Equity Trust: Platform Profile

Overview

Equity Trust is one of the largest and longest-operating U.S. self-directed retirement-account custodians.

Its core role is not investment selection.

Equity Trust provides custody, recordkeeping and transaction processing for retirement accounts that can hold assets traditional brokerage IRAs often do not support, including:

• real estate;
• private equity;
• private lending;
• cryptocurrency;
• precious metals;
• private funds;
• other IRS-permitted alternatives.

The current product lineup has expanded beyond conventional SDIRA custody.

Equity Trust now also offers:

• Equity Universal IRA;
• Real Estate Checkbook IRA LLC;
• Crypto IRA;
• Equity Solo 401(k);
• linked public-market brokerage through affiliate ETC Brokerage Services;
• HSA and Coverdell accounts;
• SIMPLE and SEP IRAs.

The most important distinction is that Equity Trust is the directed custodian.

It does not determine whether an investment is financially attractive.

May fit better for

• investors holding real estate inside retirement accounts;
• investors buying private-company or private-fund interests;
• investors wanting alternative and public assets under one IRA structure;
• investors needing an experienced SDIRA custodian;
• investors considering checkbook-control structures;
• investors seeking crypto inside a retirement account.

May fit less well for

• investors who only want low-cost public ETFs;
• investors expecting investment recommendations;
• investors who do not want to manage prohibited-transaction compliance;
• investors sensitive to balance-based custodial fees;
• investors who assume custodian acceptance means an investment has been vetted.

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Custodian status

Equity Trust Company states that it operates as a trust company under authority granted by the state of South Dakota.

It has served as a qualified IRA custodian since 1983.

• Legal name: Equity Trust Company
• Directed custodian: Yes
• Trust company: Yes
• State regulated: Yes
• Investment adviser: No

Equity Trust does not provide:

• investment recommendations;
• tax advice;
• legal advice;
• personalized portfolio management.

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Account types

Current account lineup includes:

• Traditional IRA: Yes
• Roth IRA: Yes
• Sep IRA: Yes
• Simple IRA: Yes
• Solo 401K: Yes
• Roth solo 401K: Yes
• HSA: Yes
• Coverdell esa: Yes

The tax rules for each account come from federal law.

Equity Trust does not create a special tax treatment merely because an asset is alternative.

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Investment universe

Current supported asset categories include:

• real estate;
• private lending;
• private equity;
• cryptocurrency;
• precious metals;
• stocks;
• bonds;
• mutual funds;
• other permitted investments.

The ability to custody an asset does not mean:

• the asset is safe;
• the investment is suitable;
• Equity Trust conducted economic due diligence;
• the issuer will perform.

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Equity Universal IRA

Equity Universal IRA is designed to hold both alternative and traditional assets within one broader retirement-account relationship.

Current structure uses:

• Equity Trust for alternative-asset custody;
• affiliated ETC Brokerage Services for public-market securities.

Current Universal IRA features include:

• Universal IRA:
• Alternative assets: Yes
• Public market assets: Yes
• Linked brokerage: ETC Brokerage Services
• Included commission free trades per year: 50

Current eligible brokerage products can include:

• U.S.-listed stocks;
• ETFs;
• fixed income;
• mutual funds;
• options.

After the included annual trade allowance, brokerage commissions can apply under the current ETC Brokerage fee schedule.

Options also carry current per-contract charges.

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ETC Brokerage Services is a separate regulated affiliate

Current disclosures state:

• Brokerage affiliate: ETC Brokerage Services
• SEC registered broker dealer: Yes
• FINRA member: Yes
• SIPC member: Yes

The broker-dealer handles applicable public securities.

This protection distinction matters.

SIPC membership of ETC Brokerage Services does not insure:

• private real estate;
• private-company interests;
• private notes;
• cryptocurrency value;
• ordinary investment losses.

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Current fee structure

Equity Trust's current retail alternative-investment fee schedule is balance/account-value based.

The annual maintenance fee depends on:

• account type;
• assigned fee schedule;
• prior year-end market value.

Current fee FAQs state that market-value-based annual maintenance charges use the account value as of the last business day of the prior year.

• Annual maintenance fee:
• Fixed universal amount: No
• Basis: account type and applicable fee schedule; market-value based where applicable
• Billed: generally first quarter

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Why valuation matters to custody cost

When the assigned fee schedule is market-value based, the account's year-end valuation can affect the following year's custodial fee.

That creates an operational requirement for illiquid assets.

Private investments may need updated fair-market values even when:

• no sale occurred;
• no public price exists;
• an appraisal is expensive;
• the issuer has not produced current statements.

Equity Trust currently asks clients to submit applicable Fair Market Valuation forms before year-end processing deadlines.

