American Estate & Trust

What American Estate & Trust does

American Estate & Trust (AET) is a privately held Nevada-chartered trust company founded in 2007 and regulated under NRS 669 by the Nevada Financial Institutions Division. AET acts as a qualified custodian and directed trustee, administering self-directed IRAs (Traditional, Roth, SEP, SIMPLE), Solo 401(k)s, HSAs, and Nevada-directed trusts holding alternative assets — including real estate, private equity, venture capital, private credit, digital assets, precious metals, oil and gas interests, and royalty interests. The company's stated operating metrics are 16K+ clients served, $2.5B+ in assets under custody, and $10B+ transacted.

AET's platform comprises three core digital products: an Advisor/Business Portal for advisors and fund managers to manage accounts, deals, and capital flows; an Investor Portal for self-service account access and tax documents; and a Trust API offering programmatic, RESTful integration for fintech platforms and developers. Supporting capabilities include DocuSign-integrated onboarding, Morningstar ByAllAccounts consolidated reporting, SOC 1 Type II audited controls, and a BSA/AML compliance program with CIP/KYC, OFAC screening, and transaction surveillance. The technology stack is described as modern cloud infrastructure with proprietary custody and trust administration software built specifically for private market flows.

AET monetizes through recurring custody and administration fees on accounts, fees for directed trust services under Nevada law, API/integration subscriptions, and transactional escrow fees for private placements and capital raises. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed, with engagement driven by direct enterprise sales, partner referrals (notably a Beagle integration for 401(k)-to-SDIRA rollovers announced 2025-11-13), and channel partners including TPAs, CPAs, attorneys, and RIAs. The company serves eight primary segments: investment advisors, family offices, platforms/fintech, CPAs/attorneys, PE firms, deal sponsors, estates/trusts, and TPAs.

Name

American Estate & Trust

Legal name

American Estate & Trust

Website

https://aetrust.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Self-Directed IRA and Alternative Asset Custody

NAICS

Trusts, Estates, and Agency Accounts (525920), Trusts, Estates, and Agency Accounts (52592), Other Financial Vehicles (52599)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Real Estate (6500)

akta.pro primary industry

Directed Trust & Trust Advisory Services (FSAAANAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Estate & Legacy Planning Advisory (FSAEAAAG), Trust & Fiduciary Advisory for HNW/UHNW (Trust Structuring & Trustee Oversight) (FSAAABAF)

Keywords

• Self-directed IRA custody
• Alternative asset custody
• Trust administration services
• Qualified custodian services
• API custody infrastructure

Headquarters

HQ city

Las Vegas

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. SDIRA Custody Fees: Custody and administration fees for Self-Directed IRAs (Traditional, Roth, SEP, SIMPLE), Solo 401(k)s, and HSAs holding alternative assets. Revenue is recurring, based on account administration and asset custody services.
2. Trust Administration Services: Directed trustee services under Nevada trust law for estates, trusts, and corporate trustee arrangements. Nevada-directed trust services for alternative investment structures.
3. Platform API & Integration Fees: API access fees and integration services for fintech platforms and deal sponsors embedding AET custody infrastructure.
4. Escrow Services: Escrow services for complex transactions and capital raises, including private placements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

American Estate & Trust (AET) is a Nevada-chartered trust company that serves as a qualified custodian and directed trustee for alternative assets within self-directed IRAs, Solo 401(k)s, HSAs, and trust structures. The company administers qualified retirement accounts holding real estate, private equity, venture capital, private credit, digital assets, precious metals, and other non-traditional investments, and delivers this custody through an API-first platform with Advisor and Investor portals.

Product overview

American Estate & Trust (AET) operates a multi-product platform centered on SDIRA custody and trust administration for alternative assets. The core offering consists of a self-directed IRA custody platform supporting real estate, private equity, venture capital, private credit, and digital assets, administered under Nevada trust law. The product portfolio comprises three primary user-facing digital products: the Advisor Portal (Business Portal) for investment advisors to manage accounts, deals, and client relationships; the Investor Portal for self-service account access; and the Trust API for programmatic, developer-facing integration into fintech platforms. Supporting these are Nevada directed trust services, fund custody and investor account administration for deal sponsors and PE firms, and multi-account reporting for family offices. The platform is differentiated by regulatory oversight as a Nevada-chartered trust company, SOC 1 Type II audited controls, and API-first infrastructure built for private market flows.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Advisor Portal (Business Portal)

Quantifiable outcome

• $2.5B+ assets under custody
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles8 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability1 record

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• BeaglecoreTechnology or Integration · 13 November 2025Beagle and American Estate & Trust partnered to simplify 401(k) to self-directed IRA rollovers. The collaboration combines Beagle's technology for locating old 401(k) accounts with AET's custody platform for alternative investments, enabling seamless asset rollover and access to diverse investment options including real estate, PE, and private assets.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Rocket Dollar: Self-directed IRA platform offering access to alternative investments through partner custodians. Competes with AET for the same end-investor demand but relies on integrated custody infrastructure rather than owning it.
• Alto: SDIRA platform partnering with custodians to enable alternative-asset investing through a consumer-friendly interface. Overlaps with AET's RIA and individual investor use cases but does not operate as a chartered custodian itself.
• iTrustCapital: IRA platform enabling cryptocurrency and precious metals investing through integrated custody. Comparable to AET's digital asset and alternative-asset SDIRA positioning, though focused primarily on crypto.

Direct peers

• Equity Trust Company: One of the largest SDIRA custodians in the U.S., offering directed trustee and custody services for alternative assets. Directly comparable to AET in customer base (RIAs, family offices, individual investors) and core product (alternative-asset SDIRA custody).
• IRA Financial Trust: Self-directed IRA custodian focused on alternative assets including real estate, crypto, and private equity. Directly competes with AET in the SDIRA custody market for advisors and individual investors.
• Kingdom Trust (Choice Financial Trust): Directed custodian specializing in alternative-asset retirement accounts and private fund custody. Comparable to AET in serving private equity sponsors, deal sponsors, and self-directed investors.
• Millennium Trust Company: Specialized SDIRA and alternative-asset custodian serving RIAs, advisors, and plan sponsors. Comparable to AET in custody scope, alternative-asset support, and B2B distribution through advisor and platform channels.

Broad incumbents

• Fidelity Investments: Largest U.S. retirement custodian with growing alternative-asset capabilities. Overlaps with AET in qualified retirement custody but operates at vastly greater scale and broader asset coverage.
• Northern Trust: Large chartered trust company serving UHNW families, family offices, and institutions with custody and directed trustee services. Comparable to AET's trust administration and family office segments but at much larger scale.
• Charles Schwab: Major retail and RIA custodian with SDIRA offerings and emerging alts support. Comparable as a custodian competitor for RIAs and individual investors, though alts support is less specialized than AET's.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about American Estate & Trust