Coming soon: National Advisors Trust on Schwab platform

National Advisors Trust Company is expanding its administrative trust services to the Schwab Advisor Services platform. The trust company's capabilities will be available on Schwab's custody platform beginning in the fourth quarter of this year, said Ron Ferguson, chief executive of National Advisors Trust, in an interview. Schwab spokeswoman Susan Forman said Schwab is in "early phases" of discussion with National Advisors Trust and no agreement is certain at this point. National Advisors Trust has been working with Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services and TD Ameritrade Institutional for about six months, Mr. Ferguson said. The company acts as corporate trustee for clients of RIAs. It's RIA clients manage the investments. National Advisors Trust is owned by 135 advisory firms that use its services. It has more than $7.5 billion assets under administration. Its member-owners have pushed to use outside custodians for trusts assets, the company said in a statement. Over most of its eleven-year history, National Advisors Trust has required custody of trust accounts on its proprietary platform. The new multi-custodial service is "a bit more work for the trust company, but it provides a clear advantage and flexibility to the RIA firm,” Mr. Ferguson said in a statement.