You may be able to roll over to a Traditional or Roth IRA, roll over to a 401(k) at a new employer, take a distribution, or leave the account where it is, depending on your unique financial needs and retirement goals.  Each option presents different benefits and limitations with regard to available investment choices and services, fees and expenses, withdrawal rules, required minimum distributions, tax treatment, and protection from creditors and legal judgments.  Additionally there are limits to how often and when you can roll over your account.  Consider your choices carefully

Currently you can open a Merrill Edge individual brokerage account or a Traditional or Roth IRA.  You can also roll over a 401(k) or other employer-sponsored retirement plan.  Consider all of your choicesConsider all of your choices and learn if a Rollover IRA may be right for you. Footnote 1

Merrill Guided Investing does not yet offer trusts or inherited IRAs.  These accounts will be offered in the future.  Please note that Guided Investing accounts do not allow power-of-attorney access.  For any other types of accounts, please contact us or go to Open an account

You can get started with Guided Investing for as little as $5,000.  There is a low 0.45% annual fee, which is charged monthly.  For example, if your month-end balance is $10,000, next month's fee would be just $3.75.  Other fees may apply. Footnote asterisk *

There are no trading commissions when our portfolio managers buy or sell ETFs in your account's portfolio.  However, there are exchange fees charged by third parties, such as a transaction fee of between $0.01 to $0.03 per $1,000 of the principal for sell orders.  In addition, there are fees associated with investing in ETFs, which are listed in each ETF prospectus under "Expenses and Charges."  For more details about fees, please review the Program Brochure (PDF). 

Footnote asterisk

Other fees may apply.  Sales are subject to a transaction fee of between $0.01 and $0.03 per $1,000 of principal.  There are costs associated with owning ETFs.  Learn more about Merrill Edge pricing. 

Investment Strategy and Portfolio Management

Many online investment advisory programs use technology to make automatic, computer-driven portfolio adjustments based on mathematical rules or algorithms, which is why they are sometimes called "robo advisors." 

Merrill Guided Investing takes a different approach that combines:

The efficiency and power of technology to both recommend an investment strategy (which is based on your goal, risk tolerance and investment time horizon) and quickly process the investment decisions our investment professionals make on your behalf

Management by Merrill Lynch investment professionals who use a disciplined approach to asset allocation, portfolio construction and investment selection

Online access so you know where your portfolio is positioned at all times

While technology can simplify investing and deliver real-time information, it's no substitute for human insight and skill.  That's why Merrill Edge relies on the investment professionals from the Chief Investment Office ("CIO") team to manage the portfolio strategies and investment selection for all of the Guided Investing accounts. 

First, you'll select a goal and answer some questions online about how much you want to invest and when you think you'll need to access your funds.  Next, you'll answer questions to determine the risk tolerance for your goal.  Finally, you'll review the strategy based on the information you provided.  If you agree, you can then go ahead and open your account. 

Guided Investing strategies are built and managed behind the scenes by our investment professionals in the Chief Investment Office ("CIO").  This approach allows us to combine innovative technology with professional guidance to offer a low-cost investment account. 

Although you won't invest with the advice of a Merrill Edge Financial Solutions Advisor™, you can always call us 24/7 to talk with an investment specialist if you have questions about your account. 

Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) offer diversified exposure to a group of securities made up of stocks or bonds.  ETFs trade like a stock, so prices change throughout the day.  Investors can buy and sell at any time during market hours, providing more liquidity and flexibility. 

The ETFs selected for Guided Investing portfolios must pass a rigorous screening by the Chief Investment Office ("CIO").  Our investment professionals choose exchange traded funds (ETFs) that fulfill the asset allocation for each strategy.  Our goal is to look for ETFs in each asset class that have the potential to contribute to the portfolio's returns. 

Merrill Guided Investing strategies are actively managed and are not rebalanced on timed intervals or periods.  Merrill Lynch may update your strategy's allocation based on overall market conditions and potential opportunities to lower or take on more risk. 

Like all securities, the value of the ETFs in your account will rise and fall over time.  Our portfolio managers will monitor your account for any changes from your strategy's target asset allocation and rebalance your account as needed.  Your account may also be rebalanced due to contributions or withdrawals or other flows of assets into or out of your account. 

You have choices about what to do with your employer-sponsored retirement plan accounts.  Depending on your financial circumstances, needs and goals, you may choose to roll over to an IRA or convert to a Roth IRA, roll over an employer-sponsored plan account from your old job to your new employer, take a distribution, or leave the account where it is.  Each choice may offer different investment options and services, fees and expenses, withdrawal options, required minimum distributions, tax treatment, and different types of protection from creditors and legal judgments.  These are complex choices and should be considered with care.  Visit http://www.merrilledge.com/retirement/rollover-ira or call a Merrill Edge® rollover specialist at 888.637.3343 for more information about your choices. 

Asset allocation, diversification and rebalancing do not ensure a profit or protect against loss in declining markets. 

