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Should I use BNY Pershing?

Brokerage custody, clearing, and prime brokerage provider - pershing.com

Depends. BNY Pershing is institutional clearing and custody for RIAs, broker-dealers, and hedge funds — a serious fit only if you run one of those. Individuals and small teams should not buy; use a retail broker or a smaller, self-serve custodian.

Confidence

Medium. Based on ~20 public sources. Many 'Pershing' results were unrelated entities (yachts, M26 tank, Pershing Square hedge fund) and were excluded.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of useNo consumer usability evidence found
  • Feature depth
  • Support quality
  • Security posture

Pricing

Not disclosed

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed

Best for

  • RIAs needing full-service custody
  • Broker-dealers outsourcing clearing
  • Hedge funds needing prime brokerage
  • Global wealth platforms

Not for

  • Individual investors wanting a direct brokerage account
  • Small teams wanting self-serve SaaS pricing
  • Anyone needing published pricing or fast onboarding
  • Firms without dedicated ops staff for custody workflows

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

No published pricing — fees negotiated per relationship; expect subscription upsells for perks

medium

FINRA found unreported variable-rate securities from 1997–2023 — a long-running data governance flaw

medium

Margin accounts: Pershing can sell your securities to cover debits

medium

No direct signup — individuals access Pershing only through their advisor's firm

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Full clearing, custody, and prime brokerage under one roof
  • Matched Schwab on zero-fee trades; subscriptions add perks like cash sweep
  • Backed by BNY Mellon; member FINRA/SIPC custodian
  • Trusted to hold assets for established wealth management firms

Cons

  • 1.4/5 average across 115 PissedConsumer complaints
  • 2.5/5 Trustpilot rating
  • $1.4M FINRA fine over variable-rate security reporting errors
  • Massachusetts breach notification filing on record
  • Only 40% employee approval on Glassdoor

Sources & method

Analyzed 10/06/2026 - 11 sources - FINRA fined Pershing $1.4M for data-governance reporting errors and a Massachusetts breach notification is on file; it is a regulated financial firm, not software with CVEs.

official x2review x4security x3news x2
  • $1.4M FINRA fine, FINRA fined Pershing $1.4M over variable-rate security reporting errors tied to a data governance flaw.
  • Massachusetts breach notification, Massachusetts assigned breach notification #15467 to Pershing LLC, a BNY Mellon company.
  • Lockwood Advisors wrap-fee fine, SEC fined BNY's Lockwood Advisors, a Pershing affiliate, $200K for failing to disclose wrap fees.

Key stats

  • Value for money: 2/5

    Rating

  • Not disclosed

    Starting price

  • 11

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 2/5. No public pricing; perks gated behind subscriptions
  • Ease of use. No consumer usability evidence found
  • Feature depth: 4/5. Clearing, custody, prime brokerage, global platform
  • Support quality: 2/5. 1.4/5 across 115 complaints
  • Security posture: 2/5. FINRA fine plus state breach filing
  • 2.5/5 Trustpilot www.pershing.com reviews
  • 1.4/5 PissedConsumer 115 complaints
  • 40% Glassdoor employee approval, 432 reviews
  • $1.4M Recent FINRA fine variable-rate security reporting errors

Pricing

Not disclosed

Security

FINRA fined Pershing $1.4M for data-governance reporting errors and a Massachusetts breach notification is on file; it is a regulated financial firm, not software with CVEs.

  • $1.4M FINRA fineFINRA fined Pershing $1.4M over variable-rate security reporting errors tied to a data governance flaw.⁵
  • Massachusetts breach notificationMassachusetts assigned breach notification #15467 to Pershing LLC, a BNY Mellon company.⁶
  • Lockwood Advisors wrap-fee fineSEC fined BNY's Lockwood Advisors, a Pershing affiliate, $200K for failing to disclose wrap fees.11

What users say

Consumer review sites are brutal (1.4–2.5/5), while advisor discussions treat Pershing as a credible full-service custodian.

“Pershing is better on th…”
Reddit, r/CFP
“Pershing is a big name a…”
Reddit, r/personalfinance

Companies that use it

  • Mutual of Omaha Investor Services
  • Raymond James (Nascot Wood, UK)
  • Deutsche Bank Wealth Management
Full analysis

Based on ~20 public sources. Many 'Pershing' results were unrelated entities (yachts, M26 tank, Pershing Square hedge fund) and were excluded.

Institutional custody/clearing from BNY — right for RIAs and broker-dealers, wrong for individuals and small teams.

Methodology

Based on ~20 public sources. Many 'Pershing' results were unrelated entities (yachts, M26 tank, Pershing Square hedge fund) and were excluded.

Sources

  1. BNY Mellon Reviews — Trustpilottrustpilot.com
    review
  2. 115 Pershing Reviews — PissedConsumerpershing.pissedconsumer.com
    review
  3. Pershing: RIA Custodians — Reddit r/CFPreddit.com
    review
  4. Pershing Reviews — Glassdoorglassdoor.com
    review
  5. Pershing hammered with $1.4M FINRA fine — InvestmentNewsinvestmentnews.com
    security
  6. Massachusetts breach notice #15467 — Pershing LLCmass.gov
    security
  7. Pershing finally matches Schwab on zero-fee trades — RIABizriabiz.com
    news
  8. Financing Solutions — BNY Pershingbny.com
    official
  9. BNY Mellon | Pershing — Welcomeinvestor.pershing.com
    official
  10. BNY Mellon and Pershing combine operations — Yahoo Financefinance.yahoo.com
    news
  11. BNY's Lockwood Advisors fined $200K — FA-Magfa-mag.com
    security

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