March 2007

Charles Schwab has launched Schwab Advisor Portfolio, a way for advisors who work with Schwab Institutional and TPAs to customize the investment choices, including Schwab’s managed account platform, for employer-directed defined benefit plans, pooled money purchase plans, and profit-sharing plans that are managed by an independent RIA and also use a directed corporate trustee, using the services of Charles Schwab Trust Co.

…Vanguard has filed with the SEC to offer exchange traded shares for four existing bond index funds: Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Fund, Vanguard Short-Term Bond Index Fund, Vanguard Intermediate-Term Bond Index Fund, and Vanguard Long-Term Bond Index Fund. The ETFs will be managed by the Vanguard Fixed Income Group and structured as separate share classes.

…A new level of membership launched at myStockOptions.com. MSO Pro, designed specifically for advisors, financial planners, and CPAs, gives users calculators and modeling tools that allow them to crunch numbers and run projections. Results graphically show a range of data, including net gains, exercise costs, and taxes. Advisors and their clients can then compare net gains at different stock prices and tax rates.