Schwab Introduces Individual 401(k) Plan

Schwab Introduces Individual 401(k) Plan
New Plan Completes Schwab's Retirement Product Offering for Small Business
Owners and the Self-Employed 


SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 7  /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
("Schwab"), the brokerage subsidiary of The Charles Schwab Corporation
(NYSE/Nasdaq: SCH), today announced the availability of a basic Individual
401(k) plan for owner-only businesses and the self-employed. Along with its
SEP-IRA, SIMPLE IRA, Profit-Sharing Plan, and the new Personal Defined Benefit
Plan introduced last year, Schwab now offers a full suite of retirement plan
solutions for small business owners and the self-employed. Schwab offers a free
Small Business Retirement Consultation to help individuals determine which plan
may be best for them.

"Because it's relatively new, the Individual 401(k) is still something of an
undiscovered secret," said Traci Siegel, vice president/retirement and
education products for Schwab. "This plan is ideal for individuals who have the
ability to maximize contributions to a retirement plan, but who also may want
to contribute different amounts each year and need an easy-to-administer,
low-cost plan."

"Many of the independent investment advisors we serve through Schwab
Institutional have clients who are small business owners or self-employed,"
added Cathy Clauson, vice president/wealth management services for Schwab
Institutional. "Our new Individual 401(k) gives those advisors a better, more
convenient way to meet their clients' retirement planning needs."

The chief benefits of the Individual 401(k) are that the plan allows high
contributions, contribution flexibility and low cost.

  --  An individual can generally contribute more to an Individual 401(k)
      than to other types of retirement plans. In addition to contributing
      up to 25 percent of compensation (20 percent if self-employed), the
      individual can make an additional elective salary deferral of up
      $13,000 in 2004, for a combined maximum contribution of $41,000. For
      2005, the salary deferral will increase to $14,000 up to a combined
      total of $42,000. Individuals age 50 or older also have the ability to
      make an additional catch-up contribution of $3,000 this year
      ($4,000 for 2005).

  -- Individuals can change contributions to the Individual 401(k) from year
     to year.

  -- There are no set-up costs. For accounts at Schwab with balances of less
     than $100,000, there is a low annual fee of $45 to administer the plan.
     Clients of advisors served by Schwab Institutional are not charged any
     fee.



Plan participants direct how the contributions are invested and may choose from
a wide range of mutual funds, stocks and bonds available through Schwab. All
contributions vest immediately. An Individual 401(k) plan may be adopted by a
business that employs only the owner (including corporations, sole proprietors
and partnerships) and his or her spouse.

The Individual 401(k) was enabled by the Economic Growth and Tax Relief
Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA). EGTRRA changed the rules so that salary
(elective) deferral contributions are not counted toward the employer's
deductible contribution limit, thus allowing a higher percentage of total
compensation to be contributed on a pre-tax basis, and making the 401(k) plan
an attractive alternative for many owner-only businesses.

About Charles Schwab

The Charles Schwab Corporation, through its operating subsidiaries, provides
securities brokerage and financial services to individual investors and the
independent investment advisors who work with them. With over 7 million
individual investor accounts and more than $1 trillion in client assets, The
Charles Schwab Corporation is one of the nation's largest financial services
firms. Schwab provides a complete range of services and products, including an
extensive selection of mutual funds; financial planning and investment advice;
retirement plans; banking products and services; and referrals to prescreened
independent fee-based investment advisors. Schwab is also the leading provider
of custodial, operational and trading support for independent fee-based
investment advisors. In addition to providing retirement product solutions for
small business owners and the self-employed, Schwab also offers a broad array
of workplace financial benefits to employers of all sizes through Charles
Schwab Corporate Services, including defined contribution plans, defined
benefit plans, equity compensation plans and nonqualified deferred compensation
plans.

The corporation's operating subsidiaries include:  Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
(member SIPC), U.S. Trust Corporation (member FDIC), CyberTrader(R), Inc.
(member SIPC), and Charles Schwab Bank (member FDIC). These companies' Web
sites can be reached at http://www.schwab.com/, http://www.ustrust.com/,
http://www.cybertrader.com/, and http://www.schwabbank.com/, respectively.
(1204-12669) 

DATASOURCE: Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.



CONTACT:  Sarah Bulgatz of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., [phone],

or 



Web site:  http://www.schwab.com/

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