Investment for Beginners

Understanding Structured Products

Nov 20, 2025 5 minutes

What are structured products? How do they work? Who issues them? And how do they differ from other common types of investments? This blog post gives you an easily understandable introduction to the world of structured products.

Understanding CSDs: The Backbone of Modern Securities Trading

Sep 24, 2025 3 minutes

Co-authored by Francisco Bejar Nuñez

Securities such as stocks and bonds are now traded almost exclusively in digital form. In this context, Central Securities Depositories (CSDs) play an important role. In this blog, you’ll learn what a CSD is, what functions it performs, and how it works.

More Than Just a Price: What Is Included in a Stock Price?

Aug 21, 2025 4 minutes

When people talk about stock prices, many immediately think of prices changing by the second, stock market tickers, and frenetic buying decisions. But a stock price is much more than an ephemeral figure on a computer screen. In this blog, you’ll learn how stock prices reflect past events, build trust, and point out opportunities.

Index Adjustment Explained: Step by Step to Optimal Market Tracking

Aug 12, 2025 6 minutes

Co-authored by Christian Bahr

Indices such as the SMI are regularly reviewed to accurately reflect market reality. Read on to discover how index composition is reassessed, and what the consequences can mean for investors.

ESG Ratings: Who Assigns Them? How Do They Originate? And Why Are They Important?

Dec 12, 2024 5 minutes

ESG ratings are scores that shed light on how sustainably companies operate. Learn in this blog post how ESG ratings originate and what purpose they serve.

Between Creativity and Financial Growth: Art As an Investment

Dec 4, 2024 5 minutes

The motives for collecting art are diverse: The emotional appeal of art is usually at the fore, but more and more people are buying art as an investment. Discover more about the richness of art investments.

Understanding Greenwashing: How Do I Spot Misleading Sustainability Claims?

Sep 5, 2024 6 minutes

Public opinion, lawmakers and regulators continue to narrow down the definition of which business practices are sustainable and which are not. At the same time the awareness of so-called greenwashing is on the rise. Read how some companies are at risk of making products and services seem more environmentally friendly than they really are.

Tick-Tick-Tick: How Ticker Symbols Shape the Financial System

Apr 30, 2024 4 minutes

Ticker symbols are inconspicuous but crucial combinations of letters and digits that uniquely identify publicly traded companies and their products. Read below why the putatively simple codes are important for trading and investors and how they originate in the first place.

Switzerland’s Most Important Stock-Market Barometer: What Is the SMI?

Mar 25, 2024 7 minutes

The SMI is the most prominent stock index in Switzerland and is a reflection of the country’s economy. But what else is the SMI important for, and how does it work? Read below what lies behind the SMI and what role it plays in the financial market.

Company Reports Concern All of Us to Some Degree, but How Do I Read Them Correctly?

Sep 14, 2023 5 minutes

Whoever invests in stocks self-evidently owns shares in a given company. But how does one stay abreast of its business performance? Read below why company reports reveal much more about an enterprise than just bare numbers.

What Is ESG? And Why Is Everybody Talking about Sustainability?

Jul 26, 2023 4 minutes

The ESG theme has been booming in recent years. Companies must become more sustainable and more transparent. But what does ESG actually mean? Who determines how sustainable companies are? And why is a good ESG rating so important these days?

What Actually Is an ESG Index?

Feb 2, 2023 5 minutes

Sustainability is becoming an increasingly important issue in the financial sector. Investing is no longer just about profitability, but also about an investment’s social and environmental impact. ESG indices can serve as a basis for sustainable investment products. Read below about what an ESG index is and how one comes into being.

What Causes Inflation, and Is It Followed by a Recession?

Jan 26, 2023 5 minutes

The prices of many goods have risen in recent months. Talk of inflation is on everyone’s tongue. Read below how inflation originates, when a recession arrives, and what that means for stock markets.

Private Equity vs. Public Equity: Learn about the Different Ways to Capital

Jan 12, 2023 5 minutes

If you need money to grow as a company, you can obtain debt capital from a bank. The alternative would be to create equity capital. But how does that work? And what again is the difference between private equity and public equity?

Investing in the Stock Market: 3 Reasons Why You Should Start Today

Nov 3, 2022 5 minutes

The economy is trending downward, stock prices are falling, and inflation rates are on the upswing. Read on to discover why, in spite of this – or perhaps because of it – this may be a good time to start investing in the stock market.

How Do Stock Exchange Quotes Get on Television?

Mar 17, 2022 5 minutes

Every weekday, just before the evening news, Swiss Television presents the latest stock market prices on its financial news show SRF Börse. Where do the quotes actually come from? And how do they get on TV?

When Emotional Investment Is a Bad Thing

Jul 6, 2021 7 minutes

Prof. Thorsten Hens

Obviously, investors have an objective: returns. But that’s not the only thing that counts. You also have to feel comfortable with your investment strategy. Investing isn’t an exact science. Our investment decisions are governed by psychological factors.

Inspired by John Law: The End of Banking

Apr 28, 2021 17 minutes

Jürg Müller from the think tank Avenir Suisse describes in our podcast how debt and the creation of money are connected. It’s a principle that economist John Law understood – and applied already 300 years ago.

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Understanding Structured Products

Understanding CSDs: The Backbone of Modern Securities Trading

Index Adjustment Explained: Step by Step to Optimal Market Tracking

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