Independent advisors saw “phenomenal growth” in 2005. Client assets associated with Schwab Institutional increased 17% to $406 billion in 2005, according to the San Francisco-based custody, trading and operations platform for independent fee-based advisors. The number of individual client accounts grew 7% to 1.4 million.

“Affluent investors are clearly voting in favor of independent advisors, and we are grateful for the opportunity to play an integral role in helping our clients build and manage their businesses,” says Schwab Institutional president Deborah Doyle McWhinney. “As independent investment advisors continue to experience phenomenal growth, the Schwab Institutional team remains committed to investing in the tools and resources necessary to meet the needs of an expanding client base.”

In 2004 Schwab’s RIA service agency saw a 21% increase in associated assets and a 6% in increase in new client accounts.

New client assets associated with Schwab Institutional accounted for more than half of Charles Schwab Corporation Charles Schwab Corporation’s $75 billion in new assets last year. Schwab Institutional’s client assets represent about a third of the parent corporation’s $1.2-trillion total. –FWR

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