Schwab IMPACT is back in San Francisco -- its old stomping grounds -- a boost for the city after Schwab dumped it, and it struggled post-COVID
Pushed to perhaps its latest date ever, Nov. 19-21, the 2024 event will swing from Right Coast Philadelphia to Left Coast 'Frisco, at a venue yet to be announced.
4 min read- Schwab IMPACT returns to San Francisco after 13 years, boosting the struggling city.
- Conference expects 10,000 RIAs, offering a major economic lift to San Francisco.
- Texas move provided Schwab cost advantages, but San Francisco faces slow recovery.
- San Francisco combats homelessness and crime to revive its business appeal.
Schwab IMPACT is returning to San Francisco after a 13-year hiatus – the first visit since moving to Texas – giving a major lift to a city still struggling with post-COVID crime and homelessness.
The 2024 version of the annual conference – expected to host an estimated 10,000 RIAs – is set for Nov. 19–21, though other details, including the exact venue in the California city, have yet to be released.
San Francisco served as Schwab headquarters from 1971 through 2020, when it decamped to West Lake, Texas, a Dallas/Fort Worth suburb. See: Charles Schwab & Co. may skip out of San Francisco entirely with Google, Facebook and Salesforce driving rents and talent costs sky high
The conference is by invitation-only, and RIABiz will likely attend if invited. A query placed to Schwab about whether it would be invited went unanswered.
In 2011, the IMPACT event was hosted at the Moscone Center, San Francisco's only mega convention site. It's three main halls sprawl across three blocks and 87 acres in the “South of Market” area of the city. See: Nearly 3,800 attendees converge at Schwab IMPACT though power outages back East claim a few
It is presumed Schwab will again choose Moscone, which can handle up to 60,000 attendees. No other city facility comes close in the region.
Pros, cons
Nearly 3,800 attendees converge at Schwab IMPACT though power outages back East claim a few
Schwab's departure from San Francisco, its birthplace and heritage, was arguably good timing. It also happened to move toward one TD Ameritrade stronghold as it acquired the firm in 2019.
The Dallas area confers cost-of-living advantages, less traffic congestion, and more space. Texas has no state business income tax, but it does levy a franchise tax on companies with revenues above $1.23 million.
In Westlake, Schwab also rubs shoulders with peers like Vanguard and Fidelity, and the giant ex-urban workforce has a large pool of financial services workers. See: Schwab's headquarters shift to Texas amid TD Ameritrade merger seems to please nobody -- outside the Dallas Chamber of Commerce--Omaha feels especially omitted
Schwab could count itself fortunate because it was pulling out of San Francisco just as COVID-19 struck the city like a body blow.
As the office towers downtown cleared out – under work-at-home orders -- the homeless population surged and exacerbated a difficult situation.
Story Timeline
Struggle, revival
As the pandemic waned, San Francisco had the slowest post-COVID pandemic recovery of any major U.S. or Canadian city, according to a University of Toronto School of Cities study.
Charles Schwab & Co. may skip out of San Francisco entirely with Google, Facebook and Salesforce driving rents and talent costs sky high
In the spring of this year, the city saw only 32% of the foot traffic return compared with the spring of 2019 before the lockdown.
The city has a homelessness rate of 887 people per 100,000 residents, the third-highest in the country behind neighboring Oakland, and Los Angeles, according to Reuters, citing a 2023 city report examining 16 cities,
Around the same time this year, San Francisco launched a $6 million ad campaign to attract tourists and business travelers, and only recently has downtown begun to regain its old swagger.
The city got another major boost in November when it hosted world leaders, including President Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.
Mayor London Breed also says the city is making strides to reduce the homeless population, curb drug abuse and cut crime.
Deminishing presence
Still, Schwab's continuing push to cut costs after a rough 2023 may further decimate Schwab's San Francisco presence. See: In apparent reversal, Charles Schwab Corp. is telling thousands of staffers in five cities to work from home -- six more cities, including its old San Francisco headquarters, are on the chopping block
Schwab offered no further details about the San Francisco event, but last year's version reportedly had 2,500 attendees in Philadelphia.
RIAs raised some concerns in Philly related to service issues stemming from the TD Ameritrade merger. The suspense is now whether Schwab can iron out any such wrinkles by November to avoid a repeat.
Not in question is whether it will attract thousands of advisors, vendors and its own staff.
At T3 last week, as the date made the rounds at Joel Bruckenstein's event, many people simply said: “See you in San Francisco."
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