to select either
    • Transfer all my funds, or
    • Transfer a partial amount
    1. If you select to transfer all your funds, in the Approximate value $ field, type about how much money should be transferred.
    2. If you select a partial amount, in the $ field, type the amount
  2. Read the warning that your other institution will probably charge you a fee to make the transfer. These fees are often $100 or more.
  3. From the drop-down list, select which Financial Institution from which you are requesting the transfer.
    • If it’s not listed, select Other.
    • For Other, also type the Name of the Financial Institution in the field with that name.
      For the Canada Retirement Savings Plan, I typed: Trustee CSB Registered Products
  4. In the Account Number field, type the account number for your RRSP at the sending financial institution.
  5. In the Name of Plan field, type the descriptive name for the RRSP plan your money is currently in.
    For example, I might type

    • RRSP Daily Interest Savings for my CIBC RRSP account; or
    • Canada Retirement Savings S045 for my Canada Savings Bonds retirement bond series.
  6. As directed, type in the postal code for the sending bank and click on the Get Address button.
  7. If it can the Tangerine computer will put an address in the Street #, Street Name, City and Province boxes.
    If fields are left blank or are incorrect, type and select the information to provide the mailing address for the financial institution that will be sending the RRSP money to Tangerine.
  8. From the drop-down list answer Yes or No for whether you a trying to transfer a GIC.
  9. Click on the Next button.

In the Investment Section

  1. Choose where you want the RSP cash to be invested once it arrives at ING Direct Tangerine. You can choose
    • an existing RSP ISA
    • a new RSP ISA
    • a new short-term RSP GIC
    • a new RSP GIC
  2. If you select your existing RSP ISA it will ask you to select the appropriate account from the drop-down list.
  3. If you select a new short-term RSP GIC it will ask you to select the Term and the Renewal Options.
  4. If you select a new RSP GIC, it will ask you to select the Term, Renewal Options and whether to Compound the Interest each year it is earned, or whether to deposit the interest annually into another RSP investment.
  5. Click on the Next button.

If you are not transferring to an existing RSP ISA, a Legal Section will open.
In the Legal Section

  1. Read the anti-money-laundering information.
  2. From the drop-down list select whether any third party or other person will benefit from this account. (The usual answer is No.)
  3. Read the legal terms about applying for an ING product. From the drop-down list select whether you accept the terms.
  4. Click on the Next button.

In the Summary Section

  1. Review all the information for your request to transfer RSP money from one financial institution to ING Direct Tangerine.
  2. If the information is correct, click on the Submit button.
  3. Print off the T2033 form.
  4. Click on the Log me out tab.
  5. For increased security, close your browser session.
  6. Sign and date the form.
  7. Mail the form to ING Direct Tangerine or fax it.
    As of June, 2013, the address for ING Direct Tangerine is:
    ING Direct Tangerine
    111 Gordon Baker Road
    Toronto, Ontario
    M2H 3R1
    As of June, 2014, the address for Tangerine is:
    Tangerine
    3389 Steeles Avenue East
    Toronto, Ontario
    M2H 3S8
    Also mail or fax a copy of your most recent RRSP statement from the sending bank or financial institution. (This helps the two companies be sure they are talking about the same RRSP investments.)
  8. WAIT.

It can often take 2-6 weeks for the transfer to be made.

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Did you join the Canada Savings Bonds Retirement Plan? Are you sorry to see CSBs on the endangered investments list? Please share your opinions with a comment.