Want your fund sales to be all they can be? San Antonio-based USAA Investment Management, part of the United Services Automobile Assocaition (USAA) has begun marketing its new fund supermarket. USAA is a membership driven organization providing financial services and other products to 4.2 million members with ties to the U.S. military.

USAA's new fund supermarket -- dubbed USAA Fund Marketplace -- will include 5,000 mutual funds from 160 fund families other than USAA. The firm's 36 no-load funds will also be a part of the program. Chris Klaus, senior vice president of sales and services is heading the program.

Like other supermarkets, USAA's will have three-tiered pricing. Its no transaction fee (NTF) includes roughly 500 funds. The funds pay a individually-negotiated fees, said Tom Honeycutt. He would not reveal what those fees are.

Purchasers of no-load funds that are not part of the NTF program will be charged a 50 basis point commission ($40 minimum/$149 maximum) for a rep-assisted trade or 50 basis points principal ($40 minimum/$75 maximum) for USAA TouchLine Trader telecommunications access and for online purchases through usaa.com.

Load funds are sold at the stated commission rate for the fund family.

USAA is launching the service to enable their customer base to more easily integrate their invests, said Honeycutt. "We know that our customers may have relationships with other providers," he said adding that many of their clients have accounts with 401(k) vendors such as Fidelity, T. Rowe Price, and Vanguard that they want to maintain.

"In today's investment world, having one-stop access to a range of financial products is a great convenience to investors and we believe USAA Fund Marketplace will bring an investor's total financial picture into sharper focus," said Michael J.C. Roth, president and chief executive officer of USAA Investment Management Co.

Honeycutt said that USAA has building this capability over time and that the firm has built the technology to integrate the supermarket with the rest of its offerings.

The supermarket will be marketed to members primarily through direct mail. USAA is the second largest direct mailer, according to the company. 

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