CST Spark
CST Spark Inc. is a Canadian Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) provider launched in 2018 by the Canadian Scholarship Trust Foundation in Toronto.
| Private | |
| ISIN | 🆔 |
| Industry | Financial Services |
| Founded 📆 | May 18th, 2017 |
| Founder 👔 | |
| Headquarters 🏙️ | Toronto, Ontario |
Area served 🗺️ | |
Key people | Sherry MacDonald |
| Services | Registered Education Savings Plan |
| Members | |
Number of employees | |
| 🌐 Website | cstpark.ca |
| 📇 Address | |
| 📞 telephone | |
History[edit]
CST Spark Inc. was founded by the Canadian Scholarship Trust Foundation (CST Foundation), a not-for-profit foundation dedicated to helping Canadian families save for their children’s post-secondary education.
As of 2019, the CST Foundation has administered $2.2 million in awards, bursaries and scholarships, and its subsidiaries collectively have over $5 billion in assets under management.
Early Beginnings[edit]
In 1960, the Canadian Scholarship Trust Foundation was incorporated by six educators and business professionals. The organization’s first president, Peter Wright, established the non-profit CST Foundation and selected the board of directors.
In 1961, the first CST Plan was opened by Joseph Potts for his five children.
In 1965, CST Foundation hired a company to take over enrollment work.
In 1969, CST proposed a change to the Canadian Income Tax Act. The proposed change gave exemptions and deductions to students with scholarship income, so they had to pay little to no taxes.
In 1972, the Government of Canada introduced the RESP and implemented CST's proposed changes to the Income Tax Act.
In 1988, subsidiary CST Consultants Inc. was launched to market and administer plans.
In 1997, the CST Foundation launched Individual and Family Savings Plans, allowing families to take advantage of new changes to the Income Tax Act.
In 2004, CST lobbied the Canadian government and the Cabinet of Alberta to create more grant programs, resulting in the launch of new government grants such as the Canada Learning Bond and Additional Canada Education Savings Grants in 2005.
In 2007, the Quebec Education Savings Incentive(QESI) was launched providing Quebec families with access to over $10,000 in federal and Quebec education savings grants .
In March 2010, Sherry MacDonald was appointed President and CEO of the Canadian Scholarship Trust Foundation and CST Consultants Inc.
In 2016, the British Columbia Training and Education Savings Grant (BCTESG) became available.
2018- present[edit]
In 2018, CST Spark was launched by the CST Foundation, to provide a digital, online RESP solution.
Products and Services[edit]
CST Bright Plan™[edit]
In 2018, CST Spark launched its RESP CST Bright Plan™. It is one of the first of its kind and based on an investment strategy built specifically for RESPs..[1] . The product is professionally managed and invests in a mix of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) . It offers an age-based rebalancing investing strategy , with the goal of maximizing growth early and preserving gains closer to the child's graduation. The management fee is 1.5 per cent per year. BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited is the portfolio manager and RBC Investor Services Trust is the custodian and trustee.
Contributions into CST Bright Plan are flexible in terms of frequency and contribution amounts [2] . Investment income grows within the plan tax-free.
For the fiscal year ending October 2019, CST Spark reported a 10.4 % rate of return after fees for CST Bright Plan and the since inception return is 5.2% [3]
Community Involvement[edit]
The Canadian Scholarship Trust Foundation, CST Spark’s founding organization, has awarded hard working and community minded students with over $2 million through scholarships, bursaries and awards programs [4] [5].
In 2020, the CST Inspired Minds Learning Project awarded nearly $140,000 to schools and community organizations to counter lost growth and development opportunities caused by social distancing and remote learning[6]
External Links[edit]
Canadian Scholarship Trust Plan
Inspired Minds Learning Project
References[edit]
- ↑ CST Spark Inc. offers the next generation of Registered Education Savings Plans to Canadians Business Insider. November 12, 2019.
- ↑ A digital evolution in RESPs Wealth Professional. January 9, 2020.
- ↑ CST Spark Inc. announces 2019 investment returns for customers of its CST Bright Plan Benzinga. January 27, 2020.
- ↑ Canadian Scholarship Trust Foundation Recognizes Exceptional Students at the 2018 Graduate Awards Newswire. October 22, 2018.
- ↑ Canadian Scholarship Trust Foundation Recognizes Academically Extraordinary and Socially Active Students at the 2019 Graduate Awards Newswire. October 22, 2019.
- ↑ The CST Inspired Minds Learning Project Awards Nearly $140,000 in Funding to Help Learning Happen Yahoo Finance. July 9, 2020.
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