Schwab Reduces Trade Commissions to $4.95 and Lowers Per Contract Options Fee to $0.65

Business Wire

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Charles Schwab Corporation today announced it will reduce its standard online equity and ETF trade commissions from $6.95 to $4.95¹and lower options pricing to $4.95 plus $0.65 per contract effective March 3, 2017.


Schwab	Fidelity	TD Ameritrade	*ETrade**	Vanguard
$4.95	$4.95	$9.99	$9.99	$7 - $20 depending on number of trades

Competitor firm information obtained from their respective websites as of 2/28/17. Competitor pricing and offers subject to change without notice.

"We never want commission costs to be a barrier for investors deciding which firm can best serve their needs,” said Schwab President and Chief Executive Officer Walt Bettinger. “In addition to low commissions, our industry-leading low-cost S&P index mutual fund is nearly five times less than Vanguard and three times less than Fidelity. When combined with our unique Satisfaction Guarantee² and outstanding client service, we believe that Schwab is clearly the best place for investors looking for value and service."

As previously announced, starting tomorrow, expenses for the Schwab market cap-weighted index mutual funds will be lowered, their investment minimums will be eliminated³, and the use of a single share class will ensure that even the smallest investor can invest at low costs historically available only to large institutions.

	Investment Amount⁴
	$5,000	$100,000	$5,000,000
Schwab® S&P 500 Index Fund	0.03%	0.03%	0.03%
Fidelity® 500 Index Fund	0.09%	0.045%	0.035%
Vanguard 500 Index Fund	0.14%	0.04%	- - -⁵

Mr. Bettinger continued, “Our vision at founding was to be a champion for all investors, and that conviction is still at the heart of everything we do. We operate efficiently, and consistent with our strategy, we are committed to sharing the benefits of our scale with clients, who’ve entrusted us with their hard-earned dollars.”

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to trading commission costs as a barrier for investors; the company’s value proposition; and the company’s commitment to share its scale benefits with clients. Achievement of these expectations and objectives is subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the expressed expectations. Important factors that may cause such differences include, but are not limited to, the company’s ability to decrease trading commission costs and the impact on the company’s trading revenue and financial results; competitor actions and offerings; the company’s ability to attract and retain clients and grow relationships and client assets; the level of client assets, including cash balances; general market conditions, including the level of interest rates, equity valuations and trading activity; and the company’s ability to manage expenses.

About Charles Schwab

The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) is a leading provider of financial services, with more than 335 offices and 10.2 million active brokerage accounts, 1.5 million corporate retirement plan participants, 1.1 million banking accounts, and $2.83 trillion in client assets as of January 31, 2017. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company provides a full range of wealth management, securities brokerage, banking, money management, custody, and financial advisory services to individual investors and independent investment advisors. Its broker-dealer subsidiary, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (member SIPC, 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 Schwab Advisor Services. Its banking subsidiary, Charles Schwab Bank (member FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender), provides banking and lending services and products. More information is available at www.schwab.com and www.aboutschwab.com.

Investors should consider carefully information contained in the prospectus, or if available, the summary prospectus, including investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. Please read it carefully before investing.

Investing involves risk including loss of principal.

Broker-assisted trades may be subject to service or account fees.

Charles Schwab Investment Management, Inc. (CSIM), the investment advisor for Schwab Funds, and Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (Schwab), Member SIPC, the distributor for Schwab Funds, are separate but affiliated companies and subsidiaries of The Charles Schwab Corporation.

¹ Restrictions apply: The $4.95 commission does not apply to foreign stock transactions, large block transactions requiring special handling, or restricted stock transactions. Foreign ordinary shares that trade online in the U.S. over-the-counter (OTC) market and do not settle in the U.S. will have a $50 foreign transaction fee added to the cost of the transaction. All broker-assisted and automated phone trades are subject to service charges. See the Charles Schwab Pricing Guide for Individual Investors for full fee and commission schedules. Employee equity compensation transactions are subject to separate commission schedules. Multiple-leg options strategies will involve multiple commissions.

Options carry a high level of risk and are not suitable for all investors. Certain requirements must be met to trade options through Schwab. Please read the options disclosure document titled "Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options." Supporting documentation for any claims or statistical information is available upon request. Call Schwab at 1-800-435-4000 for a current copy. Supporting documentation for any claims or statistical information is available upon request.

² If you are not completely satisfied for any reason, at your request Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”) or Charles Schwab Bank (“Schwab Bank”), as applicable, will refund any eligible fee related to your concern within the timeframes described below. Two kinds of “Fees” are eligible for this guarantee: (1) asset-based “Program Fees” for the Schwab Private Client (“SPC”), Schwab Managed Portfolios (“SMP”), Schwab Intelligent Advisory (“SIA”), and Managed Account Connection (“Connection”) investment advisory services sponsored by Schwab (together, the “Participating Services”); and (2) commissions and fees listed in the Charles Schwab Pricing Guide for Individual Investors and the Schwab Bank Deposit Account Pricing Guide (together, “Account Fees”). Program Fee refund requests must be received no later than the next calendar quarter after the Fee was charged. Account Fee refund requests must be received within one year of the date that the Fee was charged.

The guarantee is only available to current clients. Refunds will only be applied to the account charged and will be credited within approximately four weeks of a valid request. No other charges or expenses, and no market losses will be refunded. Other restrictions may apply. Schwab reserves the right to change or terminate the guarantee at any time.

³ Minimums are subject to change and ETFs require investment of at least one share.

⁴The table is based on prospectus net expense ratio data comparisons between Schwab market cap-weighted index mutual funds and non-Schwab market cap-weighted index mutual funds in the S&P 500 Lipper category. Schwab operating expense ratios (OERs) listed reflect OERs as of 3/1/17. Competitor net OERs represent the lowest OER reported from annual reports, prospectuses and Strategic Insight Simfund, as reflected on 2/24/17. Expense ratios are subject to change.

⁵An Institutional share class is expected to become available on 3/13/17, according to an amended initial prospectus filing on 1/11/17, and the operating expense ratio is expected to be 0.035%. Vanguard offers the Vanguard Institutional Index Fund – Institutional class at 0.04%, which is a separate fund from the Vanguard 500 Index Fund, but is designed to track the S&P 500 Index.