Equity Trust Company Launches UBIT Professional

CLEVELAND, OH--(Marketwired - Apr 28, 2016) -  Equity Trust Company, a financial services company offering retirement accounts and alternative asset custody for individuals and financial institutions, today announced the launch of UBIT Professional, a new affiliate specializing in Unrelated Business Income Tax (UBIT) compliance and Form 990-T preparation.

Unrelated business income is income derived from a tax-exempt business or entity that is not related to the tax-exempt purpose of that entity. For example, income from an individual retirement account (IRA) investment in a Limited Liability Company (LLC) that does not pay corporate taxes would be subjected to the unrelated business income tax. UBIT Professional, the first service of its kind, is exclusively focused on helping individual investors, CPAs, financial advisors and other financial professionals to comply with the rules regulating unrelated business income.

"At Equity Trust Company, investor choice is one of our top priorities," said Jeff Desich, Chief Executive Officer of Equity Trust Company. "We want to expand investors' understanding of the investments that are possible through retirement accounts, and unfortunately, obscure taxes have the potential to deter worthwhile investments. We launched UBIT Professional to take the complexity out of UBIT compliance, allowing individual investors, financial professionals and their clients to focus on success."

Filing unrelated business income taxes can be a time-consuming process, and many CPAs lack the expertise to be able to complete the necessary forms in an efficient, cost effective manner. UBIT Professional simplifies UBIT compliance by offering Form 990-T preparation -- at both the federal and state levels -- for investments that generate unrelated business taxable income, such as debt-financed real estate, limited partnerships and LLCs.

"Tax compliance shouldn't be the deciding factor for why an investor chooses not to pursue a particular investment," said John Bowens, National Education Specialist for Equity Trust Company. "Our hope is that UBIT Professional will open up new opportunities and give investors and financial professionals one less thing to worry about."

For more information, visit http://ubitprofessional.com/.

About Equity Trust Company
Equity Trust Company is a financial services company that provides a platform for individual investors, financial professionals and institutions to invest in alternative asset classes, including real estate, tax liens, private equity and precious metals. The Equity Trust family of companies offers custodial services for alternative investments, investment in alternative assets with individual retirement accounts, back-office solutions for RIAs, brokerage services, directed trustee services and more. Equity Trust Company evolved from a predecessor brokerage firm which started in 1974, to a financial services company today serving more than 300,000 accounts, representing over $30 billion in assets under custody and administration. For more information, visit http://www.aboutequitytrust.com.