Equity Trust Company - 2.4 Total Stars

Ranked 4th out of 10

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About Equity Trust Company

Equity Trust is a financial services company that enables individual investors to diversify investment portfolios through alternative asset classes, including real estate, private equity, private lending, notes, tax liens, digital currencies and precious metals.

1974

Richard Desich –  Founder and Chairman of the Board

Jeffrey Desich – Vice Chair

Richard A. Desich Jr. – Co-Founder, Executive Director

George E. Sullivan – CEO

Mike Dea – President

David R. Allen – COO

Matt Gardner – CFO

Frank Flanagan – CIO

Assets Under Management 

$28.7 billion 

 

Company size 

404 employees 

 

Number of clients 

170,000 

 

History 

1974 – Company is founded by Richard Desich 

1983 – Receives IRS approval as a non-bank directed custodian 

2003 – Equity Trust Company is formed and receives Trust charter 

2011 – Equity Trust launches Equity Advisor Solutions which specializes in financial services 

2018 – Equity launches a digital assets platform 

2019 – Equity Trust launches myEQUITY account management system 

2019 – Equity appoints George Sullivan as CEO 

 

Services 

Equity Trust offers all the standard Self Directed IRA services including account set-up and general maintenance. They carry a full complement of standard products including: 

  • Self Directed IRA – A standard IRA that is Custodian held and set-up to allow for alternative investing. 
  • Self Directed Roth IRA – Similar to the standard IRA but funded with post-tax dollars. 
  • Self Directed SEP IRA – This is a retirement plan designed for small businesses (less than 25 employees.) It’s similar to a 401(k) but simplified and without as much paperwork. 
  • Self Directed SIMPLE IRA – A retirement plan designed for small businesses (less than 100 employees.) 
  • Self Directed Solo 401(k) – A retirement plan designed for self employed workers. It features high contribution levels and the possibility of a personal loan. 

Equity also offers tax incentivized savings accounts. 

  • HSA (Health Savings Account) – Allows participants to save for health expenses within a tax advantaged framework. 
  • CESA (Coverdell Education Savings Account) – Allows participants to save for education related expenses. 

 

Unique Services and Products 

Equity Trust has branched out from servicing individual Self Directed IRA investors, and now offers a host of services that holistically integrate with the self directed market. 

  • Equity Advisor Solutions – This is a service aimed at investment advisors and Broker Dealers. It provides an interface where these financial professionals can manage both traditional and alternative assets in the same place. It includes a client portal, mobile app, and billing support. The main component of the system is the Trade Order Management System which allows the dealer to view client positions and execute all trades from one centralized location. Custom reporting is also available. 
  • ETC Brokerage – This service allows ETC account holders to have access to standard brokerage tools, so that they can invest in both traditional and alternative assets. Traditional assets include stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. 

 

Process and Timeframe 

Equity Trust employs a normative 3-part process for opening a Self Directed IRA. 

  1. Open an Account – The company prefers that this be done via the online portal myEQUITY Online Application Wizard. Going through the wizard itself should only take about ten minutes. However, internal processing can lead to the account not actually being opened until three days later. 
  1. Fund the Account – This can be done via a rollover, transfer, or contribution 
  1. Investing – The client finds the investment and then tells Equity to perform the necessary transactions. 

 

Fees 

Equity Trust charges an inclusive annual fee that is based on account value.  

The first number is the Portfolio Value  and following it is the  Standard Fee:

  • $1-14,999 – $205.00 
  • $15,000-24,999 – $290.00 
  • $25,000-49,999 – $330.00 
  • $50,000-99,999 – $400.00 
  • $100,000-199,999 – $480.00 
  • $200,000-299,999 – $660.00 
  • $300,000-399,999 – $710.00 
  • $400,000-499,999 – $1,025.00 
  • $500,000-599,999 – $1,680.00 
  • $600,000-699,999 – $1,785.00 
  • $700,000-799,999 – $1,890.00 
  • $800,000-899,999 – $1,945.00 
  • $900,000-999,999 – $1,995.00 
  • $1,000,000-1,999,999 – $2,050.00 
  • Over $2,000,000 – $2,150.00 

Additional fees include: 

  • Online application fee: $50 
  • Paper application fee: $50 
  • Partial termination fee (per asset): $100 
  • Full termination fee: $225 
  • Distribution or re-registration fee (per asset): $100 

  

 

 

Location 

1 EQUITY WAY 

WESTLAKE, OH 44145 

 

Contact info 

Phone: 855.265.4472 

Fax: (440) 366-3750 

Email: NewAccountsETC@TrustETC.com 

 

Hours 

Monday – Friday 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM (EST) 

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