Equity Trust Company: Precious Metals IRA Fees and Depositories

This page is a fact profile, not a recommendation. Facts about the company come from its own website and fee schedules, and we label them as the company's statements. Facts about regulators come from the regulators' pages. We read every source on 2026-10-13. Fees and policies change, so check the current documents before you act. For the wider picture, see our Gold IRA Custodian Directory.

Who is Equity Trust Company?

According to its website, Equity Trust Company is a custodian of IRAs and other retirement accounts, including self-directed accounts that can hold precious metals. Its address is 1 Equity Way, Westlake, Ohio. The company says its predecessor business began in 1974 and that the IRS approved it as a custodian in 1983. We could not confirm those two dates from an independent source.

The company calls itself a "directed custodian." In its words, it "does not provide tax, legal or investment advice." That matters. You, not the custodian, choose what the account buys.

According to the company's precious metals page, you work with a precious metals dealer to identify the investment, then submit a request to Equity Trust to start the purchase. The page says "your precious metals dealer can help with this." It does not say whether Equity Trust itself sells metals. If you are new to how the pieces fit, read how the custodian, dealer and depository work together.

How is Equity Trust Company regulated?

State regulator. The South Dakota Division of Banking publishes a list of trust companies chartered in the state. The September 2026 edition lists Equity Trust Company at 140 N. Phillips Ave., Suite 201, in Sioux Falls, with credential number TC.022-2. The credential type is "TC.2, Public Trust Company," first issued 03/01/2003. See the state list.

The company says on its regulatory page that it is "regulated as a South Dakota trust company" and must follow the rules of the South Dakota Division of Banking. It also says an independent certified public accountant audits its financial statements each year. That page did not mention insurance or regulatory exam results, so we do not report any.

Brokerage affiliate. The company says brokerage services are offered through ETC Brokerage Services, which it describes as a FINRA and SIPC member. We did not check that claim with FINRA.

Is Equity Trust Company on the IRS list of approved nonbank custodians?

We did not find it on the list. Here is what we checked.

Federal law says an IRA trustee must be a bank or another person who shows the Treasury that it can administer the account properly (26 CFR 1.408-2). The IRS keeps a page of approved nonbank trustees and custodians. The list was dated April 1, 2026 when we opened it, and the page says the IRS will "frequently" update the list, and its own review date reads 28-Jun-2026. A newer list file than the April 1, 2026 one may therefore exist, and we did not look for one. The PDF list had 73 entries. We searched it for Equity Trust and found no entry for the company.

What does that mean? We cannot say. This page does not reach a legal conclusion. Here is the company's explanation, which is its claim and not a finding. On its custodian guide, Equity Trust says the IRS list "does not include entities that qualify as an IRA custodian under state law." The company also says the South Dakota Division of Banking regulates it as a trust company that can hold retirement assets.

Whether a state-chartered trust company counts as a "bank" for IRA purposes depends on the tax law's definition of that word, which we did not analyze. If this matters to you, ask the company in writing how it qualifies as an IRA trustee or custodian. A tax attorney can read the answer for you. Our guide to custodian requirements explains the bank and nonbank rules in more detail.

What does Equity Trust charge for a precious metals IRA?

The company's fee page links to three schedules. We read two of them. The Universal IRA schedule (form FS-0001-01, Rev. 110625) is the company's all-inclusive schedule. The Legacy Retail schedule (form FS-0001-03, Rev. 081726) is, per the fee page, for "retail accounts opened prior to August 2024 that are not managed by a financial advisor or other professional." The third, an institutional schedule, serves a different client group, and we did not review it.

The Universal schedule says fees take effect each January and are subject to change; we did not see that wording in the Legacy schedule. We copied the numbers below from the PDFs, so please check the originals.

The Legacy schedule says storage is charged when the metal arrives and again each January. The Universal schedule says only that storage is charged at the time the metals are received at the elected depository. Both say each depository may add its own fees.

How much is the annual maintenance fee?

Both schedules charge a yearly maintenance fee based on the value of the account. The Legacy schedule states that IRA maintenance fees are not prorated; we did not see that statement in the Universal schedule. The brackets are different.

The Legacy Retail schedule uses 15 brackets, starting at $225 for balances of $1 to $14,999 and $350 for $25,000 to $49,999. It reaches $500 at $100,000 to $199,999 and $2,250 at $2,000,000 and over. One top bracket is misprinted in the PDF, so we do not list the full table. Look up your own bracket in the original.

Are there other fees to know about?

Yes. Both schedules list membership options (Gold Level Service at $249 a year, and Gold Level Prime at $499 the first year and $249 after), plus charges such as overnight mail ($50), express transfer processing ($75), special handling ($25) and late fees ($50 for a late annual fee). The Universal schedule says annual memberships renew automatically unless you give written notice 30 days before renewal. The dealer's own markups, commissions and spreads are separate and do not appear on a custodian's schedule. For more on how these costs fit together, see Gold IRA custodian fees.

Which depositories does Equity Trust say it supports?

The company's precious metals page lists five storage depositories: A-Mark Global Logistics, Brink's, Delaware Depository, International Depository Services and Texas Bullion Depository. It says you or your dealer choose among them. Federal rules, as the IRS explains, let bullion avoid being treated as a collectible only when a bank or approved nonbank trustee keeps physical possession of it. The company's site says investors should not take possession of the metals.

The page names only depository storage. It does not explain how segregated and non-segregated storage differ. Ask for that in writing.

What do the company's rules say about which metals qualify?

Per the company, bars and rounds must meet a minimum fineness (gold .995, silver .999, platinum and palladium .9995) and come from accredited manufacturers. It also says certified "slabbed" coins are not accepted in IRAs at this time. These are the company's operating rules, and they can change.

What does a custodian do, and what does it not do?

Equity Trust describes itself as a directed custodian, meaning it acts on your instructions instead of choosing investments for you.

Equity Trust says on its precious metals page that it "is a directed custodian and does not provide tax, legal or investment advice." Its home page says that "no governmental agency or IRA custodian approves or guarantees investments." So a custodian's name on your statement does not mean the dealer, the coins or the price have been checked. The company even cautions readers to research providers and to be wary of firms that are reluctant to discuss fees.

What should you ask before opening an account?

• Which fee schedule applies to my account, and what is its form number and revision date?
• Which maintenance bracket will I fall into, and how will the fee change if my balance changes?
• Which depository will hold my metal, and what does it charge on top of the custodian's storage fee?
• What does it cost to sell, to take metal in kind or to transfer out?
• Can you put in writing how you qualify as an IRA trustee or custodian, and where the IRS or state shows this?
• What is the process and timing for a rollover or transfer?
• Who do I call about problems, and how are complaints handled?

A fee-only financial planner or tax professional can help you compare answers. For a general checklist, see how to choose a custodian. To see another custodian profile with the same format, read about STRATA Trust Company.

What did we not check?

We did not look at customer reviews, court records or complaint databases such as the Better Business Bureau or FINRA BrokerCheck, so this page says nothing for or against the company on those points. We read each fee schedule through an automated tool, so a small error in a number is possible. We updated this page on 2026-10-13 and plan to re-check it quarterly.