In asset management can go a lot wrong for customers. Below you will find the most important tips from the independent online comparison service. Banks make good money with their wealth management mandates. Therefore, it is not surprising that banks want to make their investment business particularly tasty. For bank customers, but an asset management is not always worthwhile. For the GPB Automative this is a very important matter.

Beware of rogue asset managers

As with loans, mortgages and insurance, there are unfortunately some black sheep in the area of asset management. Again and again there are providers who fill their own purse at the expense of the customer. Before concluding the contract, find out more about the desired bank or external asset manager. Especially with external asset managers, you have to be careful because they are much less regulated than banks. You must be particularly careful with asset managers operating outside of Switzerland.

Note mandate fees

Asset management mandates and investment advice often require a flat fee per annum. It is usually a certain percentage of fixed assets, sometimes with a minimum annual fee. Attention: this so-called flat fee does not include all fees. So product costs are usually added in addition. This is especially important for funds, which in turn charge fees for fund management. Since many asset managers use funds, in these cases you pay twice for a similar service.

View custody fees

Custody fees of the custodian banks are frequently added, especially with external asset managers. But also with mandates of banks custody fees are sometimes charged separately. Insist on external custodians with external asset managers.

Compare total costs

There are many fees in asset management. It is therefore important that you get an idea of ​​all possible costs. These include, for example, flat fees for investment advice or asset management, custody charges for mandates, transaction costs brokerage fees, product fees for example, TER, fund issuance and redemption fees and foreign currency charges.

Request offers

Ask for quotes from multiple providers before you decide. This is a good tip, especially if you want to invest a larger fortune. An offer should provide well-structured information about the investment strategy and costs incurred. At the end, decide on the best offer.

Value transparency

Unfortunately, the asset management industry still largely lives off the prevailing lack of transparency. Put value on the transparency of investment decisions and costs with your asset manager. Your investment advisor should be able to inform you at any time about all fees. What is also needed is uncompromising transparency when it comes to retrocessions (kickbacks). As a customer, you need to know if your investment manager receives compensation for certain investment products and, if so, whether you will receive them back.

Consider Robo Advisor

Robo Advisor is a relatively new alternative on the market as digital asset managers. These are online money managers who usually invest their money in low-cost ETFs. One advantage is that digital asset managers are generally cheaper than traditional providers. However, Robo Advisor is particularly suitable for Internet-savvy customers who do not value a consultant.

Trade yourself

If you know something about investing yourself, the independent purchase of investment products is by far the cheapest solution. So you can buy cheap ETF and other securities yourself. In this case, it is worth comparing the Swiss trading platforms.