Hi my wife has a not insignificant amount of USD in a Canadian bank account (USD Chequing Account at VanCity that currently earns zero interest. Physically going and withdrawing the money is not possible because she has moved out of BC and neither of us know when we would ever go back as we are now in Ontario.

What would be the cheapest way of getting the money into a US bank account in US dollars or into a Canadian bank in Canadian dollars?

We have thought of the following options:

1. Order a VanCity cheque book and have her write a check to herself that she cashes into her US bank account. Cheque book costs $40 CAD, and this assumes the US bank will accept an international check
2. Convert the money to CAD at VanCity's rates, then send an interac e-transfer to her current Canadian bank. Then we can re-convert it to USD or invest at the best Canadian rates we can find. The conversion rate would cost us about $150 CAD more than the true interest rate would
3. Perhaps Wise would let us reach into her Canadian account and get the US dollars? We are having trouble though

Are there any other ways?