For decades, Charles Schwab Corp. quietly plotted to unleash its ultimate weapon against rivals: $0 fees. “It was pretty shocking.”Tradecraft aside, Schwab and TD Ameritrade are both responding to the tectonic shifts in their business. Schwab’s TD Ameritrade deal, expected to close in the second half of 2020, would create a formidable giant with $5 trillion in assets. But Schwab lost its way in the early 2000s, charging more than competitors for trading and juggling disparate business lines. “But when they get on the desired course, they are financially strong enough and culturally motivated enough to roll over smaller contributors like TD Ameritrade.”

Source: Los Angeles Times November 26, 2019 20:26 UTC