Investing Guide
Understanding investment costs: fee models, TER and cost disclosure
What asset management and investment products can cost: the common fee models, the TER as a standardised product figure, custody fees and brokerage as market terms — and where your figures are documented.
Last updated on September 23, 2026 · Reviewed by our FINMA-licensed advisory team
In brief
Investment costs have two sources: the service (management, advice, custody, transactions) and the products used (ongoing fund costs, disclosed as the TER). On the service side there are various fee models — a percentage of assets, a flat amount, all-in or performance-related; none of them is prescribed by law, the contract is what governs.
The product side, by contrast, is standardised: the TER is defined in an industry guideline recognised by FINMA as a minimum standard and makes ongoing fund costs comparable — though it does not include the fund's transaction costs. Your information rights are secured by FIDLEG: the costs of the recommended service must be disclosed, and for most instruments there is a key information document with a costs section.
This page provides general information and deliberately names no prices, ranges or providers. It is neither investment advice nor a recommendation. As of 2026, without guarantee.
The fee models on the service side
Four basic models shape the market — in pure form or combined:
- Asset-based fee: a percentage of the assets managed or advised on, per year — the most widespread model for discretionary and advisory mandates.
- Flat fee: a fixed amount independent of volume — common for clearly defined services.
- All-in fee: one flat charge bundling several types of cost (e.g. management, custody, transactions). What exactly is included is defined solely by the contract — the name alone does not tell you.
- Performance-related fee: a share of the change in value, usually in addition to a base fee. In funds it must be included in the TER and disclosed separately.
None of these models is defined or prescribed by law — they are contract and market terms. Models only become comparable through the total costs of one year, including the product level.
The TER: the standardised product figure
The total expense ratio expresses the entirety of the remuneration and incidental costs charged on an ongoing basis to a fund's assets (operating expenses), retrospectively, as a percentage of average net assets. It is defined in the guideline of the Asset Management Association Switzerland, which FINMA has recognised as a minimum standard — the figure is thus calculated uniformly across products.
Two limits of the figure: transaction costs the fund incurs when trading its investments are not included (exception: all-in-fee structures); nor are the investors' issue and redemption commissions. The TER quantifies the ongoing charges — for the overall picture, the other levels come on top.
What the TER does not show — and how in-house products are remunerated →
Custody fee and brokerage: market terms without a statutory definition
The custody fee compensates the safekeeping and administration of securities, the brokerage the individual purchase or sale. Neither term is defined by law — FIDLEG mentions brokerage only as an example of a possible form of compensation (Art. 26 Abs. 3); amount and calculation are purely contractual matters and vary considerably by provider and channel.
For an overview, what counts is the total for one year: custody fee plus all brokerage plus any additional items (currency conversion, securities transfers). Here too — the figures are in your own schedule of fees and on the annual statement.
Your rights: cost disclosure under FIDLEG
The law secures cost transparency in two ways: where a personal recommendation is made, the financial service provider must inform you about the costs of the recommended service, and likewise about economic ties to third parties (FIDLEG Art. 8 Abs. 2). And for most instruments offered to retail clients there is a key information document with the details essential for a comparison — including costs (Art. 58 and 60); it must be easy to understand and clearly distinguishable from advertising material (Art. 61).
To examine your own solution, collect three documents: the contract with the schedule of fees, the most recent annual statement and the key information documents or factsheets of the products used. From these, the total burden of one year can be put together.
Thinking in total costs
Individual figures mislead when compared in isolation: a low management fee can go hand in hand with cost-intensive products, a higher flat charge with low-cost building blocks — which constellation costs less overall is shown only by adding up across all levels. The robust comparison figure is the total burden of one year, in francs and as a percentage of assets.
That figure can be worked out for any existing solution from your own documents — and it is what makes offers from different providers genuinely comparable.
Frequently asked questions
What does asset management cost in Switzerland?
There is no statutory rule — the fee is a contractual matter and depends on the model (asset-based, flat, all-in, performance-related), the scope and the provider. This page deliberately states no ranges; your own figure is in the contract and on the annual statement (Source: FIDLEG framework, contract law).
What exactly is the TER?
The total expense ratio: the operating expenses charged on an ongoing basis to a fund's assets, retrospectively, as a percentage of average net assets — defined in the AMAS guideline, which FINMA has recognised as a minimum standard (Source: AMAS/FINMA).
Are transaction costs included in the TER?
No — the incidental costs from buying and selling the fund's investments are expressly not part of the operating expenses relevant to the TER (exception: all-in-fee structures) (Source: AMAS TER guideline Rz 29).
What does all-in fee mean?
One flat charge bundling several types of cost. Which ones is defined solely by the contract — the product costs of the funds used frequently still run separately inside the product (Source: market term, defined by contract).
Does my provider have to disclose the costs to me?
Where a personal recommendation is made, yes: the costs of the recommended service and economic ties to third parties must be disclosed (FIDLEG Art. 8 Abs. 2). Product costs are stated in the key information document (Art. 58 ff.) (Source: FIDLEG).
What is a performance fee?
A fee tied to the change in value, usually in addition to a base fee. In funds it must be included in the TER and additionally disclosed separately; the calculation method is set out in the prospectus (Source: AMAS TER guideline).
How do I compare two offers fairly?
Through the total burden of one year: service fees plus weighted product costs (TER) plus incidental transaction and custody costs — in francs and as a percentage of assets. Comparing individual figures in isolation falls short (Source: framework of this page; figures from your own documents).
Sources
- AMAS — Guideline on the calculation and disclosure of the TER (FINMA-recognised minimum standard)
- Fedlex — FIDLEG Art. 8, 26, 58–61 (cost information, third-party compensation, key information document)
Every deadline and figure on this page has been verified against the official sources linked above. As of the date shown at the top. This page does not replace individual advice.
Advice
Look through your cost breakdown together?
Would you like to understand the total costs of your current investment solution? Get in touch with us — we will gladly look at it together with you, personally and with no obligation. What you do with it is your decision.