- Any investment strategy, quantitative, discretionary, credit, or thematic, can be packaged into a Swiss-listed security without a banking licence.
- Onvest acts as FINMA-regulated asset manager by default. Any other FINMA-regulated or comparably supervised foreign entity may be appointed instead.
- The full infrastructure is pre-assembled: issuer, asset manager, prime broker connectivity, SIX SIS, NAV, factsheets, and investor tools, all in one engagement.
- Setup to first trade: 4 to 8 weeks. A regulated fund takes 12 to 18 months.
- No minimum AUM. The cost structure is predictable and disclosed in full before any commitment is made.
- Every product carries a Swiss ISIN and settles via SIX SIS, investable from any standard custody account from day one.
- NAV is calculated independently from the first trading day, creating a verifiable track record from launch.
From Strategy to Listed Security
Bringing an investment strategy to market used to mean one of two things: registering a fund, or negotiating a bespoke arrangement with a bank. A regulated fund requires FINMA approval, a full prospectus, months of setup, and a cost structure that rarely makes sense below CHF 100 million in assets under management. Even then, the ongoing burden of a fund, its board, its auditors, its regulatory filings, and its investor reporting infrastructure, can consume a disproportionate share of a manager's operational capacity. A bank-issued product is faster, but the economics are embedded in a fee split and the promotor surrenders control over counterparties, execution, and pricing. The bank holds the client relationship; the promotor provides the strategy and receives a fraction of the economics in return.
The SMART platform exists to solve both problems simultaneously. It allows any promotor, whether an asset manager, a strategy developer, a family office, or an entrepreneur with a credible investment thesis, to issue a Swiss-listed debt instrument that carries a Swiss ISIN, settles through SIX SIS, and is managed by a FINMA-regulated asset manager. The promotor does not need a banking licence, does not need to source and assemble separate counterparties, and does not need to meet a minimum AUM threshold before the economics work. Every component of the product infrastructure, from issuer to prime broker to reporting, is pre-assembled and operates as a single integrated service from the first product.
The result is a regulated, bankable, investable security built around the promotor's strategy, launched in 4 to 8 weeks from first conversation to first trade. The Swiss ISIN ensures the product is accessible from any standard custody account without additional setup. The FINMA-regulated structure ensures it meets the requirements of professional and institutional investors from the moment it is live.
A SMART product is a FinSA debt instrument issued by Smart Edge PCC Limited, a Guernsey Protected Cell Company. Each product is housed in a dedicated cell with full statutory asset segregation. It is not a fund and does not require FINMA fund registration.
Who Launches a SMART Product?
The platform is designed for promotors whose strategy outpaces their ability to package and distribute it. This covers a wide range of professional profiles, and the common thread is not the type of entity but the nature of the problem: a compelling investment approach that lacks a scalable, regulated delivery mechanism.
The promotor does not need a banking licence, a FINMA fund authorisation, or a proprietary infrastructure stack. What is required is a credible strategy, a clearly defined investment mandate, and a counterparty relationship with Onvest.
For an AMC, a FINMA-regulated asset manager must be appointed as portfolio manager. Onvest assumes this role by default. The promotor may instead appoint any other FINMA-regulated entity, or a foreign manager operating under a comparable regulatory framework, depending on the product structure and distribution approach.
For a Tracker Certificate or CLN, the regulatory requirements vary by structure. Onvest's compliance team provides guidance on the specific requirements for each product type during the initial consultation.
What Assets Can Underlie a SMART Product?
The SMART platform imposes no categorical restriction on the asset classes that can underlie a product. The practical constraints are those of custody, valuation frequency, and the specific prime broker arrangement for each strategy. Both bankable assets (those held at a custodian bank with daily pricing and standard settlement cycles) and non-bankable assets (those requiring bespoke custody and less frequent valuation) can be structured inside a SMART product.
The asset class also determines the custody arrangement and NAV frequency. Liquid bankable assets price daily and settle in the standard SIX SIS cycle. Illiquid and non-bankable assets require bespoke custody and a valuation methodology agreed at the outset, typically monthly or quarterly. The SMART platform accommodates both within the same structural framework.
Infrastructure and Counterparties
One of the most underestimated costs of launching a structured product outside of the SMART platform is the counterparty assembly problem. A bank-issued product provides an issuer but not a portfolio manager. A white-label AMC platform provides documentation infrastructure but may not include the regulated asset management function. A standalone SPV setup provides legal segregation but not the prime broker relationship, the SIX SIS connectivity, or the investor-facing reporting layer. Each missing component requires a separate negotiation, a separate onboarding process, and a separate ongoing relationship.
On the SMART platform, all of these components are pre-assembled and operate as a single integrated service from the first product.
The promotor maintains free choice of execution counterparty. The platform imposes no preferred broker and embeds no margins in trading. Volume discounts from Onvest's prime broker relationships are passed through in full to each product.
Choosing the Right Product Type
The three product types available on the SMART platform, AMC, Tracker Certificate, and Credit Linked Note, are not interchangeable. The correct choice depends on the nature of the strategy, whether ongoing discretion is exercised, and what the underlying exposure represents. Getting this right at the outset determines the regulatory requirements, the cost structure, and the investor base the product can reach.
When a strategy involves discretionary rebalancing, even if it is driven by a quantitative model, an AMC is the appropriate vehicle. A systematic or algorithmic strategy that executes independently against a published ruleset may qualify as a Tracker. Credit strategies that provide lending exposure to a defined reference entity are structured as CLNs. In practice, the distinction often turns on whether the strategy sponsor retains ongoing investment discretion: if the answer is yes, the structure is an AMC and a FINMA-regulated asset manager must be in place.
