Return of the mack

Good morning. Dictionary.com has selected “maxxing” as its word of the year for 2026. It’s a helpful suffix that can be added to pretty much anything — whether you're looksmaxxing, sleepmaxxing, tokenmaxxing, jestermaxxing, or, in our case, newslettermaxxing every day.

Does the rise of maxxing as a term reflect a broader trend in our society for constantly and insatiably craving more? Trying to fill a void that is unfillable? Who knows, maybe we’re just paranoiamaxxing. 

Today’s reading time is 5½ minutes.

Markets: Canada’s main stock index hit a one-week high yesterday as strong performances in the tech and energy sectors offset dips stemming from the Bank of Canada’s interest rate hike (more on that below).

Canada’s central bank is taking us back to a faraway land — before the trade war and AI boom — that historians call “2023.”

What happened: The Bank of Canada (BoC) hiked its key interest rate for the first time since July 2023, raising it to 2.5%. Governor Tiff Macklem and Co. were motivated to take action amid fears that rising oil prices will start to fan inflation for other goods and services. 

Zoom in: More hikes could be on the horizon. The BoC said there “could be a need” to raise rates further as it projects inflation won’t drop back down to 2% until midway through 2028. Analysts are split on whether this rate will come in December or if the bank will wait till 2027.  

Why it matters: In taking early action, the BoC is showing a change in its strategy, fearing a repeat of the 2022-23 surge when it arguably waited too long to act — even though inflation worries this time around are spurred by oil prices and not an overheating economy.

Our take: Even if the BoC decides against raising rates further, this hike and the factors that sparked it feel like another sign that we live in a new reality of persistent inflation fears — one in which the ultra-low rates seen at the beginning of the decade can no longer exist.—QH 

The EU rescinded its associate member offer to Canada. The bloc has reportedly dropped the idea of giving Canada a first-of-its-kind associate member status, with a small group of countries — including France, Germany, and Greece — voicing opposition to the title. While the exact verbiage has been softened to “ever closer association” (not quite as catchy), the EU is still keen on deepening economic and security ties with Ottawa. (Politico)

Wealthsimple hits $13.8 billion valuation. The Canadian fintech raised $425 million in its latest funding round, boosting its valuation from $10 billion a year ago. Wealthsimple reported that it now has $169 billion under administration — up from $100 billion last October — and is targeting $1 trillion by 2034, a milestone that would put it on par with Canada’s biggest lenders. (BetaKit)

Canada and the U.S. are still far apart on a tariff deal. A federal government official told Reuters that the two sides haven’t made much progress on an agreement to ease steel and auto tariffs, despite a renewed push from D.C. to get a deal done ahead of next week's midterms. If things don’t go well for the Republicans in the elections, U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra has reportedly prepared a plug-and-play excuse: it’s all Canada’s fault. (Reuters)

📡 What else is on our radar: 

The cheapest flight isn't always the one that gets you there smoothest. Turns out, investing works exactly the same way.

Somewhere along the way, investors were sold a simple rule: fees are certain, markets aren't, so the lowest fee always wins. Fees do matter. But they're only half the math.

What actually compounds in your account is your net return, or what's left after fees. Take two hypothetical $10,000 investments held for 30 years:

The "pricier" option leaves you about $5,800 ahead.

That doesn't mean higher fees are automatically worth it. It means the smarter question isn't "What does this cost?" It's "What am I getting for what I pay?"

Read Fidelity's full paper to see what really drives your long-term returns.

A set of seven studies from researchers at the Mayo Clinic found new insights into senescent cells, which are also known as zombie cells as they have stopped dividing but still stick around in the body and contribute to age-related dysfunction. The studies found, among other things, that these cells are more varied than originally thought and that their tendency to cause inflammation is tied to malfunctioning mitochondria. 

Why it matters: The revelations from these studies will give health researchers a better idea of how to target zombie cells in anti-aging trials and which variants they should focus on. 

Our tax dollars could soon be bankrolling your favourite YouTuber. 

What happened: YouTube Canada is calling on the federal government to create a new lending stream through the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) for online creators. The idea is to factor influencers’ platform income and IP into credit assessments for small business loans. 

Why it matters: According to YouTube’s internal data, creators are quite the buoy for Canada’s economy, contributing $2 billion to the country’s GDP last year and supporting 35,000 full-time jobs. Given that the company is admitting that there’s no accurate way to track creators’ economic impact, these numbers should be taken with a grain of salt. 

Yes, but: The influencer economy is top-heavy, calling into question which ones need loans versus which ones might actually qualify for them. Per one analysis, the top 10% of YouTube channels account for 94% of views, while more than two-thirds of creators make less than US$10,000 a year. 

Our take: There’s undeniably real money in the influencer economy, but the nature of the internet makes income sources extremely volatile compared to other small businesses looking for loans. A mom-and-pop auto shop may have a lower earnings ceiling than a viral influencer, but it also can’t lose 75% of its revenue on the whim of a new TikTok trend.—LA 

Time is money. Ramp is a finance automation platform built to save you both.

Cards, bill pay, and expenses in one platform that supercharges your finance team.

See every swipe as it happens. Automatically block out-of-policy spend. Extract receipt details, match to card transactions, and sync directly to a supported accounting system with automated GST/HST coding.

The average customer saves 7.5% in their first year.¹

Get started for free

¹This percentage is an estimate, not a guarantee.

🍃 21. Tonnes of Canadian cannabis seized by Belgian customs officers last year, more illegal exports than from any other country in the world. Since Canada legalized the drug in 2018, smugglers have targeted European markets, where a kilo of cannabis can fetch up to nine times more than in Canada.

^{*This is sponsored content.}

1 For full disclaimers click here

Put on your puzzle cap and take on today’s mini-crossword, the daily sudoku, Codebreaker, and Who’s Who.