Betterment Announces New Plans That Include Access to Licensed Experts and CFP® Professionals for Financial Advice and Planning

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Jan 31, 2017, 08:00 ET

NEW YORK, Jan. 31, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Betterment, the largest independent online investment advisor, today announced the next evolution of the company with the release of a new service offering, expanding the company's platform beyond a single digital product to a multi-plan advice offering that includes access to CFP^® professionals and licensed financial experts. Betterment's three plans are now Betterment Digital, Betterment Plus and Betterment Premium.

Betterment can now meet the needs of its customers however customers want to invest and receive advice, whether it's through the existing digital offering or also working in conjunction with a team of licensed experts. This team will help customers monitor their accounts, answer their financial questions, and give them advice. The new plans give customers the best of both worlds— smarter technology and access to financial experts:

Betterment Digital: Customers gain access to our current award-winning technology, with tax-efficient algorithms and digital advice, at an incredibly low cost.
Betterment Plus: Customers receive an annual planning call from a team of CFP^® professionals and licensed financial experts who also monitor their accounts throughout the year.
Betterment Premium: Customers get unlimited access to a team of CFP^® professionals and licensed financial experts who monitor their accounts and give them advice and financial planning throughout the year.

Customers who would like a full-time, dedicated independent financial advisor can be referred to an RIA who uses the Betterment for Advisors platform to manage its clients investments through its recently announced Advisor Network.

Betterment will now charge a flat 0.25% for its Digital plan, 0.40% for the Plus offering, and 0.50% for the Premium offering. The Plus plan requires a $100k minimum balance, and the Premium plan requires a $250k minimum balance. For all three plans, Betterment's fees are only charged on the first $2 million of your balance. Betterment will waive its management fee on any assets over $2 million.

"I joined Betterment because it was a chance to help get financial advice in the hands of more Americans- millions of Americans," said Alex Benke, CFP^®, VP of Financial Advice and Investing at Betterment. "As a traditional financial planner, you can only serve a few hundred clients at most. Through the last five years at Betterment, I've learned that while most Americans really need financial advice, not everyone wants it in the same way. Some never want to talk to a person, some need help from time to time, and others need careful, ongoing guidance. About a year ago, we set out to broaden and deepen our human-delivered advice offering, while making it more accessible. Our vision is to be your one-stop-shop for financial advice, available in whatever form or frequency you require, and always in your best interest, as a fiduciary."

"We're committed to empowering customers to do what's best for their money, so they can live better," said Jon Stein, Founder and CEO of Betterment. "At Betterment, we promise to always act in the best interests of our customers. From the beginning, we've built what our customers have asked us to prioritize, and what would have the biggest impact for them. Now, with our Plus and Premium plans, we can give customers the best of both worlds: our smarter technology and access to licensed financial experts."

Betterment, which manages more than $7 billion in assets for more than 210,000 customers, offers a globally diversified portfolio of index-tracking exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with personalized advice in a goal-based investing framework. Customers can open and customize regular investment accounts, traditional/SEP/Roth IRAs, trust accounts, and accounts for retirement income. Betterment also has expanded its platform to serve advisors and 401(k) markets. For more information, please visit Betterment.com.

Contact Info:

Joe Ziemer, [email protected], 212-228-1328

Arielle Sobel, [email protected], 646-836-9246

Danielle Shechtman, [email protected], 212-228-1328

Betterment is the largest independent robo-advisor, helping people to intelligently manage and grow their wealth through smarter technology. With more than 210,000 customers and over $7 billion in assets under management, the service offers a globally diversified portfolio of ETFs, designed to help provide you with higher expected returns for retirement planning, building wealth, and other savings goals. Betterment also helps customers get on track for a comfortable retirement with RetireGuide™, a retirement planning tool that lets people know how much they should save and if they are investing correctly. Betterment was a CNBC Disruptor 50, FT 300 and Webby award winner, and it has been featured in the New York Times, Forbes, and the Wall Street Journal. Betterment helps people work to achieve a smarter financial future with minimal effort and for a fraction of the cost of traditional financial services.

Investing in securities involves risks, and there is always the potential of losing money when you invest in securities. Determination of largest independent robo-advisor reflects Betterment LLC's distinction of having highest number of assets under management, based on Betterment's review of assets self-reported in the SEC's Form ADV, across Betterment's survey of independent robo-advisor investing services as of July 11, 2016. As used here, "independent" means that a robo-advisor has no affiliation with the financial products it recommends to its clients. If you also have a 401(k) account through Betterment For Business, that account is subject to a separate fee schedule and is not included in your balance for determining eligibility for the fee tiers or subject to the fee cap mentioned above.

SOURCE Betterment