The Launch Process
Launching a structured product conventionally requires assembling a fragmented counterparty chain independently. Issuer, asset manager, prime broker, paying agent, SIX SIS participant, and NAV agent each carry separate onboarding and review timelines, a process taking months before a first commitment is received.
The SMART platform replaces that fragmentation with six clearly defined stages, coordinated end-to-end by Onvest from the initial conversation to a fully issued, ISIN-listed product in 30 days. No structuring experience is required, and no component of the infrastructure needs to be assembled independently. Every counterparty relationship, documentation template, and regulatory touchpoint is pre-built into the platform and activated in sequence per product.
Where timelines extend beyond 30 days, the variation reflects strategy or asset-class complexity, not a structural delay in the platform itself.
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1Initial MeetingDay 1We meet to understand your objectives, background, and the nature of the asset or strategy you wish to structure. This session can be held online or in person at our Zurich office. No documentation is required at this stage: the goal is mutual understanding.
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2Goals and StructureDay 3Following the initial meeting, Onvest prepares a concise structuring proposal outlining the product structure, fee framework, and key parameters. You will have the opportunity to review and provide feedback before any formal engagement is agreed.
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3Kick-Off and OnboardingDay 7Once terms are agreed, the formal onboarding process begins. This includes KYC/AML documentation, counterparty agreements, and selection of the appropriate issuer and custodian. Onvest coordinates all parties to ensure a smooth and efficient start.
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4ImplementationDay 15The product documentation is drafted and submitted to the issuer for review. Underlying assets or strategies are configured within the SMART platform, and any technical integrations, including API connections for algorithmic strategies, are established and tested.
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5Due DiligenceDay 29The issuer and relevant counterparties conduct their final review of the product documentation, legal structure, and underlying assets. Any outstanding conditions or requirements are addressed.
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6LaunchDay 30The product is issued and made available for investment. Onvest assumes full lifecycle management responsibility from this point.
The above timeline is indicative and assumes that all required project documentation and KYC materials are available upon engagement. Actual timelines may vary and are subject to delays arising from third-party review processes, issuer onboarding requirements, or regulatory dependencies outside Onvest's control.
The Economics of Launching
The full cost of a SMART product is disclosed before any commitment is made. There are no components that emerge during onboarding, no margins embedded in execution pricing, and no fee splits that benefit the platform at the promotor's expense. What is quoted is what is charged.
| Cost component | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Setup cost | CHF 5,000–8,000 | One-time; bankable vs non-bankable structure |
| Annual minimum fee | CHF 7,000–10,000 | Covers platform, compliance, and administration |
| Structuring fee | 40 bps p.a. | On notional AUM |
| Life Cycle Management fee | 10 bps p.a. | Ongoing product maintenance and corporate actions |
| Discretionary Asset Management | 25 bps p.a. | Only where Onvest is appointed as regulated PM |
| Total AUM-based fees | 50–75 bps p.a. | Depending on whether Onvest acts as asset manager |
For context, a regulated fund incurs setup costs in excess of CHF 100,000, an annual administration burden of CHF 250,000 or more, and a time-to-market of 12 to 18 months. A bank-issued structured product embeds its economics in the fee split and often charges an additional setup fee on top. The SMART cost structure is transparent, fixed, and viable from the first close: there is no minimum AUM at which the product becomes economically sustainable, because the cost base does not scale with assets in the way that fund infrastructure does.
The management fee the promotor charges investors is entirely separate from the platform's fee schedule. The promotor retains the full economics of their management fee. The platform fee and the promotor's fee coexist independently, and the platform does not participate in the promotor's revenue.
Regulatory Context
A SMART product is a debt instrument under the Swiss Financial Services Act (FinSA / FIDLEG). It is not a collective investment scheme and does not require FINMA fund approval. The promotor does not need to hold a banking licence or a securities dealer authorisation. The issuer, Smart Edge PCC Limited, is the licensed entity, and the FINMA-regulated asset management function is provided by Onvest or an appointed regulated entity.
One practical point that consistently surprises promotors encountering the SMART platform for the first time: even parties who are themselves FINMA-regulated benefit substantially from the platform. The number of active counterparty relationships required to operate a structured product independently, including issuer, prime broker, paying agent, SIX SIS participant, NAV agent, and reporting provider, collapses to a single relationship with Onvest. The regulatory overhead that falls on a regulated manager operating a standalone structure is materially higher than the overhead of operating through the SMART platform, even for a manager who holds all the required licences.
Track Record, Reporting, and Investor Access
A structurally critical advantage of the SMART platform, and one that is often overlooked until a first allocation is at stake, is the track record. NAV is calculated and reported independently from the first trading day. This means a SMART product has a continuous, auditable performance history from the moment it begins trading, not from the point at which a separate reporting arrangement is eventually established.
For institutional and professional investors conducting due diligence, this matters considerably. A product that cannot demonstrate a verifiable, independently calculated track record from launch will face friction in capital raising regardless of its underlying performance. The SMART platform removes that friction by design.
The investor-facing reporting layer goes beyond performance history. Live NAV reporting provides real-time visibility into the product's value. Price and performance notifications allow investors to monitor the product between formal reporting dates. Up-to-date product factsheets with full performance history are generated automatically. The portfolio allocator tool allows investors to model how an allocation to the SMART product interacts with their existing portfolio of external instruments, a capability that no standard fund factsheet, bank portal, or white-label platform provides as a standard feature.
Access to the product itself is straightforward. A SMART product carries a Swiss ISIN and settles through SIX SIS. Any investor with a standard Swiss or international custody account can subscribe and hold the product without opening a new account or establishing a relationship with the issuer directly. Institutional and professional investors can access via the standard securities settlement infrastructure. Retail investors may access the product where FinSA conditions, including opt-out from retail protection under Art. 5, are satisfied and a Key Information Document has been prepared.