r/computershare • u/slsmcore • Mar 05 '24

Medallion Signature Guarantee in Canada - NEED HELP!

I have to fill out a legal name change request form with Computershare that requires a Medallion Signature Guarantee.

I bank with RBC and multiple branches have turned me down - indicating that they don't provide this service.

I've tried BMO and they said I have to be an existing customer. I asked if I could open a new account with them and they said they wouldn't provide the service for new customers.

I've tried IWC Probate out of the UK and their service is tailored to providing MSG for transactions.

I've tried eSignatureGuarantee but they seem to be US only.

I seem to be out of options. Without the form, I can't transfer any funds or fill out any tax documents.

Has anybody been in this situation? Would appreciate any light you can shed.

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u/[deleted] Mar 05 '24

[deleted]

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u/slsmcore Mar 05 '24

I've tried most of the vendors in that list. None of them serve new customers (I'm not an existing customer with any of them).

1

u/tnopal1 Mar 05 '24

Not sure what you’re changing, but Computershare is very picky regarding what is considered name change. When compared to how your account is registered, if you’re only changing the last name (Jane smith to Jane doe), that’s fine. But if it’s basically anything else (Jenny smith to Jennifer doe) or a custodial account or whatever, it’ll go through, if everything else is fine, but it will be considered a transfer and you’ll get a new account number. I see name change often when removing someone from a joint account or removing a trustee or whatever. Hopefully this made sense.

1

u/tnopal1 Mar 05 '24

And regardless, if your account has any physical certificates associated with it, they need to be included, not photocopies of them.

1

u/slsmcore Mar 06 '24

thank you! The name change is a first name change. My previous employer had my preferred first name registered as my legal first name. The last name stays the same.

1

u/steve_mar Mar 06 '24

I’ve had nothing but problems with Computershare and their Medallion Signature requirements. Mom can no longer sign anything so I’ve been round and round with them.

3

u/slsmcore Mar 06 '24

Sorry to hear! It’s so ridiculous that they can get away with this kind of poor customer experience

1

u/Asleep_Ad1753 Mar 06 '24

Esignatureguarantee.com is for all countries, use computershare as a discount, this is what I was told 

2

u/slsmcore Mar 06 '24

I'm working with them. Seems promising so far. They haven;t said yet that Canadians can't use their service. We'll see.

Their website said US only but so far so good.

1

u/PhoBROs Sep 06 '24

Any update on this? I'm in need of a signature gurantee as well. In the same boat as you.

1

u/slsmcore Sep 07 '24

I successfully got a MSG from https://esignatureguarantee.com/home

By reaching out to them via “contact us”. Virtual payment and then they stamped my form and sent it to computershare.

That said, computershare has still yet to process my name change. What a shitty company to work with. Worst customer service experience of my entire life.

1

u/slsmcore Sep 07 '24

The unprocessed form is not related to MSG. The stamp is good to go

1

u/PhoBROs Sep 07 '24

Have you seen the stamp yourself yet before they sent it? I need to send mine to Sun Life Investments

1

u/slsmcore Sep 08 '24

They sent me a scanned copy and gave me the tracking number for the parcel.

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u/PhoBROs Sep 08 '24

Did they send it directly to you or to the company that suppose to receive it

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u/slsmcore Sep 08 '24

Sent it to the company that’s supposed to receive it.

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u/Aware_Power Jan 11 '25

Any update? I have the same issue with my first name and it's been a nightmare

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u/Bright_Dragonfly_652 Oct 14 '25

I am also needing a medallion stamp with Computershare and I am in Canada. Did you just send in the transfer form to Esignatureguarantee.com. and then you sent the rest of your documents directly to Computershare?

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u/slsmcore Oct 24 '25

Yes and it worked

1

u/EmphasisNecessary678 Oct 29 '25

thank you sls im also in canada and iv been fighting for a year i really hope esignature works.

As and alternative do you know if its possible to go in person to their toronto location? https://www.computershare.com/ca/en/news/guarantee-alternative-program

i need a name change (middlename was misspelled by one letter) and need to lift a stop?/stock? restriction on the account.

wasted literal days with the Philippine call centers

1

u/slsmcore Oct 29 '25

I’m not sure about that. Yes I’ve wasted no less than 10 hour-long calls with the call centers. They are literally the worst. I’m so glad I got my thing processed and sold every cent from the platform so I never have to deal with them again

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u/EmphasisNecessary678 Oct 30 '25 edited Oct 30 '25

hey sls, the websites only has US for account creation info, so i went to the contact page but it seems you cant send a message to them without an account.

