Fidelity Investments is offering a series of fee waivers and price reductions on its custodial platform for independent advisers and their customers.
Beginning Oct. 1, the Boston investment management company will offer reduced fees for a range of services including technology, transition costs, custody and online equity trading. And rather than offer an interim, short-term discount, Fidelity announced last week that it is trying to position its platform as offering long-term value through these discounts and continuing information technology upgrades.
The discounts include a 10% to 35% reduction on the annual service fees for the Oracle customer relationship management application on Fidelity WealthCentral. Also, a 50% discount in 2010 and 2011 on the annual cost of Advent's APX-hosted multicustodial platform.
For new accounts that advisers set up with Fidelity through June 30, 2010, Fidelity is waiving annual position fees for alternative investment accounts, annual trustee fees for personal trust accounts and annual custody fees for accounts held in its managed accounts.
With respect to trading fees, for new accounts that advisers set up with Fidelity through June 30, 2010, Fidelity is eliminating the commission on electronic equity and options trades. "These new pricing initiatives are an example of our focus on making the strategic, long-term investments that give advisers the tools to help them succeed," Michael Durbin, the president of Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services, said in a press release last week. Durbin's unit had $320 billion of assets under custody on June 30.
