The Charles Schwab Corporation (CSC) is a financial holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the Company engages in securities brokerage, banking and related financial services. As of December 31, 2008, CSC provided financial services to individuals and institutional clients through three segments: Investor Services, Advisor Services, and Corporate and Retirement Services. As of December 31, 2008, the Company had $ 1.137 trillion in client assets, 7.4 million active brokerage accounts, 1.4 million corporate retirement plan participants and 447,000 banking accounts. In November 2008, it announced the establishment of a new business unit, Institutional Services, to serve the needs of independent investment advisors (IAs), corporate benefit plan sponsors and third party retirement plan recordkeepers. The unit combines former Schwab Institutional and Schwab Corporate and Retirement Services operations.