Charles Schwab

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 Corporation, based originally in San Francisco, was founded in 1971 by Charles Schwab. The firm began discount brokerage on May 1, 1975. An investor can implement the precepts advocated in the Bogleheads investment philosophy by choosing index products available on the Schwab platform.

Indexing at Schwab
All ETFs are commission-free at Schwab, enabling use of ETF lineups from Schwab, SSGA, Vanguard and iShares.

Schwab also manages its own index mutual funds and exchange traded funds (ETFs). As a broker, Schwab provides access to other firm's mutual funds (usually subject to transaction fees unless the fund is a part of the no-transaction-fee network).

Schwab exchange traded funds
The below table compares ETF offerings from Schwab, SSGA, Vanguard and iShares. All ETFs trade commission-free.

Schwab offers a growing selection of low cost ETFs (expense ratios range from 3 to 11 basis points). Schwab manages:
 * US stock market ETFs (broad; large; growth; value; mid; and small) benchmarked to Dow Jones indices, and a US REIT index (Dow Jones sector index).
 * International index ETFs (developed large; developed small; emerging large) benchmarked to FTSE indices.
 * Investment-grade and treasury bond index ETFs (both nominal and TIPS)

International large-cap can be obtained by combining SCHF and SCHE in a 75:25 ratio. The blended ER is 0.0725%, which is lower than the 0.08% of Vanguard's equivalent VEU.

Developed markets can be obtained by combining SCHF and SCHC in a 90:10 ratio. The blended ER is 0.065%, which is higher than the 0.05% of Vanguard's VEA and iShares' IDEV.

Vanguard funds at Schwab
Vanguard mutual funds can be purchased at Schwab's mutual fund supermarket, One Source, with a transaction fee of $49.95 for on-line trades. Vanguard ETFs are more cost efficient, since they can be purchased commission free. Schwab has also eliminated charges for on-line stock trades. Schwab may waive transaction fees for a single mutual fund family (such as Vanguard) if an investor's Schwab account contains sufficient assets to qualify.

Treasury bonds at Schwab
Schwab charges no commissions for on-line treasury bond purchases for both auction purchases and purchases made on the secondary markets. Treasury securities include treasury bills, treasury notes, treasury bonds, and TIPs.

Minimum investment:
 * Treasury Bills, Notes, Bonds, and TIPs - $1,000