Schwab Bets Big on Education as New Brokerage Battleground

WESTLAKE, TX – January 15, 2026 – Charles Schwab has unveiled a significant expansion of its investor education offerings for 2026, signaling a strategic pivot in how major brokerages compete for clients. The move, which includes more live events and a major overhaul of its media affiliate, the Schwab Network, comes on the heels of what the company calls "record-breaking engagement" in 2025, a year marked by market volatility and surging retail investor interest. This aggressive push into content and education underscores a broader industry trend: the new frontier for attracting and retaining investors is no longer just about low fees, but about empowering them with knowledge.

The New Frontier: Education as a Competitive Edge

In an increasingly crowded marketplace, financial services firms are realizing that financial literacy is a powerful differentiator. Schwab's latest initiative is a clear declaration that it intends to lead this charge. While competitors like Fidelity offer robust learning centers and E*TRADE provides deep research tools, Schwab is uniquely leveraging a fully-fledged media arm to integrate education directly into the daily lives of investors.

“Each new year is an opportunity to reset, and for many investors it begins with setting an intention to deepen their investing knowledge in the year ahead,” said Lorraine Gavican-Kerr, Managing Director of Trader Education, Charles Schwab, in a statement. The firm's response is a comprehensive ecosystem that spans articles, coaching, and simulated trading, now supercharged with an expanded live and digital media presence.

This strategy sets Schwab apart from rivals. Fidelity's "Fidelity Learn" provides a vast library of articles and webinars, while E*TRADE, backed by Morgan Stanley, is lauded for its third-party research and the sophisticated "Power E*TRADE" platform. Robinhood, meanwhile, continues to focus on accessibility for beginners through its "Robinhood Learn" articles and fractional shares.

Schwab's approach, however, aims to create a more immersive and immediate educational experience. By broadcasting live from the New York Stock Exchange and embedding its Schwab Network directly within its trading platforms and popular streaming services like SLING TV and Amazon's Fire TV, the firm is blurring the lines between a news outlet and a brokerage platform. This positions Schwab not just as a place to trade, but as a primary source for real-time market intelligence and analysis, a move designed to build deeper, more loyal client relationships.

A Media Play for the Next Generation

A core pillar of Schwab's 2026 strategy is a direct appeal to a younger, more digitally native generation of investors. The demographics of investing are undergoing a seismic shift, with studies showing Gen Z and Millennials entering the market earlier and with different expectations than their predecessors. This cohort, raised on social media and streaming content, prefers accessible, tech-driven financial guidance.

Schwab's expansion appears tailor-made for this audience. The Schwab Network's viewership soared 47% to 58 million in 2025, accompanied by a staggering 87.2 million social media impressions—more than triple the previous year's engagement. To capitalize on this momentum, the network has revamped its programming with a slate of new anchors and shows. "Opening Bell with Nicole Petallides," "Morning Trade Live," and the midday show "Fast Market" are designed to provide timely analysis during crucial trading hours.

Perhaps most tellingly, Schwab has introduced a series of "social-first digital shorts" with names like "Vibe Check," "Main Character," and "Market Movers." These bite-sized videos, distributed across platforms like Instagram and X, are designed to demystify complex market concepts in a format that resonates with a younger audience. This move acknowledges that the modern classroom is often a social media feed, and financial empowerment can be delivered in a 60-second clip as effectively as a lengthy article.

By meeting these emerging investors on their preferred platforms and speaking their language, Schwab is making a calculated play to become the brokerage of choice for the next generation, transforming traditional, often dry, financial education into engaging and shareable media content.

A Strategic Investment in a Volatile Market

Schwab's multi-million dollar push is far more than a simple addition of features; it's a strategic investment with a clear potential for high returns. Industry research consistently shows that formalized customer education programs have a dramatic impact on the bottom line. Such initiatives can significantly boost revenue, improve customer retention by over 25%, and increase the lifetime value of clients. In essence, an educated client is a more confident, more active, and more loyal client.

This expansion is a direct reaction to Schwab's own successful engagement metrics from 2025. The firm's strong Q3 2025 results, which included core net new assets climbing 44% from the prior year and total client assets hitting a record $11.59 trillion, occurred alongside the surge in educational content consumption. This suggests a powerful feedback loop: engaged, educated clients contribute to asset growth, which in turn justifies further investment in education.

In a market landscape defined by uncertainty, this strategy also serves as a crucial client-retention tool. By investing heavily in building investor confidence and competence, Schwab aims to foster long-term relationships that can weather market downturns. Instead of competing solely on transaction costs, the firm is building a "stickier" ecosystem where clients come for the tools but stay for the community and continuous learning. This focus on empowerment is designed to increase assets under management and solidify its market leadership for years to come.

Blending Digital and Physical Worlds

While the digital media expansion has captured headlines, Schwab's 2026 plan is equally focused on enhancing its physical and live virtual offerings, creating a hybrid educational model. The firm saw firsthand the strong appetite for in-person learning when nearly 1,000 clients attended its Dallas Market Drive event in early 2025, with similar turnouts in cities across the country.

In response, Schwab is increasing the capacity and number of locations for its one- and two-day conference-style events. These gatherings are centered not only on learning from experts but also on fostering a sense of community by allowing clients to network with one another. For those unable to attend in person, virtual options ensure broad accessibility, maintaining the inclusivity of the program.

These new initiatives are built upon an already robust foundation. Schwab continues to offer 35 hours of live interactive coaching sessions every week, curated learning paths for different experience levels, and its popular paperMoney® simulated trading platform. This tool allows both clients and prospective customers using a Guest Pass to practice trading strategies with virtual money, providing a risk-free environment to apply the knowledge gained from the network, articles, and live events. This comprehensive, multi-pronged approach ensures that investors have a clear path from learning a concept to practicing its application and, ultimately, implementing it in their own portfolios.