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Kids Investment Account Switzerland 2026: The Honest Comparison

arvy vs. findependent vs. True Wealth vs. Finpension vs. Viac vs. Inyova vs. UBS

By Thierry Borgeat · March 2026 · 16 min read

When my son was born, I was sitting in the hospital at 2am scrolling through comparison sites. The question wasn't whether I'd invest for him — that was settled. The question was where. And I realized: not a single comparison gave me the full picture. Everyone had skin in the game — affiliate links, sponsorships, their own products — but nobody was honest about it.

This comparison is different. We are arvy — and yes, we're one of the providers. We're telling you upfront. But we're also telling you where others are better. Because the truth nobody likes to say out loud: There is no single best kids investment account. There's the best one for your specific situation. And that depends on what matters most to you — the lowest fees, the most control, legal protection, or understanding what your child actually owns.

Today I invest CHF 50 every month for my son at arvy — plus contributions from grandparents and extra payments on birthdays, Christmas, or special occasions. Not because arvy is perfect, but because I believe in quality investing and I want to understand every single company working for him. My co-founder Patrick does the same. Together we have over CHF 100,000 of our own money in the same portfolio as your children. That's our commitment. And every week we send our 12,000+ readers an analysis of a company from the portfolio — so you understand what your child owns, and so that one day you can explain to your child why Visa or LVMH is working for them.

But maybe you're different. Maybe you want the absolute lowest fees and believe the broad market can't be beaten anyway — then Finpension or findependent is your path. Maybe you want the money to legally belong to your child and be protected from creditors — then look at True Wealth. Maybe sustainability matters to you more than any return optimization — then Inyova belongs on your shortlist. Or you're a UBS client and want everything under one roof. All valid. That's exactly what this comparison is for.

Savings Account vs. Investment Account — What's the Difference?

Before we compare, an important distinction that confuses many parents: A children's savings account is a traditional bank account — Raiffeisen, PostFinance, ZKB. Your child gets a card, maybe a piggy bank motif, and the money sits in the account. The interest rate? Currently practically 0%. Sounds safe. And it is — safe in guaranteeing you lose money. Because inflation in Switzerland has averaged 1–1.5% per year over the last 20 years. Your money becomes worth less in real terms every single year. In a savings account, you're guaranteed to lose — slowly, quietly, but surely.

A kids investment account (also called a child custody account or Kinderdepot) is something completely different: here the money is invested in stocks, ETFs, or funds. Yes, the volatility is higher — the portfolio can lose 20% in a bad year. But here's where the decisive factor comes in: your child's time horizon.

A child born today has an investment horizon of 18 years — or even 65+, if the money stays invested until retirement. Over such long periods, history is clear: broadly invested equity portfolios return an average of 6–8% per year. Every crisis — Dotcom, financial crisis, Covid — was fully recovered over 10+ year periods. If you invest, you can lose in the short term. If you don't invest, you've already lost — to the inflation eating away at your money every year.

That's why this comparison focuses on kids investment accounts — providers that actually invest your child's money. Traditional savings accounts (PostFinance, Raiffeisen, ZKB) are covered briefly at the end, but for long-term wealth building over 10+ years, they're the wrong choice in our view.

One more thought: a kids investment account has a second, often underestimated advantage beyond returns — financial education. When your child sees at 16 that their portfolio once dropped 15% and then recovered, they learn more about money, patience, and markets than any textbook could teach. And that experience can later make the difference between someone who panic-sells and someone who stays calm and thinks long-term.

The Comparison at a Glance

Seven kids investment accounts in direct comparison — from quality investing to passive ETFs to the major bank. All fees including management, product costs, and transaction costs where applicable.

Fees as of March 2026. All-in fees include management, product costs, and transaction fees where applicable. Verify directly with each provider for the most current information.

Each Provider in Detail

What Do Fees Really Cost You Over 18 Years?

Fees sound small — 0.39% here, 0.84% there. But watch out: most providers don't show you the full costs. On top of the management fee, ETF and index fund providers add the TER (Total Expense Ratio) of the underlying products — typically 0.20–0.25%. At arvy, the TER is already included in the fee. So let's compare apples to apples:

*Quality investing portfolios have historically generated 1–3% p.a. excess return vs. the broad market. This is not a guarantee for the future, but it is the basis of the arvy thesis. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. Calculation simplified, excluding taxes and inflation.

The message: when you correctly include the TER, the fee gap between passive providers and arvy shrinks significantly. The real difference between findependent (0.62% all-in) and arvy (0.89% all-in) is ~0.27% — not the 0.45% that appears at first glance.

But here's the factor that most comparisons completely ignore: the cost of your own emotions. Studies from JP Morgan and Vanguard show that the average investor loses up to 3% return per year through emotional mistakes — panic selling, market timing, sitting in cash too long — more than any management fee. arvy's weekly analyses, educational content, and personal guidance are built precisely for this: to keep you from selling during the next crash. When you know more, you make better decisions. And better decisions make investing easier — for you and your child.

At arvy, we argue that quality investing can compensate for the fee difference through higher returns — and that education eliminates the most expensive hidden fee (emotions). But we're honest: that's a thesis, not a guarantee. If you only look at costs, go passive. If you believe in quality companies and education, choose arvy.

The Most Expensive Fee Isn't on Any Statement

We've talked a lot about 0.39% vs. 0.89%. Let's talk about the fee that really hurts — and that nobody mentions in their comparison: you.

