In 2019 Charles Schwab Corporation first announced the deal to merge with TD Ameritrade. From 2011 TM Ameritrade has had its own version of Salesforce (TD Ameritrade Institutional Edition of Salesforce). Charles Schwab Corporation made it clear that they are not going to support this version. The corporation has it’s own solution StreetSmart Edge, but there isn’t 100%-guarantee that this solution will fit the traders.
Additionally, in 2022, the company announced that Schwab Advisor Services is developing a new app integration with the Salesforce Financial Services Cloud for registered investment advisors (RIAs) on the Schwab platform.
Even though Charles Schwab Corporation promises smooth migration of accounts and data, many traders who had been trading on TM Ameritrade might want to migrate to another platform not sponsored or promoted by Charles Schwab.
We can’t tell the exact dates but as many resources state, the Salesforce version for TD Ameritrade will stop being supported by the end of 2023 – early 2024.
Does that mean that if somebody subscribed to it and a year later, when their renewal comes up, they will no longer have access to it? We don’t particularly know.
But as a Salesforce consulting company with 20+ of experience under the belt, Ascendix has done a lot of work around the financial planning community, enabling us to offer valuable guidance to investors navigating this situation.
We envision several strategic approaches planners can consider. They can either search for Salesforce Financial Cloud migration alternatives, stick with the merge, or move to another platform. They can also audit their current CRM solutions to check if it can sustain their business needs without the support of the Salesforce version for TD Ameritrade.
Let’s observe two approaches – migrating to another platform and moving to another company.
Contact Ascendix and our team will outline all the Salesforce migration option.
TD Ameritrade, as a mature financial company, has a number of financial planners that have basically signed up underneath this particular brand to advertise and promote their financial planning services instead of doing it independently.
There’s access to a lot of resources when a financial planner aligns their practice with one of these big brands. One of the services was Salesforce. Specifically, TD Ameritrade Institutional Edition of Salesforce, which they had designed as a tailored financial planning solution on top of Salesforce.
When the acquisition with the Charles Schwab Corporation started, the latter made decisions towards TD Ameritrade’s platform and tools – they decided not to carry forward the TD Ameritrade product on top of Salesforce and suggested those planners coming forward underneath the Charles Schwab brand use the Financial Services Cloud for Salesforce, as opposed to a privately labelled Charles Schwab version of Salesforce.
It should be noted that planners that are under TD Ameritrade still have their independence. Just because TD Ameritrade got acquired by Charles Schwab doesn’t mean that those planners have to move over to Charles Schwab. They could go and find another platform, or they could go independent.
But if they move over to Charles Schwab, one thing they know for sure is that this TD Ameritrade platform is no longer going to be supported after some period of time.
Anybody who is a prudent planner or trader and wants to make sure they’ve got infrastructure that will be going forward in the way of a CRM tool, will have to decide what to do when this end-of-life event happens.
As we mentioned earlier, The Charles Schwab Corporation suggests traders and planners to move over to the Financial Services cloud. The platform is in some ways similar to what TD Ameritrade put together but also presents notable differences.
According to our observations and from the conversations with these TD Ameritrade brokers who have reached out to us, we outlined several things that make traders hesitate towards moving over:
Many users of Salesforce-based products often utilize only a fraction of what is included in the tool. They’re fascinated and thrilled with its extended functionality, but in reality, they use a small portion of it. When you look at Salesforce Financial Services Cloud (FSC), there are many features and functionalities, a good bit of which most of these users will never touch.
For example, in Salesforce CRM, traders may have Accounts, Companies, Contacts, and some investment accounts that they’re tracking. Maybe they’ve got integration with the document management tool, but they’re not doing much in the way of advanced planning and tracking inside the system.
Despite the fact that traders may use a small portion of FSC, they’ll have to pay for all of it. And the list price for Financial Services Cloud is quite costly, ranging from $225/user/month to $450/user/month. Perhaps, The Charles Schwab Corporation has a discount program that brings the price point down a bit.
Nevertheless, traders are very likely to get a tool bloated with features and functionality, many of which will gather dust instead of being put to good use. So, traders are left pondering whether Salesforce’s Financial Services Cloud is truly the best fit for their needs. It’s a decision they need to weigh carefully and evaluate if the cost is worth it.
Being a Salesforce consulting team, we offer TD Ameritrade users an evaluation of their current situation and help to decide whether Financial Service Cloud is the best solution for them or customization of a simpler and cheaper version of Salesforce will better fit their needs.
During the Salesforce CRM evaluation process, we’ll analyse the necessity of moving to Financial Service Cloud, provide you with guidance on Salesforce license cost optimization, and create a detailed Salesforce customization plan.
In the end of CRM evaluation, you’ll get a clear understanding of whether to migrate to FSC, get the system prepared for the acquisition with The Charles Schwab Corporation or customize their current Salesforce CRM and be independent.
As a proven Salesforce partner with targeted expertise in financial industry, Ascendix is happy to offer alternatives to Financial Service Cloud (FSC).
Even though many traders and investors use Schwab’s trading platforms and software, such as StreetSmart Edge, for their investment activities, some may prefer to use other trading platforms or software for personal preferences or specific needs.
For example, some traders may prefer platforms that offer more advanced charting tools or customizable features. Additionally, traders may have existing systems or strategies incompatible with Schwab’s software, which could also influence their decision not to use it.
Fidelity, Ally Financial, Vanguard, Merrill, Wealthfront, and others are great examples of companies you can move to. The pros of moving to another firm are that this is another fresh-start approach that eliminates any negative aspects of your old financial platform.
However, one of the main concerns traders have is that they will need to research and evaluate other systems to find one that meets their brokerage requirements.
More than that, there will likely be costs involved to configure the platform, migrate or duplicate data between accounts, etc.
While Ascendix may not be directly involved in the acquisition of TD Ameritrade by Charles Schwab Corporation, we can assist traders, brokers, and investors in the following directions:
Contact us to get expert support from an experienced Salesforce Financial Services Cloud accredited consultant team.
TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation is a reputable stockbroker that offers an electronic trading platform for trading financial assets, including common and preferred stocks. Launched in 1975, the company is one of the best brokerages for online stock trading, long-term investing, and retirement planning.
The Charles Schwab Corporation is another reputable institution that provides a full range of brokerage, banking, and financial advisory services through its operating subsidiaries. The corporation was launched in 1971 and is a mature player in the financial services industry.
The Charles Schwab Corporation and TD Ameritrade acquisition was scheduled to take place within the next 18 to 36 months, although preparations have been in progress since the acquisition was publicized on November 25, 2019.
During the interim period, both Schwab and TD Ameritrade announced to continue functioning as separate broker-dealers to cater their respective customers. Until the integration is completed, the existing range of products, services and delivery channels provided by the two firms will remain mostly unchanged. Customers are advised to contact Schwab for Schwab account-related activities and TD Ameritrade for TD Ameritrade account-related activities.
While it is reassuring that both companies will continue to operate independently during the acquisition process, there are valid concerns about the potential impact of the merger on customers that we’ve analysed in the previous passages.
Kateryna creates engaging content about Salesforce consulting, Ascendix products, and CRM best practices for the commercial real estate industry and legal services. Her articles provide readers with relevant data, stats, business tricks and overviews of new industry trends and CRM updates.
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