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Investment Products

Frequently asked questions

All FAQs about investment products

  • Available investments include mutual funds, stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), bonds and CDs, and options (for those who qualify) that trade on U.S. exchanges. We do not allow the purchase of investments that are trading on foreign exchanges, trade at a value of less than $1, and do not have a bid/ask on our quoting systems.

  • TIAA Brokerage provides cash sweep product options that may accumulate and pay interest on the cash balance in your account. If any, interest accrues daily and is paid monthly. Interest rates are available within our Brokerage Interest Rates Disclosure online.

  • All brokerage accounts are custodied by Pershing, LLC, a subsidiary of The Bank of New York Company, Inc. Member FINRA, NYSE, SIPC. Accounts are covered up to $500,000 and Pershing provides excess coverage through underwriters at Lloyd's of London. Neither SIPC protection nor the additional excess of SIPC insurance policy protects against loss due to market fluctuation of investments. An excess claim would only arise in the unlikely event that Pershing fails financially and client assets for a covered account cannot be located due to theft, misplacement, destruction, burglary, robbery, embezzlement, abstraction, failure to obtain or maintain possession or control of client securities, or to maintain the special reserve bank account required by applicable rules. Read the SIPC Asset Protection Reference Guide for more information.

  • No Transaction Fee (NTF) Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) are no-load Exchange Traded Funds for which TIAA Brokerage does not charge a transaction fee or a commission to buy or sell. A list of NTF ETFs is available in addition to being able to screen for NTF ETFs within the online ETF tools under Research, within your account online.

  • TIAA Brokerage allows the option strategies outlined below:
    Non-Retirement Accounts: Covered Calls, Long Calls, and Long Puts
    Retirement Accounts (IRAs): Covered Calls
    An options application must be completed in order to add options trading for any account.

  • Dividends are paid at different times set forth by the paying company. There are three dates referenced with the payment of a dividend. The record date, the ex-dividend date and the payable date. When a company declares a dividend, it sets a record date when you must be on the company's books as a shareholder to receive the payment. The person who owns the security on the ex-dividend date will be awarded the payment, regardless of who holds the stock on the payment date. The stock will usually drop in price by the amount of the expected dividend on the ex-dividend date.

  • Short-term redemption fees do not apply to stocks. Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) may charge a short-term redemption fee, see the terms in the fund's prospectus. TIAA Brokerage will not charge a short-term redemption fee for ETF trades.
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TIAA Brokerage, a division of TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC, Member FINRA and SIPC , distributes securities. Brokerage accounts are carried by Pershing, LLC, a subsidiary of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, Member FINRA, NYSE, SIPC.