Charles Schwab Reports Significant Growth in Demand for Compliance Solutions amid Increased Regulatory Scrutiny

Employee-monitoring programs provide an opportunity to mitigate risk, streamline operations and protect corporate reputation

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- As companies respond to increased regulatory pressure, Charles Schwab today reported the number of corporate clients using its Compliance Solutions services jumped approximately 62% over the last two years. Total assets monitored rose 58% to approximately $60 billion. Compliance Solutions helps financial services firms and industry providers meet increasingly complex employee compliance and regulatory requirements.

“Compliance officers’ jobs have gotten much tougher in the past few years as they are required to manage a number of different risks and costs ranging from employee actions to threats to the integrity of their firm’s data,” said Scott Rister, vice president, Compliance Solutions. “The number of firms that are required to monitor employee securities trading is growing rapidly. When managed effectively, a compliance program can be an opportunity to position a company favorably in the marketplace, build trust with clients, and enhance value and market share for a firm.”

Compliance Solutions empowers firms with a comprehensive suite of automated employee monitoring solutions, designated brokerage services, and a wide range of financial products and services for employees. Formed in 2012, Compliance Solutions is comprised of Schwab Designated Brokerage Services and Schwab Compliance Technologies™ (formerly Compliance11).

Schwab Designated Brokerage Services has provided employee trade monitoring services to employers in regulated industries for more than 20 years and now serves 1,500 corporate clients covering 250,000 employee accounts. Schwab Compliance Technologies provides advanced, web-based compliance tools and technology to more than 685 corporate clients and 97,000 licensed system users.

Schwab Trade Check™

“A growing concern for our clients is improper securities trading as employees may be prohibited from trading a specific security for a variety of reasons, such as the firm possessing material non-public information,” Rister continued. “The majority of the time, employees are unaware that they are making a prohibited trade, and to avoid this honest mistake we have created Schwab Trade Check™ to proactively validate these trades.”

Schwab Trade Check automates the pre-clearance process and helps protect against potential trading violations by automatically matching employee trade attempts on the Schwab brokerage platform against a pre-set list of rules and within seconds approves the transaction or denies it. When a prohibited trade is attempted, the system alerts compliance administrators so they can review the issue. Schwab Trade Check is unique in the industry and prevents employees from executing a prohibited trade in error, notifying them that the trade was denied due to their company’s rules. With other systems available today, even if a prohibited trade is detected, it is after the fact, which creates a poor experience for the employee and the employer alike, often requiring the trade to be canceled and unwound.

Comprehensive Employee Monitoring Tools, Technology and Resources

Compliance Solutions offers additional tools and technology to help transform a company’s overall employee monitoring program from complex and time-consuming to straightforward and efficient. Comprehensive offerings include:

• Proactive enforcement of company trading policies
• Distribution and tracking of employee affirmations and disclosures
• Logging and reporting of gifts and entertainment
• A sophisticated, cloud-based software application, so no hardware is required
• A scalable, flexible platform that can adapt and grow with an organization and address changing regulatory requirements
• Easier maintenance of compliance policies and procedures
• Dedicated service and support teams that can customize solutions for each client firm
• Bundled pricing for cost savings
• Employee access to a full suite of brokerage products and services from Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
• Employee access to a range of banking products and services from Charles Schwab Bank

“Compliance and employee monitoring is critical to protecting a firm’s reputation and its people. Done right, it helps firms make ethical best practices and culture a foundation for their business rather than viewing compliance as a check-the-box requirement. Each year companies are being subjected to more and more regulation and it is crucial that organizations evaluate their processes and look for ways to streamline their efforts and protect their brand,” Rister said.

About Charles Schwab

At Charles Schwab we believe in the power of investing to help individuals create a better tomorrow. We have a history of challenging the status quo in our industry, innovating in ways that benefit investors and the advisors and employers who serve them, and championing our clients’ goals with passion and integrity.

More information is available at www.aboutschwab.com. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn.

Disclosures

Compliance Solutions is comprised of Schwab Designated Brokerage Services (DBS), a division of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab"); and Schwab Compliance Technologies, Inc. ("SchwabCT"), formerly Compliance11, Inc. Schwab Designated Brokerage Services provides brokerage solutions for corporate clients who monitor their employees’ securities activity. SchwabCT provides technology solutions for corporate clients to help facilitate their compliance technology program implementation. Schwab Compliance Technologies, Inc. and Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. are separate but affiliated entities and each is a subsidiary of The Charles Schwab Corporation.

Through its operating subsidiaries, The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) provides a full range of securities brokerage, banking, money management 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; compliance and trade monitoring solutions; 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. (0315-1840)

Brokerage Products: Not FDIC Insured • No Bank Guarantee • May Lose Value.

Charles Schwab
Mike Peterson, 330-908-4334
[email protected]
or
Intermarket Communications
Mike Gelormino, 212-909-4780
[email protected]

Source: Charles Schwab

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