An actively managed certificate (AMC) can be issued through a bank's own issuance program or through an independent securitisation platform. A bank-backed AMC is a debt obligation of the issuing bank, while an independent platform issues from a bankruptcy-remote SPV whose compartments are segregated from any bank balance sheet. The choice determines your credit exposure, eligible asset universe, cost structure and distribution flexibility.
The two models at a glance
| Bank-backed program | Independent platform | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | Bank balance sheet | Bankruptcy-remote SPV compartment |
| Investor credit exposure | Issuing bank's credit | Ring-fenced collateral of the compartment |
| Asset universe | Limited to bank-approved instruments | Open architecture including private and alternative assets |
| Jurisdiction | Bank's home framework | Choice of Luxembourg, Guernsey, Cayman or Switzerland |
| Distribution | Often tied to the bank's network | Any distributor, bank-agnostic |
| Costs | Frequently bundled | Itemised per compartment |
What a bank-backed program offers
The strengths are an established issuer rating, one-stop execution, and a familiar counterparty for private-bank clients.
The constraints are that the AMC is senior unsecured exposure to the bank, the investable universe is limited to what the bank's risk department approves, and the product typically stays inside the bank's distribution channel.
What an independent platform offers
Issuance comes from a dedicated compartment of a bankruptcy-remote SPV, so investors are not exposed to a bank's balance sheet.
The asset universe is open architecture, including crypto, private credit and other alternatives.
Jurisdiction is a choice — Luxembourg, Guernsey, Cayman or Switzerland — matched to the strategy.
Distribution is bank-agnostic, with ISIN-bearing securities settling through Euroclear, Clearstream and SIX SIS.
Costs are itemised per compartment, giving transparency on what each element of the structure costs.
How to choose: a six-point checklist
- Who is the issuer and what do investors have recourse to?
- Does the eligible asset universe cover your strategy, including alternatives?
- Can you choose the issuance jurisdiction, or is it fixed?
- Are costs itemised per compartment or bundled?
- Can any distributor or custodian handle the product, or only the issuing bank?
- Who controls the product if you change providers?
FAQ
Is a bank-backed AMC safer than an independent one?
Not inherently: a bank-backed AMC carries the issuing bank's credit risk, while an independent AMC from a bankruptcy-remote SPV is backed by the ring-fenced assets of its compartment; which is safer depends on the collateral and the bank.
Can an independent AMC hold private or crypto assets?
Yes: open-architecture platforms structure AMCs on private credit, digital assets and other alternatives that bank programs typically exclude.
Do independent AMCs get a real ISIN?
Yes: they are ISIN-bearing securities settling through Euroclear, Clearstream and SIX SIS, distributable to professional investors bank-agnostically.
How Noray fits
Noray Capital SA is a Geneva-based structuring coordinator for independent AMC, ETP, CLN and tracker certificate issuance. Noray issues ISIN-bearing securities from bankruptcy-remote SPVs with dedicated compartments across Luxembourg, Guernsey, Cayman and Switzerland, settling via Euroclear, Clearstream and SIX SIS, for professional investors — with itemised costs and bank-agnostic distribution. The infrastructure behind that — issuer, compartment and coordinated counterparty chain — is set out on our multi-jurisdiction securitisation platform page.
This article is for informational purposes only and is intended for professional investors. It does not constitute legal, tax, financial or investment advice, nor an offer of any security.