Merrill Lynch Releases Unlimited Advantage NumbersMerrill Lynch Releases Unlimited Advantage Numbers

Merrill Lynch has released the first numbers on its new Unlimited Advantage account, which offers unlimited online trading as part of a lower-priced fee account.

Between the announcement of the new account June 1 and the end of the third quarter, Merrill opened nearly 100,000 new Unlimited Advantage accounts with assets of more than $16 billion, the firm said in its third-quarter earnings release.

About 20 percent of the $16 billion in new money was transferred from outside the firm. The balance is from existing Merrill clients who converted from traditional commission-based accounts, says a spokesperson.

Another $24 billion came into the Unlimited Advantage program from Merrill's existing fee-based Asset Power and Financial Advantage accounts. These accounts were automatically converted to the new pricing structure.

The older accounts charged up to 1.5 percent to 2 percent--with limited trading. Unlimited Advantage charges 1 percent or less on assets, with no trading limits.

The firm claims it took five years to gather the $24 billion under the old programs. Merrill has total client assets of $1.5 trillion.--Rosalyn Retkwa