Please review the Merrill Guided Investing Program Brochure (PDF) at merrilledge.com/guided-investingprogram-brochure (PDF) for important information including pricing, rebalancing and the details of the investment advisory program.  Your recommended investment strategy will be based solely on the information you provide to us for this specific investment goal and is separate from any other advisory program offered with us.  If there are multiple owners on this account, the information you provide should reflect the views and circumstances of all owners on the account.  If you are the custodian of this account for the benefit of another person, please keep in mind that these assets will be invested for the benefit of the other person.  Guided Investing is offered with and without an advisor.  Merrill, Merrill Lynch, and/or Merrill Edge investment advisory programs are offered by Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner and Smith Incorporated ("MLPF&S").  MLPF&S and Managed Account Advisors LLC ("MAA") are registered investment advisors.  Investment advisor registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. 

The Chief Investment Office (CIO) develops the investment strategies for Merrill Guided Investing, including providing its recommendations of ETFs and related asset allocations.  Managed Account Advisors LLC (MAA), Merrill Lynch's affiliate, is the overlay portfolio manager responsible for implementing the Merrill Guided Investing strategies within the Program for client accounts, including facilitating the purchase & sale of ETFs and mutual funds in client accounts and updating account asset allocations when the CIO's recommendations change while also implementing any applicable individual client or firm restriction(s). 

You may be able to roll over to a Traditional or Roth IRA, roll over to a 401(k) at a new employer, take a distribution, or leave the account where it is, depending on your unique financial needs and retirement goals.  Each option presents different benefits and limitations with regard to available investment choices and services, fees and expenses, withdrawal rules, required minimum distributions, tax treatment, and protection from creditors and legal judgments.  Additionally there are limits to how often and when you can roll over your account.  Be sure to review your Rollover IRA choices. 

Based upon IRS interpretation of an existing rule, you can make only one rollover from an IRA to another (or the same) IRA in any 12-month period, regardless of the number of IRAs you own.  You can, however, continue to make as many trustee-to-trustee transfers between IRAs as you want.  You can also make as many rollovers from traditional IRAs to Roth IRAs ("conversions") as you want." 

There is a single, 5-year holding period when determining whether earnings can be withdrawn federally tax-free as part of a qualified distribution from a Roth IRA.  This period begins January 1 of the year of the first contribution to any Roth IRA account. 

Neither Merrill Lynch nor any of its affiliates or financial advisors provide legal, tax or accounting advice.  You should consult your legal and/or tax advisors before making any financial decisions. 

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Investing in securities involves risks, and there is always the potential of losing money when you invest in securities. 

Neither Merrill Lynch nor any of its affiliates or financial advisors provide legal, tax or accounting advice.  You should consult your legal and/or tax advisors before making any financial decisions. 

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Merrill Edge was one of 19 brokers evaluated in the Barron's 2018 Best Online Broker Survey, March 26, 2018.  Barron's evaluated firms in—Trading Experience & Technology, Usability, Mobile, Range of Offerings, Research Amenities, Portfolio Analysis & Reports, Customer Service, Education, Security and Costs-to rate the firms.  Merrill Edge earned the top overall score of 32.7 out of a possible 40.  Learn more at http://webreprints.djreprints.com/54692.html.  Barron's is a trademark of Dow Jones & Co., L.P. All rights reserved.  Reprinted with permission of Barron's.  The ranking or ratings shown here may not be representative of all client experiences because they reflect an average or sampling of the client experiences.  These rankings or ratings are not indicative of any future performance or investment outcome. 

J.D. Power 2018 Certified Contact Center ProgramSM recognition is based on successful completion of an evaluation and exceeding a customer satisfaction benchmark through a survey of recent servicing interactions.  For more information, visit www.jdpower.com/ccc.  The ranking or ratings shown here may not be representative of all client experiences because they reflect an average or sampling of the client experiences.  These rankings or ratings are not indicative of any future performance or investment outcome. 

Investing in securities involves risks, and there is always the potential of losing money when you invest in securities. 

The performance data contained herein represents past performance which does not guarantee future results.  Investment return and principal value will fluctuate so that shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost.  Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted.  For performance information current to the most recent month end, please contact us. 

Returns include fees and applicable loads.  Since Inception returns are provided for funds with less than 10 years of history and are as of the fund's inception date.  10 year returns are provided for funds with greater than 10 years of history. 

Before investing consider carefully the investment objectives, risks, and charges and expenses of the fund, including management fees, other expenses and special risks.  This and other information may be found in each fund's prospectus or summary prospectus, if available.  Always read the prospectus or summary prospectus carefully before you invest or send money.  Prospectuses can be obtained by contacting us. 

Expense Ratio – Gross Expense Ratio is the total annual operating expense (before waivers or reimbursements) from the fund's most recent prospectus.  You should also review the fund's detailed annual fund operating expenses which are provided in the fund's prospectus. 

Neither Merrill Lynch nor any of its affiliates or financial advisors provide legal, tax or accounting advice.  You should consult your legal and/or tax advisors before making any financial decisions.