Charles Schwab : VIEW INSIGHTS FOR FIRMS UP TO $100M IN ASSETS

Advisor Services

2021 RIA

Benchmarking Study

Insights

With insights for firms up to $100M in assets

Media contact:

Kerstin Österberg Charles Schwab 347.866.3032 [e-mail]

Schwab's RIA Benchmarking Study is the

leading study in the industry -

1,340 advisory firms, representing over $1.5 trillion in AUM, participated this year.

The following report focuses specifically on firms with up to $100 million in assets and is organized according to Schwab's Guiding Principles for Advisory Firm

Success, a framework to help advisors

address the complexities of growing their firms and creating enduring businesses.

Data collected from January - March 2021.

"Firms with up to $100 million in assets under management realized a greater contribution from organic growth. To support this, they've invested in their tech stacks to enhance the client experience and

their productivity."

Lisa Salvi

Managing Director

Business Consulting and Education

Key Highlights

Firms saw strong organic growth and adopted technology to support the client experience.

These fast-growing firms continued to see positive results in a year of change.

• Firms with up to $100M in assets under management (AUM) excelled in growth from new and existing clients in 2020. Net organic growth for firms of this size was a greater contributor to their overall AUM growth than larger firms. (Slide 8)
• These firms also saw incredibly strong five-year compound annual growth rates for revenue and AUM. (Slides 5 and 6)
• Their strategic initiatives reflect this focus on growth, with acquiring new clients through client referrals ranking number one. And these firms focused on acquiring clients through digital channels, ranking as the number two priority, the highest ranking seen for this initiative compared to other peer groups. (Slide 4)

These firms have invested in technology and look to recruit staff to support their growth.

• More firms with up to $100M in AUM report using key technologies to enhance productivity and support the client experience-about 70% more firms use a document management system and trading and rebalancing system, and almost 40% more firms use a portal to share information with clients compared to five years ago. (Slide 18)
• Recruiting staff to increase the firm's skillset and capacity has risen in importance even though only 25% of smaller firms saw staff departures last year. (Slides 4 and 27)

This icon identifies insights from the study

Looking aheadthat highlight the value of key management strategies that can help firms plan ahead.

2021 RIA Benchmarking Study from Charles Schwab	1

2021 RIA Benchmarking Study from Charles Schwab	2

2021 RIA Benchmarking Study from Charles Schwab	3

Planning

Advisors continue to prioritize client acquisition, with leveraging digital channels and recruiting new staff rising in importance.

		Rank
Top strategic initiatives for firms up to $100M	2021	2020
Acquire new clients through client referrals	1	1
Acquire new clients through digital channels	2	6
Improve satisfaction for existing clients	3	2
Improve productivity using process changes	4	5
Recruit staff to increase firm's skill set/capacity	4	9
Acquire new clients through business referrals	6	3

Results for all firms with up to $100 million in AUM that selected initiative as a top 3 priority. 2021 RIA Benchmarking Study from Charles Schwab, fielded January to March 2021. Study contains self-reported data from 1,340 firms. Participant firms represent various sizes and business models categorized into 7 peer groups by AUM.

2021 RIA Benchmarking Study from Charles Schwab	4