Expected to be finalized in late 2020, the merger between two of the leading U.S. brokerage houses will create a mammoth company that will be in the position to challenge major financial rivals.

According to market analysts the new company will be valued at 100 billion USD – twice the size of BofA Merrill Lynch. The deal however will have to pass through the antitrust regulators.

"We have long respected TD Ameritrade. With this transaction, we will capitalize on the unique opportunity to build a firm with the soul of a challenger and the resources of a large financial services institution." said Walt Bettinger, CEO of Schwab in a statement after the deal was announced.

The new company will operate over 24 million customer accounts with more than 5 trillion USD in assets. The combined annual revenue of Schwab and TD Ameritrade exceeds 25 billion USD.

According to Charles Schwab and TD Ameritrade the merger will save the new company annual expenses of up to 2 billion USD.

After the announcement the shares of Schwab fell slightly, while TD Ameritrade gained 3% in pre market trading.