Fidelity Imposed $100 Million RIA Asset Minimum

The custodian has set a mandatory asset threshold for registered investment advisors using its platform.

Updated on Oct. 5, 2026 in Financial Planning

Isometric editorial illustration of a brass plumb line hanging against a large geometric block, representing corporate asset thresholds. — Fidelity has mandated that registered investment advisors maintain at least $100 million in assets, forcing smaller firms to consolidate or depart by 2027. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Fidelity has established a new $100 million asset minimum for all registered investment advisor (RIA) custody relationships. Firms that cannot meet this requirement must discontinue their relationship with the custodian by June 30, 2027.

Why it matters

The move aims to boost profitability and minimize operational risks by focusing on larger firms that consolidate total client household assets. Custodians are increasingly prioritizing efficiency by limiting services to firms that meet specific scale requirements.

Fidelity requires RIAs to hold at least $100 million in assets on its platform to maintain custodial access. The mandate follows a trend of increasing operational costs, which previously saw fee hikes for long-short SMA products in May 2026.

The players

Fidelity

Fidelity is a major financial services corporation that provides investment management and custody services for individual and institutional investors.

The details

Fidelity has moved to consolidate its advisor base, forcing smaller RIAs to either grow their assets on the platform or seek alternative custodial arrangements. The shift follows earlier restrictive measures, including a block on new long-short SMA accounts implemented in December 2025 and subsequent fee increases for those strategies.

December 2025: Fidelity blocked new long-short SMA accounts.
May 2026: The firm increased fees for long-short SMA usage.
October 5, 2026: Custody minimum details were made public.
June 30, 2027: Deadline for non-compliant RIAs to meet the asset requirement.

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Market Dynamics

The policy reflects the broader industry shift toward custodial asset consolidation among major RIA platforms, which forces smaller advisory practices to adapt to scale-based requirements. This move marks a departure from legacy models that traditionally maintained lower barriers to entry for smaller independent firms.

Financial advisors who fail to meet the new $100 million threshold may need to migrate client assets to competing custodians by the 2027 deadline. This transition could necessitate changes in service providers and operational workflows for clients represented by smaller independent firms.

The takeaway

Advisors managing portfolios below the new $100 million mark should begin evaluating alternative custodial platforms immediately to ensure continuity. Firms must now prioritize asset growth and consolidation to maintain access to major institutional custodial services.