A leading asset manager and provider of index-based investment solutions – replicated responsibly and accurately.
Our investment philosophy
The Swiss Life Asset Managers offering aims to provide and implement attractive, clear and understandable index investments that meet the latest technological and conceptual requirements. We combine many years of expertise with state-of-the-art systems and solid investment processes to achieve the highest possible precision in index replication. All indexed fund solutions are managed from Switzerland and are specially tailored to the needs of Swiss investors.
Our investment process
Our investment process is based on many years of expertise in managing indexed funds. We rely on a well-established portfolio management team and robust, proven processes, and combine them with state of-the-art systems.
Identifying, assessing and managing risks is part of our DNA and is based on over 165 years of experience in the investment business and in managing risks. We also ensure the independent monitoring of risks.
Index funds are investment funds with a clear, transparent investment philosophy. The aim of an index fund is to replicate the risk and return characteristics of an index (e.g. the SPI,MSCI World or MSCI Emerging Markets) as accurately as possible.
Investments are based on the replicated index and may involve a large number of securities from different countries, regions and industries. For example, investors can invest even small amounts in one or more index funds at a low cost and therefore have access to a broadly diversified portfolio across different asset classes.
Index funds and passively managed ETFs (exchange-traded funds) track a given index. The main difference for investors lies in the way they are traded: index funds can be traded once a day at the fund company at NAV (netasset value) via a bank. ETFs are traded on an exchange during opening hours.
For Swiss investors, index funds can offer a significant advantage over passive ETFs. For example:·
- There is no stamp duty on subscriptions and redemptions
- Foreign withholding taxes can be optimised for employee benefits institutions
Swiss Life Asset Managers manages index funds in the areas of equities, bonds and real estate. These can be combined in multi-asset portfolios to achieve broad diversification.
Swiss Life AssetManagers offers three different investment options:
- The index funds can be subscribed and redeemed directly via Swiss Life Asset Managers via the fund company without stock exchange trading, usually at net asset value (NAV). This is particularly attractive for larger volumes and institutional investors.
- Mandate solutions: Swiss Life Asset Managers offers customised index mandates that are tailored to specific requirements (e.g. ESG criteria, exclusion lists or benchmark requirements). These are particularly suitable for institutional clients such as pension funds or foundations.
In the case of asset management mandates, subscriptions and redemptions are carried out by Swiss Life Asset Managers.
The R Cap and I Cap share classes do not require a contractual agreement with Swiss Life Asset Managers and can be traded freely via your own bank. The I Cap share classes are only available to qualified investors, while the R Cap share classes are open to all investors.
A contractual agreement with Swiss Life Asset Managers is required to access the AM Cap, M Cap and K Cap share classes. Based on this, trading can take place either via Swiss Life Asset Managers or the customer’s bank (Overview of unit classes and access options). - Multi-asset portfolios: it is also possible to invest in diversified portfolios combining different index funds from asset classes such as equities, bonds, real estate and liquidity. A rebalancing approach ensures efficient reallocations and lowtransaction costs.
You can find more information on investment opportunities in index funds in our expert article “Diversifying portfolios with index investments”.
Swiss Life AssetManagers offers index funds domiciled in Switzerland and Luxembourg.
The index funds domiciled in Switzerland are specifically tailored to the needs of Swiss investors and are only distributed in Switzerland. Institutional investors such as pension funds and insurance companies benefit in particular from this domicile.
The index funds domiciled in Luxembourg are offered in Switzerland as well as in France and Germany.
Our fund universe
Consideration of ESG aspects
We will offer various index funds that replicate an ESG benchmark in order to integrate sustainability aspects into investment strategies. We also strictly exclude securities of producers of controversial weapons in all index funds. To do so, we use the exclusion list from the Swiss Association for Responsible Investments (SVVK-ASIR).
