Where are my assets actually held, and what does a custodian do?

Your accounts are held at a large, independent national custodian — Charles Schwab. The custodian holds your assets, processes trades, produces your statements and tax forms, and gives you direct online access. We are granted limited authority to manage and trade within your accounts and to have our fee debited, never to take possession of your money. That separation of duties means the firm advising you is not the firm holding your assets, and you can always verify independently what we report.