I want to close a Fidelity mutual fund account and put the funds in an Ameritrade account. In this day and age one would think it would only involve a a few minutes of typing on each company’s website. It sure would beat having a check mailed (3 days minimum), taking the check to a bank, and writing another check to the other company.
One, Fidelity would not recognize the routing and account numbers of my local bank account. Although Fidelity would allow a transfer to another brokerage, it wanted a routing number. I could find no routing number for Ameritrade. Of course, using Google I found it as I was writing this paragraph. The Google summary gives the routing number.
Two, Ameritrade wanted me to print out a form and fill it in by hand. And of course, include a copy of my latest statement. Given all that paper, I would probably take it to the Post Office to get the correct postage.
Three, I went back to the “horse and buggy days” and asked Fidelity to mail me a check. When the check arrives, I’ll take it to my bank. When the check clears than I will send the fund electronically to Ameritrade.
So, I could have saved myself much time and hair pulling if I had gone with plan three instead.
And some people have the gall to complain about government inefficiency. Many government organizations are far more efficient than many corporations. The government will get the check to me quite well, thank you.