JP Morgan publishes an annual study comparing the returns of various asset classes over 20 years. Right at the bottom of the list: the average investor. Not because markets performed poorly — but because they entered and exited at the wrong time. Over 20 years, the S&P 500 averaged ~9.5% per year. The average investor: ~3.6%. A gap of nearly 6 percentage points — created entirely by emotional decisions: panic selling in crashes, sitting in cash too long, chasing the next trend.

Vanguard puts the value of behavioral coaching — having someone who stops you from selling in a crash — at around 1.5% return per year. That's more than arvy's entire fee.

"The most expensive decision isn't the wrong stock. It's the panic sell at the bottom."

This is exactly where arvy comes in. Our weekly company analyses, our education library, our articles about the cost of emotions — none of that is marketing. It's a protection mechanism. When you understand why Visa is a quality company, you won't sell it when the price drops 20%. When you know that every crash in the last 100 years was recovered by the market, you stay invested. When you read an analysis every week, you feel informed instead of anxious.

When you know more, you make better decisions. Better decisions make investing easier. And easier means: you stay invested — and over 18 years, that is the single biggest return driver. We're here to guide you on this journey. From the first deposit to the day you hand your child their portfolio.

What Happens at 18? The Underestimated Question

Most parents think about fees and equity allocation when choosing a kids investment account. But the question that weighs the most emotionally comes 18 years later: What happens when your child becomes an adult?

There are two fundamentally different models:

Model 1 — Account in Parent's Name (arvy, findependent, Finpension, Viac, Inyova): The account legally belongs to you. At 18, nothing happens. You decide when to transfer the assets — at 18, at 20, at 25, for education, for the first apartment, or not at all. This gives you maximum flexibility. If your 18-year-old is going through a phase where CHF 50,000 in their account would be dangerous, you can wait.

Model 2 — Account in Child's Name (True Wealth, UBS): The account legally belongs to the child. The money is "restricted child assets," protected from your own creditors. But at 18, it fully belongs to the child. At True Wealth, it's seamlessly converted to an adult account. At UBS, likewise. You have no more influence.

Imagine this scenario: your child turns 18, has CHF 60,000 in the portfolio, and wants to buy a car. Or — less dramatically — they're in their first relationship and want to spend the money on a world trip. With a parent's account (arvy, findependent, etc.) you can say: "Let's talk about this." With a child's account (True Wealth, UBS), the money is no longer yours. It belongs to your child — legally and factually. That's not a weakness of the model. It's the logical consequence of a conscious decision to protect child assets.

Taxes on Kids Accounts: What Parents Need to Know

The tax treatment of children's accounts and investment portfolios confuses many parents. Here are the key rules:

Wealth and income tax: Whether the account is in your name or your child's name — as long as your child is a minor, you must declare the assets and income (dividends, interest) in your own tax return. The tax obligation lies with the legal representative, i.e., the parents.

Who pays the taxes? What matters is who has the power of disposition. If you as the parent are the account holder (arvy, findependent, Finpension, Viac, Inyova), it's clear: you pay taxes on it. If the child is the account holder (True Wealth, UBS), you still pay — until the child turns 18 and files their own tax return.

Capital gains: Good news for all kids investment accounts — in Switzerland, capital gains on private assets are tax-free. Whether your child's portfolio grows from CHF 10,000 to CHF 50,000 — you pay no tax on the price gains. Only ongoing income like dividends is taxed.

When grandparents or godparents open an account: The account holder is tax-responsible. If grandmother opens an account in her name and saves for her grandchild, grandmother declares it — not the parents. Only when the money is transferred to the child does the tax obligation change. Depending on the canton, gifts can be tax-free (in most cantons, gifts to direct descendants are tax-free).

A practical example: You invest CHF 200 per month in a kids investment account at findependent with 98% equity allocation. After one year, you've deposited CHF 2,400, the portfolio stands at CHF 2,550. The CHF 150 in price gains are tax-free. The CHF 25 in dividend income must be declared as income in your tax return. At a marginal tax rate of 30%, that's less than CHF 8 in taxes per year — negligible. Wealth tax on CHF 2,550 is canton-dependent but also minimal in most cantons.

Opening a Kids Investment Account: 3 Steps

Regardless of which provider you choose — the process is similar across all digital providers and can be completed in 10–15 minutes:

Step 1 — Choose a provider and open an account. You'll need your ID (identity card or passport) and for providers that run in the child's name (True Wealth, UBS), you'll also need your child's birth certificate. Account opening is fully digital at all fintechs.

Step 2 — Choose your investment strategy. With passive providers, you choose the equity allocation (we recommend 80–100% for an 18-year horizon). With arvy, you choose the savings plan from CHF 50/month. With most providers, you can adjust the strategy at any time.

Step 3 — Set up a standing order. Set up a monthly standing order in your e-banking. CHF 100, CHF 200, CHF 500 — whatever works for you. Consistency beats timing. Anyone who invests CHF 200 per month for 18 years never has to worry about whether they got in at the "right" time. The so-called dollar-cost averaging effect smooths out the fluctuations automatically: sometimes you buy expensive, sometimes cheap — over 18 years it averages out.

One final thought before we move to the FAQ: the biggest risk when investing for children isn't choosing the wrong provider. It's not starting. Every month you wait is a month of compound interest lost. And over 18 years, that adds up significantly. So: read this comparison, choose the provider that fits you, and set up the standing order tonight. Your future child will thank you.

Frequently Asked Questions

This article was written by Thierry Borgeat, