The Support You Need

The paths to independence are well worn, and a robust community of support has sprung up around them. We connect you to a vast network of Schwab and third-party consultants and providers so that you have the right resources at every step.

Experts in your corner

When you go independent with Schwab as your custodian, you enter a community of world-class Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) support from industry experts and Schwab professionals who focus on details like back-office implementation and every aspect of launching and growing your firm.

Watch video: The independence community

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Inside the RIA ecosystem video series (Shirl Penney)
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Inside the RIA ecosystem

Dynasty Financial Partners

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Shirl Penney, Founder, President & CEO, Dynasty Financial Partners
Dynasty works primarily with the advisors that want supported independence. And what we found is a lot of advisors want to be independent, but not alone. They want to be part of a community. They want to be around likeminded advisors that they can share and collaborate with and share best practices, so Dynasty creates that type of community.
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Entrepreneurs serve entrepreneurs.
One of the great things I think about the RIA ecosystem is you have entrepreneurs that are servicing other entrepreneurs, which creates this ultimate sense of accountability. If we don't deliver a world class service for our advisor client, we get fired, as we should. Just like if an advisor doesn't deliver for their client, they do, as well. So it's not an employer/employer-type relationship, it's a service relationship with all of these businesses that have been created in the RIA ecosystem providing services to RIAs. It's allowed for the whole capability set now to be delivered, I think, in a truly differentiated way, but in a way that holds those service providers very accountable to the underlining RIAs that they serve.
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Achieving the American dream.
As I think back of all the stories of those that we have on the platform and how we've helped them live their American dream, and we talk very much about we get to live our American dream at Dynasty by empowering others to live theirs. We love all of our children the same, but if I reflect on it, there's a few that I'm particularly proud of, and I think about we have three advisors that are on our platform now that are over the age of 70, and in some cases worked at their previous employer for 35 or 40 years. And they inspire me and they inspire us that at this stage of the career they see the future of the industry on the independent side and they've made the leap to start their own firm, and have been very successful.
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The RIA support ecosystem is a robust resource—
attracting a record number
of sophisticated teams.
Is yours next?
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Information as of November 16, 2017.
Information included during this video is intended to be an overview and is subject to change.

Experiences expressed by advisors may not be representative of the experience of other advisors and are not a guarantee of future success.

The above-mentioned firm and its employees are not affiliated with or employees of Schwab. The mention of these third parties should not be construed as a recommendation, endorsement of, or sponsorship by Schwab. You must decide whether to hire any firm and the appropriateness of its services for you or your firm. Schwab does not supervise third-party firms and takes no responsibility to monitor the services they provide to you.
Schwab does not provide legal, regulatory or compliance advice. Consult professionals in these fields to address your specific circumstance.
Schwab Advisor Services™ serves independent investment advisors and includes the custody, trading, and support services of Schwab.
Independent investment advisors are not owned by, affiliated with, or supervised by Schwab.
©2023 Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab"). All rights reserved. Member SIPC. (0123-2YG7)
Watch video: Advisor Growth Strategies

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Inside the RIA ecosystem.
Advisor Growth Strategies LLC
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John Furey, Principal & Founder, Advisor Growth Strategies

We help advisors in transition with a variety of things, helping them with entity formation, and how to set up your legal team, we help with transition project management, and we also help them essentially build-out their organizational structure and set up their office, so everything you need to start up a new company.

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RIAs have options.

One of the greatest things about being independent now for advisors that are in the independent channel is the ecosystem that surrounds them. And why is it better? Well, the first reason why it's better is options, there's optionality in independence.

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RIAs have a track record of retention.

The largest concern is, ‘Will my clients come with me? If I go independent and make the move, will they actually transition with me?' And, really, what you need to do for that concern is take stock in ‘When I think about my clients and when they think of me, do they see their relationship with me or are they close with me, or perhaps are they more interested in working with the institution?' But if you've done a great job as a financial advisors, and large teams almost always have, because that's the reason they're so large, you should feel really, really confident that your clients will go with you. And you could ask folks around the industry, and Schwab has done research on this, that retention rates for large teams usually come in at about 95% of their revenue, so it's a staggering retention rate. So it shouldn't be too much concern around that one.

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The risk may be greater if you stay.

You know, when you look at going independent, what is the alternative? The alternative could be staying within a large institution. And is there risk there or is there reward there? So I think, from my perspective, the benefit of going independent, perhaps… and there's risk in doing so, is a better environment versus staying, because in large institutions now they're evolving and they're changing, and really where those firms are going is more into a structure where it's, perhaps, a bit more top-down from an advisor perspective, because we hear that, and it's also a thought of perhaps the way I want to work with my clients in the future, I may or may not be able to because of either a compliance construct or a management construct. So I think advisors, especially the larger teams, are now taking a look at that and saying, ‘Wow! You know, sure it may be some risk to go independent, but perhaps the risk is greater in staying.

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Information as of November 16, 2017.

Information included during this video is intended to be an overview and is subject to change.

Experiences expressed by advisors may not be representative of the experience of other advisors and are not a guarantee of future success.

Schwab does not supervise third-party firms and takes no responsibility to monitor the services they provide to you. Experiences expressed are no guarantee of future performance or success and may not be representative of your experience.

Schwab does not provide legal, regulatory or compliance advice. Consult professionals in these fields to address your specific circumstance.

Schwab Advisor Services^TM serves independent investment advisors and includes the custody, trading, and support services of Schwab.

Independent investment advisors are not owned by, affiliated with, or supervised by Schwab.
©2018 Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab"). All rights reserved. Member SIPC. (0718-8HNR)
Watch video: Creating your network: More tech options and support

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Inside the RIA ecosystem video series (Eric Clarke)

Inside the RIA ecosystem.
Orion Advisor Services
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Eric Clarke, CEO, Orion Advisor Services
As we built our business over the years, I've noticed that our advisors truly care about the financial well-being of their clients. They're saddled with their concerns, their burdens, and the last thing that they want to deal with is the successful implementation of back office technology. So we take that responsibility off of their hands, allowing them to focus on their client relationships, and helping those clients meet those financial goals and objectives.
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Going independent means trading limitations for possibilities.
We talk to advisors every day that are frustrated by the walls that are being built up around them, the things that they can't do, the networks that they can't create, the services that they can't provide to their clients. And as they transition towards independence, those walls come down, the barriers, they go away, the networks that they can create open up, and they find themselves in an environment of independence that thrives on working with services providers that have to compete to win their business, to help them succeed each and every day, as opposed to keep putting up barriers to keep them in their current situation.
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Independence is about doing right by clients and building value.
There are two things that advisors have a real advantage of when they go independent. The first is doing the right thing for the client, setting themselves up under a business model that allows them to act as a fiduciary and do what’s in their clients' best interests. The second thing that it allows them to do is build value, because it allows them to build up the valuation of their firm over time, and have something that they can put a very successful plan in place for succession and ultimately transition that business off to continue providing best-in-class services to their clients.
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Large RIA firms are growing even larger.
We work with some of the largest investment advisors in the country, and those investment advisors are doing a phenomenal job at working with their clients, doing the right thing for their clients, and as that happens, they are really seeing their businesses grow. And the amount of scale that we have to provide as a tech provider has increased and it’s definitely a focus of our business as we move into the future, as well.
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Information as of November 16, 2017.
Information included during this video is intended to be an overview and is subject to change.
Experiences expressed by advisors may not be representative of the experience of other advisors and are not a guarantee of future success.
The above-mentioned firm and its employees are not affiliated with or employees of Schwab. The mention of these third parties should not be construed as a recommendation, endorsement of, or sponsorship by Schwab. You must decide whether to hire any firm and the appropriateness of its services for you or your firm. Schwab does not supervise third-party firms and takes no responsibility to monitor the services they provide to you.
Schwab does not supervise third-party firms and takes no responsibility to monitor the services they provide to you. Experiences expressed are no guarantee of future performance or success and may not be representative of your experience.
Schwab does not provide legal, regulatory or compliance advice. Consult professionals in these fields to address your specific circumstance.
Schwab Advisor Services^™serves independent investment advisors and includes the custody, trading, and support services of Schwab.
Independent investment advisors are not owned by, affiliated with, or supervised by Schwab.
©2023 Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”). All rights reserved. Member SIPC. (0123-2YG7)
Watch video: Start with the end: Planning your firm

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Inside the RIA ecosystem video series (Brian Hamburger)

MarketCounsel
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Brian Hamburger, President and CEO, MarketCounsel
Through MarketCouncil we consult with investment advisors and those who are looking to become investment advisors, we talk with them about the movement into independence and how to create an investment advisor. We talk to them about building of businesses and recruiting of new talent to the firms. We talk to them about protecting the firms once they have it built and gaining efficiencies. And thereafter, we talk to them about where the firm is headed, and help them with strategic issues.
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Independence means something better for advisors, their teams, and their clients.
Now the folks who are really intrigued by independence aren't only those that dreamt of entrepreneurship, but they now include those that are willing to be entrepreneurs. They're willing to be entrepreneurs because it means something better for them and for their teams, and, primarily, at the end of the day, it means something better for their clients.
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Going independent is about aligning advisor values with client expectations.
But when advisors are coming to us, they're not coming to us as a blank slate. They are coming to us packed with questions and information, and, unfortunately, a good deal of misinformation. And so they're coming to us and they're saying, 'So here's what I want to do, and here's how I want to do it, and here's when I want to do it.' And we're saying, 'Time out. Time out. Let's start with the end. Close your eyes. What does this look like at the end? What does this look like to your clients? What does this look like to your team? How are you making this announcement?’ And we'll work backwards. We've done this before. We can draft off of that experience, and we can get you there, but you're not to direct this movie. This is one that we have to direct. You just tell us what you want it to look like.
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Independence is the next step in a successful career.
The one thing I wish that advisors looking to become independent really understood is that they sit in a really unique position to take decades that they have spent in a really meaningful career and just leverage that down to the hilt, finally turn that into being an expert in your craft, to being a business owner that's able to make decisions that impact a team. Being part of a group who are making investment decisions, not based upon what the firm says is available to them, but out of the entire spectrum of investments and securities and non-securities. And being able to sit in front of a client and say, 'We built this firm, we built this firm so that we can act in your best interest, so that we're not riddled with the conflicts that are just inherent in a large organization involved in multiple business lines.
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Almost all of our clients wish they would have gone independent sooner.
It's a bit of a rollercoaster ride. It is… you know, you are in for some of the most exhilarating and exciting times that you've had. Some of our, you know, many of our clients will come back and report to us that they felt their heart pumping again, that they finally reinvigorated the passion they had for the business. They felt that they were resetting and doing what they loved, but now for all the right reasons.
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Information as of November 16, 2017.
Information included during this video is intended to be an overview and is subject to change.
Experiences expressed by advisors may not be representative of the experience of other advisors and are not a guarantee of future success.
The above-mentioned firm and its employees are not affiliated with or employees of Schwab. The mention of these third parties should not be construed as a recommendation, endorsement of, or sponsorship by Schwab. You must decide whether to hire any firm and the appropriateness of its services for you or your firm. Schwab does not supervise third-party firms and takes no responsibility to monitor the services they provide to you.
Schwab does not provide legal, regulatory or compliance advice. Consult professionals in these fields to address your specific circumstance.
Schwab Advisor Services^™serves independent investment advisors and includes the custody, trading, and support services of Schwab.
Independent investment advisors are not owned by, affiliated with, or supervised by Schwab.
©2023 Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab"). All rights reserved. Member SIPC. (0123-2YG7)

What will it look like to chart your own course to independence? Review the five core RIA models.

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Resources and connections

Hear what these advisors have to say about their move to independence and the wide range of support that helped make it possible.

Watch video: Guides for each step toward independence

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On-screen text:
Resources to help us succeed.
Quadrant Private Wealth
On-screen text:
Going independent doesn't mean going it alone.
There are a number of resources available to advisors who choose the RIA model.
Focus Financial Partners is a partnership of independent wealth management firms and one of many consulting options available to advisors.
Focus Financial Partners has worked with Quadrant Private Wealth during their transition to the RIA model and beyond.
Quadrant Private Wealth selected Schwab Advisor Services™ as their custodian.
On-screen text:
Jason B. Cort, CPWA^®
President, Founding Partner, & Private Wealth Advisor | Quadrant Private Wealth
One of the greatest challenges leaving the wirehouse world was we didn't know how to run a business and we've always believed that you can't surround yourself with enough good people that can add value and at the same time have your best interest at heart.
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Kori Lannon, CPWA^®, CRPC^®
CMO, Founding Partner, & Private Wealth Advisor | Quadrant Private Wealth
The real turning point for us was when we met the folks at Focus Financial Partners. They handed us a spreadsheet, I think it was a 250 to 300 point spreadsheet that said this is what you guys are going to have to accomplish in the next six months to make this work.
Marketing, technology, human resources, operations, you name it, if it's related to run a business Focus has a vested interest in helping us make smart, logical decisions.
Financially as well, they helped us to bridge the gap from running your own practice within a wirehouse to independently running your own practice. We continue to value Focus as an extremely useful resource. We collaborate with them very, very frequently. They just have such an extraordinary top-notch pool of intellectual capital to share.
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Herman L. Rij, CIMA^®
Chairman, Founding Partner, & Private Wealth Advisor | Quadrant Private Wealth
The decision of a custodian is obviously a very, very important one. We had the opportunity to interview many different firms. And when we got all said and done we just felt much more comfortable with the options available to us and support available to us through the people at Schwab.
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Brian C. Cort, CFP^®, CHFC, CRPC^®
COO, CCO, Founding Partner, & Private Wealth Advisor | Quadrant Private Wealth
At the time of our transition one of the most asked questions was, are my assets still safe, and it was very easy to say that Charles Schwab Institutional was going to be the keeper of the assets.
We are obviously looking for someone that could safeguard our client assets, but also provide all the technology and all the support that would allow us to focus on what we do best, which is working with clients, and not have to worry about did we have access to research, did we have access to trading, did we have access to the basic, you know, accounting systems. Schwab took care of all of that for us.
Once we formed Quadrant and started to transfer our book of business, they were amazing at a time when we didn't have any extra hours or minutes or seconds to spare.
The hard work was absolutely worth it and if it wasn't for everybody in the firm really having each other's backs and understanding that it would take a joint effort. And Schwab there right with you gave you a sense of well-being that you could just put your head down, focus on the task at hand and make it through the transition.
On-screen text:
Schwab logo: Own Your Tomorrow
©2024 Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. All rights reserved, Member SIPC. (1223-0FCJ)
On-screen text:
Disclosures
Jason Cort, Brian Cort, Kori Lannon, and Herman Rij are clients of Schwab and were not compensated for their comments. The experience described may not be the experience of all clients and is not a guarantee of future performance or success.
Focus Financial Partners is a partnership of independent wealth management firms and one of many consulting options potentially available to transitioning advisors. Focus Financial Partners and their employees are not affiliated with or employees of Schwab unless otherwise noted. Their mention should not be construed as a recommendation by, endorsement of, or sponsorship by Schwab. The views expressed are those of Quadrant Private Wealth and are provided for informational purposes only. Experiences expressed are no guarantee of future performance or success and may not be representative of you or your experience. You must decide whether to hire any firm and the appropriateness of their services for you or your firm.
The above mentioned firms and their employees are not affiliated with or employees of Schwab unless otherwise noted. Mention should not be construed as a recommendation, endorsement of, or sponsorship by Schwab. The views expressed are those of the third party and are provided for informational purposes only. Experiences expressed are no guarantee of future performance or success and may not be representative of you or your experience.
Third party trademarks are the property of their respective owners and used with permission. Third party firms and their employees are not affiliated with or an employee of Schwab.
Information included in this video is intended to be an overview and is subject to change.
Schwab does not provide legal, regulatory or compliance advice. Consult professionals in these fields to address your specific circumstance.
Schwab Advisor Services™ provides custody, trading, and the support services of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab"), member SIPC, to independent investment advisors and Charles Schwab Investment Management, Inc. ("CSIM").
Independent investment advisors are not owned by, affiliated with, or supervised by Schwab.
©2024 Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab"). All rights reserved. Member SIPC.
Watch video: Accelerating successful transitions

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Resources to help us succeed.
Concentus Wealth Advisors.
Going independent doesn’t mean going it alone.
There are a number of resources available to advisors who choose the RIA model.
Dynasty Financial Partners is a partnership of independent wealth management firms and one of many consulting options available to advisors.
Dynasty Financial Partners has worked with Concentus Wealth Advisors during their transition to the RIA model and beyond.
Concentus Wealth Advisors selected Schwab Advisor Services™ as their custodian.
Gerald “Zeke” Strid
Founding Principal | Concentus Wealth Advisors
We are on a rocket ship right now. The changes in our industry are so fast and so dramatic it’s not even funny.
Paul Strid
Founding Principal and COO | Concentus Wealth Advisors
Concentus is located just outside Philadelphia in an area called The Main Line. We grew up here so we’ve been in this area for a long time, and I think that shows in our business and our clients.
Erik Strid
Founding Principal and CEO | Concentus Wealth Advisors
I had a sense that in the long run, we eventually wanted to become independent and have our own independent business.
We didn’t want to join a model that gave up the equity of our firm to someone else.
So, one of the things we really should have been concerned with was actually running the business and doing the things it takes to set up a business.
We were introduced to Dynasty Financial Partners through Schwab. Their slogan is “Powering Independence.”
The folks at Dynasty call themselves an outsourced middle office for independent registered investment advisor firms.
They power our independence. They help us go independent and be successful at being independent.
They were gonna really work with us very closely to help us to make sure that our transition was successful which they did.
Set up HR and payroll and insurance.
The combination of Dynasty Financial and then Charles Schwab as our custodian was really just very compelling for us.
We knew that when we were gonna be going to talk to our clients about the fact that we’re recommending they use Charles Schwab as their primary custodian, we weren’t gonna have any push-back. That feeling of safety of assets permeated everything that our clients understood about Charles Schwab.
We had all hands on deck during the transition, we had plenty of help.
It was really just a great combination to have those two firms at our disposal and helping us make sure this transition would be successful.
And it was great to just have more camaraderie here, more high fives to go around when we had a big client say yes.
There are a lot of fears about going independent. Clearly they are there and they can be daunting. But having been through it, you look back and you’re like oh my gosh I can’t believe how far I’ve come in a year. If you’re thinking about it… do it… is my advice.
Disclosures
©2017 Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”). All rights reserved. Member SIPC. (1117-78V1)
Information included during this video is intended to be an overview and is subject to change. Experiences expressed by advisors may not be representative of the experience of other advisors and are not a guarantee of future success.
Concentus Wealth Advisors is not owned by or affiliated with Schwab, and its personnel are not employees or agents of Schwab. This video is not a referral to, endorsement or recommendation of, or testimonial for the advisor with respect to its investment advisory or other services.
Dynasty Financial Partners is a partnership of independent wealth management firms and one of many consulting options potentially available to transitioning advisors. Dynasty Financial Partners and their employees are not affiliated with or employees of Schwab. Their mention should not be construed as a recommendation by, endorsement of, or sponsorship by Schwab. The views expressed are those of Concentus Wealth Advisors and are provided for informational purposes only. Experiences expressed are no guarantee of future performance or success and may not be representative of you or your experience. You must decide whether to hire any firm and the appropriateness of their services for you or your firm.
Schwab does not supervise third-party firms and takes no responsibility to monitor the services they provide to you. Experiences expressed are no guarantee of future performance or success and may not be representative of your experience.
Schwab does not provide legal, regulatory or compliance advice. Consult professionals in these fields to address your specific circumstance.
Schwab Advisor Services™ serves independent investment advisors and includes the custody, trading, and support services of Schwab.
Independent investment advisors are not owned by, affiliated with, or supervised by Schwab.

Building an RIA firm can be challenging. That’s why Schwab provides dedicated business startup, transition, and technology teams to help you navigate your launch. But our support doesn't end there. Our consultants, custom tools and resources, and executive education empower you to grow your business and work toward achieving your strategic goals—long after your transition.

Learn more

A financial advisor talks with a Schwab specialist about making the transition.

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Understanding the advantages

RIA industry assets have grown steadily for over a decade.¹ Find out why you shouldn't wait to join the movement.

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Choosing the right path

There are many ways to go independent. Explore the options, and learn the important questions you should ask to find the path that's best for you and your clients.

Explore the options
Making the transition

Moving to the independent RIA model can be an incredibly rewarding process. We're there to support you at every step.

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Get where you want to be

Talk to a Schwab Business Development Officer to learn how our innovation, insights, and resources can help you own your future and better serve your clients.

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The Support You Need

Experts in your corner

5 business models for the modern RIA

World-class service is in our DNA

Resources and connections

Specialized expertise at every step

Understanding the advantages

Choosing the right path

Making the transition

Get where you want to be

Going Independent Section

The Support You Need

Experts in your corner

5 business models for the modern RIA

World-class service is in our DNA

Resources and connections

Specialized expertise at every step

Helpful information

Understanding the advantages

Choosing the right path

Making the transition

Contact

Get where you want to be