“Fastest Growing Trust Company in Top-Rated U.S. Trust Jurisdiction”
South Dakota Trust Company (SDTC) serves affluent families and their advisors, both domestically and internationally, by offering tax-favored trust situs, modern trust statutes, customized trust administration, state-of-the-art technology, quality service, unique and creative advice, and reasonable fees.
SDTC specializes in trust administration of both trusts established pursuant to South Dakota law and trusts of other states moved to South Dakota (i.e., change of trust situs by naming/appointing SDTC as trustee). SDTC can generally serve as trustee of trusts from all 50 states and many countries.
SDTC provides “full”, “directed”, and “delegated” trust administration services for both financial and non-financial assets. Additionally, SDTC works with non-SDTC investment professionals. All of these advantages and services are available through SDTC without the need for either the trust grantor or the beneficiaries to reside in South Dakota.
SDTC’s founders each have twenty-eight plus years of trust experience, and the trust officers average more than twenty-two years of experience. SDTC’s trust officers are highly credentialed attorneys, accountants, and trust professionals who are trained and experienced in the areas of South Dakota trust administration. The trust officer’s goal is to supplement and facilitate communication with the client, the beneficiaries and the client’s other investment, financial planning, legal, insurance, and tax advisors. The trust officer acts as a relationship manager, customizing trust services individually for each client. Trust accounts are supported by the Infovisa Trust Accounting System.
Most often custody of the financial assets is held at the money manager’s custodian or master custodian. However, our default custodian is Fifth Third Bank, which can be used if the client desires. The unique integration of SDTC, Infovisa Systems and when chosen, Fifth Third Bank, combined with the ability to individualize the offering for each client make SDTC the trust company of choice for the wealthy and their advisors.
Primarily we serve as purely an administrative trustee, providing clients and their advisors from across the country and the world with the advantages of South Dakota trust situs (e.g., excellent trust laws, no state income tax, low premium tax, unlimited trust duration, excellent asset protection, etc.) without having to visit, reside in, or even fly over South Dakota. We work exclusively with outside investment managers, who are appointed by trust advisors or family committees who, in turn, direct how the trust is invested. Our trust systems tie into Advent, etc., so that investment managers can handle the investments within the trusts from anywhere in the world, and we provide secure internet access to family members and advisors worldwide.
In addition, SDTC charges reasonable fees for its services. Due to the individualized nature of its trust services, most fees are customized according to the individual client relationship. Please click here for more information on fees and fee schedules.
We have many other services, products, and trust strategies (many of which are described on this website).
Our objective at SDTC is to provide “flexible, individualized, service-oriented, cost-effective trust administration”. With this in mind, we seek to tailor our services to each family, allowing us to help in the following ways:
With newly drafted South Dakota trust laws, SDTC can act as “directed” administrative trustee, leaving the family and their advisors as the investment and distribution advisors, committees, trustees, and/or trust protectors. This allows the family to work with their existing investment and insurance advisors or those of their choice. For additional information on the directed trust.
SDTC can serve as successor trustee or co-trustee for trusts looking to move to South Dakota for its trust, asset protection, and tax benefits. SDTC can “delegate” investment responsibility to an outside investment manager. These trusts generally retain the trust laws of the states in which they were created, but are administered under South Dakota Law. Additionally, it is very easy and inexpensive to reform a “delegated” South Dakota trust to a “directed” trust, if desired. For additional information on reforming, modifying, or decanting an existing trust.
SDTC can serve as both Corporate and/or Trustee Agent by assisting a family with the formation and operation of a Private Family Trust Company (PFTC) in South Dakota by providing the family with the necessary office space, office services (e.g., answer the phone, collect and forward mail, ect.) and local Board membership, as well as assistance with regulatory/compliance issues, trust administration, trust accounting, and custody services. The PFTC can then work with the non-South Dakota Family Office in servicing the family, typically through a servicing agreement. No one needs to move to South Dakota if SDTC is involved. For additional information on private trust companies.
SDTC administers all types of insurance trusts and LLCs as a result of South Dakota’s favorable trust and insurance laws as well as the lowest state premium tax in the U.S. (i.e., 8 basis points or 8/100ths of 1% compared to the national average of 200 basis points: Delaware and New York – 200 basis points(2%), California – 235 (2.35%), Nevada – 350 (3.5%), Florida – 175 (1.75%)). For additional information on insurance trusts.
SDTC serves international families worldwide with the following types of trusts:
Non-Resident Alien (NRA)
Dynasty Trust
Pre-Immigration Planning
Standby-Dynasty Trust
Foreign Grantor Trust
Foreign Law Trust
Primarily we serve as purely an administrative trustee, providing clients and their advisors from across the country and the world with the advantages of South Dakota trust situs (e.g., excellent trust laws, no state income tax, low premium tax, unlimited trust duration, excellent asset protection, etc.) without having to visit, reside in, or even fly over South Dakota. We work exclusively with outside investment managers, who are appointed by trust advisors or family committees who, in turn, direct how the trust is invested. Our trust systems tie into Advent, etc., so that investment managers can handle the investments within the trusts from anywhere in the world, and we provide secure internet access to family members and advisors worldwide.
In addition, SDTC charges reasonable fees for its services. Due to the individualized nature of its trust services, most fees are customized according to the individual client relationship. Please click here for more information on fees and fee schedules.
We have many other services, products, and trust strategies (many of which are described on this website).