Schwab Statement Regarding Final Ameritrade Transition Group
The Charles Schwab Corporation has completed its fifth and final round of client account transitions associated with the acquisition of Ameritrade, marking the completion of a historic integration.
Over the weekend of May 11-12, 2024, we successfully transitioned ~1.8 million Ameritrade client accounts and ~$350 billion in assets to Schwab—the final 10 percent of the total Ameritrade client population. This transition group included many of Ameritrade’s most engaged and active clients. As of today, 100 percent of Ameritrade’s client accounts and assets have transitioned to Schwab.
We are pleased to report that the client account and asset conversion went smoothly. Our client-first approach to integration planning helped ensure that client experiences, including thinkorswim® platform settings and preferences, followed clients to Schwab, and that our systems were ready to support a breadth of client trading activity, including futures and foreign exchange.
Helping clients through this change has been core to our integration planning from the start. We communicated regularly leading up to the transition weekend. We developed educational resources and hosted webinars. In some instances, we proactively reached out to clients who may need extra support to help them through the process. As with prior transition groups, we added capacity to our service teams and provided extensive training. That’s because we understand that even after a successful conversion, some clients may still need our assistance.
We continue to outperform our client retention expectations and are confident that we will continue to see client satisfaction rise over time, just as it has following other transition groups. Satisfaction scores for retail clients that transitioned in earlier groups have increased an average of 25 points after the first 90 days, and by 45 points after 9 months. Client trading volumes have increased, as has engagement with our trading platforms and adoption of our wealth and advisory solutions. Approximately 30 percent of Schwab Wealth Advisory net flows and enrollments is currently coming from legacy Ameritrade households.
We are committed to building long-term relationships with our clients that extend beyond this integration. It’s the cornerstone of our Through Clients’ Eyes strategy, and delivering a smooth transition is just the beginning. We can now share with them all the benefits of our combined offering, including best-in-class trading and education capabilities, as well as banking, fixed income, and wealth and advisory solutions—all supported by our award-winning technology and client experience, including a nationwide network of more than 400 branches. We are confident that as they become more familiar with Schwab, they will increasingly appreciate and take advantage of all we have to offer.
This is only the beginning
More than four years ago, we embarked on the ambitious and historic effort to acquire and integrate Ameritrade because we believed that, together, we could build something better for our clients than either firm could do on its own.
We took the time to get it right. We upheld our “best of both” commitments, transitioned Ameritrade’s marquee platforms and tools for traders and advisors, and invested $1.5 billion to enhance our platforms and increase our system capacity ten-fold. These investments have positioned us to more quickly and efficiently deliver future client enhancements and capabilities that support our long-term growth.
Today, Schwab is stronger, with more to offer than ever before. We offer more choice and access, more education and support, and the same exceptional service—plus convenience, satisfaction, and security—all at a low cost, and always without tradeoffs. Our trading and education capabilities, offered through Schwab Trading Powered by AmeritradeTM are second to none, and we offer wealth and advice solutions in ways only Schwab can do, thanks to our significant, enhanced scale.
The story of Schwab-plus-Ameritrade doesn’t end with this final client transition. The best days are still ahead of us as we work tirelessly to meet the needs of a range of investors and fuel growth for Schwab that has lasting benefits for our clients, employees, and all stakeholders who put their trust in us.