TD Ameritrade won't change strategy with new CEO

The Omaha-based online brokerage plans to continue its strategy of maintaining its lead in the number of trades it handles and attracting more long-term investors. Tomczyk said Ameritrade is in a better position than most financial services companies to survive the current market turmoil and take advantage of circumstances.

"We have a very strong balance sheet," Tomczyk said. "We avoided all the real estate credit problems. We happen to be one of those few financial services companies that is in a very strong financial position."

And at the end of the June quarter, Ameritrade had $687 million on hand just in case the company spotted any attractive deals among companies caught up in the ongoing credit crunch and starving for cash.

Tomczyk, 53, said he's not sure whether the nation's economy is even halfway through its current economic struggles, because it's hard to find any positive trends, but he predicted the U.S. economy would eventually recover.

Ameritrade's football coach CEO, Joe Moglia, isn't leaving the company. Moglia, 59, will become the company's chairman after the company's founder, Joe Ricketts, gives up that role Wednesday when the company starts a new fiscal year.

Ricketts, 67, will remain on the board along with two of his sons, Peter and Thomas Ricketts, so his 32 years of experience won't be lost. The Ricketts family chooses three of the board's 12 members because the family owns 22 percent of the company.

Tomczyk, who became a hockey fan while growing up in Canada, said he's glad Moglia will be around to offer advice and help with some of the public relations duties.

"We've always had a very straightforward, transparent working relationship," Tomczyk said. "We actually like each other. And we have exactly the same vision for the company and strategy."

Moglia said Ameritrade employees will have to adjust to Tomczyk's leadership, but the overall company goals won't change.