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Checkbook IRA LLC

Equity Trust offers a Real Estate Checkbook IRA LLC structure.

The IRA owns an LLC.

The investor manages the LLC and its checking account.

This can speed up:

• real-estate purchases;
• bill payment;
• property expenses;
• other eligible transactions.

It also increases the investor's compliance responsibility.

Current package pricing includes:

• Checkbook IRA LLC:
• Processing package: 250
• Single member LLC formation package: 1295
• Multi member LLC package: 1600

The $1,295 package currently includes services such as:

• LLC formation;
• operating agreement;
• EIN;
• initial state registration allowance up to the specified limit;
• banking setup support;
• onboarding;
• one free wire under current terms.

Additional state surcharges can apply.

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Checkbook control is not a free pass

With checkbook control, the account owner can execute transactions without sending every bill through the custodian first.

That makes prohibited transactions easier to commit accidentally.

Potential problems include:

• personal use of IRA-owned property;
• paying IRA expenses personally;
• receiving IRA income personally;
• transactions with disqualified persons;
• prohibited personal services;
• improper loans or guarantees.

The LLC changes transaction mechanics.

It does not change the Internal Revenue Code.

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Real estate

Equity Trust supports direct IRA ownership of real estate.

Current structures can include:

• residential property;
• commercial property;
• land;
• rentals;
• real-estate notes;
• private real-estate funds;
• leveraged property using permissible non-recourse financing.

All income and expenses must flow through the retirement-account structure.

An IRA owner generally cannot treat IRA-held property as personally owned property.

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Real-estate transaction execution

For a conventional custodial real-estate IRA, Equity Trust handles:

• account titling;
• signatures;
• payment processing;
• recordkeeping.

The investor selects the property.

Equity Trust does not negotiate the investment thesis on the investor's behalf.

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Crypto IRA

Equity Trust currently offers more than one crypto path.

Its current crypto materials include:

• a self-directed Equity Crypto IRA;
• an Automated Crypto IRA powered by Animus Technologies.

The ordinary self-directed crypto product allows the investor to make crypto allocation/trading decisions through the supported structure.

Current automated product marketing includes:

• Automated crypto IRA:
• Powered by: Animus Technologies
• Current equity trust client buy in: 25000

It is a specialized crypto product.

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Crypto protection

Cryptocurrency held through an IRA is not insured simply because the IRA custodian is regulated.

• Crypto FDIC: No
• Crypto SIPC from custodian: No

Relevant risks include:

• price volatility;
• exchange/custody risk;
• cybersecurity;
• protocol risk;
• regulatory change.

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Public and private assets in one IRA

The Universal IRA can be particularly useful for an investor who wants to move between:

• public stocks/ETFs;
• private equity;
• real estate;
• private credit.

Without a linked structure, moving retirement cash between a public brokerage custodian and an alternative custodian can require transfers.

The Universal IRA reduces that operational friction.

The tradeoff is that a specialized custodian's fee structure may be less attractive than a conventional brokerage for an investor who only owns public securities.

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Cash vs investment protection

Current Equity Trust disclosures distinguish:

• custodian;
• brokerage affiliate;
• underlying investments.

Applicable uninvested cash arrangements can receive qualifying bank/pass-through protection depending on structure.

Alternative investments themselves are not FDIC insured.

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Prohibited transactions

The most consequential SDIRA risk is not a custodial fee.

It is disqualification of the tax-advantaged structure through prohibited activity.

Important areas include:

• self-dealing;
• transactions with disqualified persons;
• indirect benefits;
• personal use;
• improper services;
• prohibited credit arrangements.

The custodian processes directions.

The account owner remains responsible for the investment and transaction facts.

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UBIT and UDFI

Alternative investments can produce taxable income even inside a tax-advantaged account.

Examples include:

• operating-business income;
• leveraged real estate;
• debt-financed partnerships.

Unrelated Business Income Tax and Unrelated Debt-Financed Income can create Form 990-T obligations.

Equity Trust offers 990-T-related support services, but the investor should not assume every IRA investment is automatically exempt from current tax.

Assessment

Equity Trust is strongest for investors whose retirement portfolio genuinely includes alternative assets.

Its scale and breadth matter because it can support:

• direct real estate;
• private securities;
• lending;
• crypto;
• checkbook structures;
• public-market brokerage.

The Universal IRA is a meaningful improvement for investors who dislike maintaining one custodian for alternatives and another for stocks.

The tradeoff is complexity.

Fees depend on the assigned account/fee schedule rather than one universal flat annual price, and the investor remains responsible for prohibited transactions and investment due diligence.

For someone who only wants index funds, a conventional low-cost brokerage IRA is usually simpler.

For someone buying a rental property, private fund, private note, and public ETFs inside retirement accounts, Equity Trust addresses a very different problem.