eTrade 2011 Annual Report Download - page 4

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This report contains forward-looking statements involving risks and uncertainties. These statements relate to
our future plans, objectives, expectations and intentions. These statements may be identified by the use of words
such as “expect,” “may,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan” and similar expressions. Our actual results could differ
materially from those discussed in these forward-looking statements, and we caution that we do not undertake to
update these statements. Factors that could contribute to our actual results differing from any forward-looking
statements include those discussed under Risk Factors, Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial
Condition and Results of Operations and elsewhere in this report. The cautionary statements made in this report
should be read as being applicable to all forward-looking statements wherever they appear in this report. We further
caution that there may be risks associated with owning our securities other than those discussed in such filings.
ITEM 1. BUSINESS
OVERVIEW
E*TRADE Financial Corporation is a financial services company that provides online brokerage and related
products and services primarily to individual retail investors under the brand “E*TRADE Financial.” Our
primary focus is to profitably grow our online brokerage business, which includes our self-directed trading and
investing customers. We also provide investor-focused banking products, primarily sweep deposits and savings
products, to retail investors. Our competitive strategy is to attract and retain customers by emphasizing value
beyond price, ease of use and innovation, with delivery of our products and services primarily through online and
technology-intensive channels.
Our corporate offices are located at 1271 Avenue of the Americas, 14th Floor, New York, New York 10020.
We were incorporated in California in 1982 and reincorporated in Delaware in July 1996. We have approximately
3,200 employees. We operate directly and through numerous subsidiaries many of which are overseen by
governmental and self-regulatory organizations. Our most significant subsidiaries are described below:
• E*TRADE Bank is a federally chartered savings bank that provides investor-focused banking products
to retail customers nationwide and deposit accounts insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation (“FDIC”);
• E*TRADE Securities LLC is a registered broker-dealer and is a wholly-owned operating subsidiary of
E*TRADE Bank. It is the primary provider of brokerage products and services to our customers;
• E*TRADE Clearing LLC is the clearing firm for our brokerage subsidiaries and is a wholly-owned
operating subsidiary of E*TRADE Bank. Its main purpose is to transfer securities from one party to
another; and
• E*TRADE Capital Markets, LLC is a registered broker-dealer and market maker.
A complete list of our subsidiaries can be found in Exhibit 21.1.
We provide services to customers in the U.S. through our website at www.etrade.com. In addition to our
website, we also provide services through our network of customer service representatives, investment
professionals and investment advisors. We also provide these services over the phone or in person through our 28
E*TRADE branches. Information on our website is not a part of this report.
STRATEGY
Our core business is our trading and investing customer franchise. Building on the strengths of this franchise,
our growth strategy is focused on:
•Strengthening our overall financial and franchise position. We are focused on strengthening our overall
capital structure and continuing to mitigate credit losses in our loan portfolio. We are also focused on
positioning the Company for future growth and maintaining disciplined expense management.
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