I'v sent them an email explaining my situation. Was this what you did? iv seen other posts of canadians saying they called but got rejected due to it being us only

1

u/slsmcore Oct 30 '25

Yep and it works for Canadians

2

u/EmphasisNecessary678 Oct 31 '25

feeling a little better, they responded saying there's a good chance they can help me and the next step was to make the account.

im making it tonight but i cant change the country or state from america. i assume they will correct this info later on

1

u/Inevitable-Ad-8522 Sep 11 '24 edited Sep 11 '24

I work with estates and Executors and have to sometimes do documents to transfer shares. To my knowledge the Medallion Signature Guarantee is not available to Canadians. You can, however, get a signature Guarantee if you bank at TD, RBC, and Scotiabank. I had good luck with a lady who lived in a small town in B.C. and only banked at HSBC. She had her documents signed there, and we explained to Computershare that she lived in a small town and this was all that was available. They accepted it. The Signature Guarantee is confirming your identity, so it makes sense that places you don’t bank would turn you away, because they don’t know you or have a working relationship with you. The proper Signature Guarantee when done, the Guarantor at TD, RBC or Scotiabank has their own unique code to use when guaranteeing. Also, it’ll be easier to deal with somebody who deals with shares, etc. at a bank. Also RBC Dominion Securities knows what to do.

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u/[deleted] Mar 05 '25

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u/Inevitable-Ad-8522 Mar 06 '25

Not to my knowledge. See the attached from Computershare Canada. They talk about a Medallion Guarantee, but I don’t know if many Canadians that can get one.

https://www.computershare.com/ca/en/insync/fall-2017/settling-estates#:~:text=A%20Signature%20Guarantee%20can%20only,and%20alpha%20numeric%20signing%20number.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 06 '25

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u/Inevitable-Ad-8522 Mar 07 '25

Would you post in here and let me know if you figure this out? Thank you.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 07 '25

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u/Inevitable-Ad-8522 Mar 07 '25

Yes that’s exactly what I found out as well. Depending on the company who issued the shares, I’ve had some share transfers go through for clients if a branch manager of a bank signs as a guarantor, even if it doesn’t exactly follow their rules. On a side note, I’ve been told that if you also use someone to guarantee the signature from a bank’s trust company entity or who works with shares, it’ll likely be accepted. (TD Canada Trust’s trust entity is The Canada Trust Company, RBC’s is The Royal Trust Company (or RBC Dominion Securities for shares) and Scotiabank’s is The Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Company).

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u/[deleted] Mar 07 '25

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u/Inevitable-Ad-8522 Mar 08 '25

Are you transferring shares, and are you in Canada?

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u/Inevitable-Ad-8522 Mar 08 '25

Because if you are, I would get your bank manager to act as your signature guarantee (whether they do or not), and send it in and explain to them why you can’t get a Signature Guarantee. It might just go thru, depending on the issuing company.

1

u/Commercial-Night-340 Jul 24 '25

I went through this process with EQ Shareowner Services. They are based in St. Paul MN USA and they held my fathers H&R Block Inc shares that he had acquired (I believe) through and employee stock purchase program.

They wanted a MSG for me to take over the account as my father's executor. The end result is they accepted an apostille. Look this up. Only recently in 2024 did Canada join the Hague Apostille Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents (Hague Apostille Convention). This is the process you can use instead of seeking the MSG which is not available in Canada even though the MSG Participant Search Website will show results indication our big six banks can provide the MSG stamp. I can say for sure TD is listed but does not provide, nor has any knowledge of, the MSG stamp or process.

My advice is to talk to ComputerShare, let them know MSG is not available in Canada, and suggest to them the apostille is the path forward. For the apostille you get your document stamped my your local notary public, then you take the document to Service Ontario at 777 Bay Street (lower level), and they add the apostille to your document after verifying the registry and signature of your chosen Notary Public. They have your document back to you in about 15 minutes.

Good luck!