Schwab Clients Can Now Say 'Hey Google' for Account Info
The news comes some 10 months after TD Ameritrade and E-Trade announced their own Google integration efforts.
Charles Schwab says its clients now can use Google Assistant to access their accounts for real-time portfolio updates and other information. The program, called Schwab Action, does not include voice-activated trading.
The news comes some 10 months after TD Ameritrade, which Schwab is set to acquire by year-end, announced its own Google integration efforts, as did E-Trade.
“Consumers today expect the brands they do business with to be available whenever and wherever needed, and how they invest should be no different,” according to Zack Gipson, senior vice president of Schwab Digital Services.
There is no “advisor-specific version of the integration” for the clients of RIAs on Schwab’s platform, “but anyone with a Schwab account and Google Assistant can use it,” according to a spokesperson.
In addition to portfolio performance, Schwab clients can review their account balances and get updates on specific investments, including trade prices and volumes.
To access to Schwab portfolio updates, investors must share their Schwab credentials, consent and account link in the finance section of their Google account settings.
The integration is available for Android and iOS phones and tablets with the Google Assistant app, as well as devices like Google Nest and other smart speakers.
“We’re committed to increasing access to investing for every client with a focus on making both investing and planning easier, more modern, and more approachable,” Gipson added.
Schwab says it served clients with 14 million active brokerage accounts as of May 31, 2020, vs. 11.9 million a year earlier. It also works with 1.7 million corporate retirement plan participants, 1.4 million banking accounts and $4.0 trillion in client assets.
— Check out Has Schwab Won the RIA War? on ThinkAdvisor.