In February 2012, Charles Schwab (NYSE: SCHW) introduced its ETF OneSource platform, a collection of commission-free ETF offerings from Schwab and several other major issuers.
A year later, it is clear OneSource has been a success. Data have consistently supported the notion that expenses and fees are important parts of the decision-making process for advisors and investors when evaluating ETFs. Statistics also show cost-conscious advisors and investors continue embracing OneSource.
As of the end of January, OneSource was home to $24 billion in assets under management, a 66% year-over-year increase, the company said on call Friday. Inflows to OneSource by Schwab clients jumped 42% while flows to third party ETFs on the platform tripled. [Schwab Rolls Out OneSource Platform]
In February 2013, Schwab announced the ETF version of its mutual fund OneSource platform to provide commission-free trades on 105 ETFs from six firms, including State Street (NYSE: STT), Guggenheim, Invesco PowerShares, ETF Securities, U.S. Commodity Funds and Schwab’s own lineup of ETFs.
The fund sponsors pay a fee to participate in the program, but they argue that the costs are balanced against the benefits of added visibility on the Schwab platform. In October 2013 16 new ETFs were added to OneSource, including five from Guggenheim, five from State Street Global Advisors and six from Charles Schwab Investment Management. [Schwab Bolsters OneSource Lineup]
OneSource currently shows 119 ETFs across 58 Morningstar coverage categories available on a commission-free basis, more than any other commission-free ETF platform.
In 2013, ETF assets custodied at Schwab surged 29% to $196 billion compared with industry growth of 26%, according to the firm’s “ETF Investor Snapshot” released last month. [Schwab Gaining ETF Assets]
Popular ETFs available on OneSource include the Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF (NYSEArca: SCHD), the PowerShares S&P 500 Low Volatility Portfolio (NYSEArca: SPLV), the Guggenheim China Small Cap Index ETF (NYSEArca: HAO) and the SPDR S&P International Dividend ETF (NYSEArca: DWX).