Plans Include Insurance and Real Estate Offers, Start-Up Financing,
Planning Tools, Expanded Service Team; New National Ad Campaign Also
Launched
SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Schwab Institutional,
a leading provider of custodial, operational and trading support for more
than 5,000 independent investment advisors today announced an enhanced
package of offers that will help entrepreneurial advisors who choose to
leave traditional financial services companies start their own independent
firms. The new offers include expanded partnerships with a national
insurance broker and major commercial real estate firm, a lending program
pilot, and expanded service teams. In addition, Schwab Institutional is
launching a new public web site and an advertising campaign to educate
advisors about the benefits of the independent model.
"The moves we are making today are the first of many we will make in
2007 to help advisors who want to become independent," said Barnaby Grist,
managing director of strategic business development for Schwab
Institutional. "Schwab Institutional has been working with independent
investment advisors for the past 20 years, but in the last two years we
have seen a tremendous increase in the number of advisors who are choosing
to break out on their own. We are committed to making significant
investments towards educating advisors about their options and to helping
ensure that their transition is as smooth as possible."
Real Estate and Insurance Benefits
Schwab Institutional is launching a real estate program that includes a
new partnership with CB Richard Ellis, the world's largest real estate
services firm. New and existing advisors of all sizes will be able to
access a dedicated, experienced team that will provide transaction and
project management support and will work with advisors to negotiate the
real estate costs for their firm. In addition, Schwab has arranged for
discounts on select office services like postage and shipping and executive
suite options for small firms and/or for temporary use during a transition.
In addition, Schwab Institutional has expanded its partnership with
insurance broker and administrator Marsh Affinity Group Services. Through
this partnership, all advisory firms who custody assets with Schwab
Institutional will receive personalized service and preferred pricing on
errors & omissions (E&O) insurance, benefits previously generally available
only to firms with more than $100 million in assets under management.
Schwab Institutional will also work with Marsh Affinity Group Services to
provide educational resources that will help advisors navigate the process
of securing E&O insurance for their businesses.
Start-Up Financing
Schwab Institutional is piloting a program to offer start-up financing
to advisors with at least $75 million in assets under management. Initially
launching in 11 key states, the Schwab Advisor Business Loan is designed to
help advisors pay for start-up costs for their new businesses -- like
office space and technology -- and to provide working capital during the
first year of operations. Loan amounts will be based on an evaluation of
each advisor's creditworthiness and will begin at $100,000.
Resources to Help Advisors: Plan. Convert. Grow.(TM)
Schwab Institutional has recently expanded its conversion service teams
who are dedicated to helping advisors achieve a smooth transition. Each new
advisory firm is assigned one conversion consultant, who helps ensure that
all the necessary paperwork and transition details have been completed,
including monitoring the account set-up and transfer process for advisors'
clients. This conversion team was originally launched in 2005 but has
recently expanded both in numbers and in scope of responsibilities in order
to accommodate the increase in advisors choosing the independent model.
To assist advisors in learning more about how to make the move to
independence, Schwab Institutional has launched a new public web site
(http://www.backingtheindependent.com ) that focuses on the three stages
that any transitioning advisor must go through: plan, convert and grow. The
site features interactive tools and expanded educational content on:
*How to decide if independence is the right choice
*What the process of becoming an independent advisor entails
*What Schwab Institutional can do to help ensure a successful transition
In addition, the web site now includes an archive of Schwab
Institutional's popular ongoing webcast series on the various aspects of
independence, including such topics as navigating technology options and
legally structuring an advisory firm. Advisors can also learn from others
who have made the transition to independence by viewing video clips of
current independent advisors talking about their experience.
To help educate advisors on the benefits of starting or joining an
independent advisory firm, Schwab Institutional has also launched a new
national advertising campaign. The new national print and online
advertising campaign will run throughout 2007 in major advisor trade
outlets and in business media outlets like Barron's and the Wall Street
Journal.
About Schwab Institutional
Schwab Institutional is a leading provider of custodial, operational
and trading support for independent fee-based investment advisors. This
year marks Schwab Institutional's 20th anniversary serving the independent
investment advisor industry. Since 1987, Schwab Institutional has supported
independent investment advisors by offering support and services to help
grow their businesses and help their clients reach their financial goals.
As of December 31, 2006, client assets custodied with Schwab Institutional
stood at $502 billion. These assets, managed by the approximately 5,000
independent advisor firms Schwab Institutional currently serves, represent
approximately one-third of total client assets custodied with The Charles
Schwab Corporation.
About Charles Schwab
The Charles Schwab Corporation (Nasdaq: SCHW) is a leading provider of
financial services, with more than 300 offices and 6.7 million client
brokerage accounts, 541,000 corporate retirement plan participants, 146,000
banking accounts, and $1.2 trillion in client assets. Through its operating
subsidiaries, the company provides a full range of securities brokerage,
banking, money management and financial advisory services to individual
investors and independent investment advisors. Its broker-dealer
subsidiary, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (member SIPC, http://www.sipc.org ),
and affiliates offer a complete range of investment services and products
including an extensive selection of mutual funds; financial planning and
investment advice; retirement plan and equity compensation plan services;
referrals to independent fee-based investment advisors; and custodial,
operational and trading support for independent, fee-based investment
advisors through its Schwab Institutional division. The Charles Schwab
Bank, N.A. (member FDIC) provides banking and mortgage services and
products. CyberTrader(R), Inc. (member SIPC, http://www.sipc.org ) is an
electronic trading technology and brokerage firm providing services to
highly active, online traders. More information is available at
http://www.schwab.com . (0107-0036)
SOURCE Charles Schwab
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Related links:
http://www.schwab.com
http://www.backingtheindependent.com
CONTACT:
Lindsay Tiles of Charles Schwab,
+1-415-667-3997, or lindsay.tiles@schwab.com
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