Segregated assets (Sondervermögen)
A fund's or ETF's assets, held separately from the fund company's own assets and protected if it goes bust.
In short
As of 8 October 2026Segregated assets are a fund's or ETF's assets, held at a depositary separately from the fund company's own assets. If the fund company goes bankrupt, they still belong to investors, with no upper limit. They do not protect against price losses. ETCs and ETNs are debt securities and not segregated assets.
When you buy units of an ETF or investment fund, the money does not sit with the fund company itself. It is held as segregated assets (German: Sondervermögen) at an independent depositary, separate from the company's own assets.
If the fund company goes bankrupt, the assets still belong to the investors. Unlike deposit insurance, there is no upper limit. The market risk of the stocks in the fund stays with you, though. ETCs and ETNs, by contrast, are debt securities and not segregated assets.
Example: you hold 150,000 euros in ETFs. Even if the provider becomes insolvent, the securities in the fund remain. If markets fall 20 %, however, your ETF still loses about 20 %.
Related terms
Sources
As of 8 October 2026 · Educational content, not investment or tax advice.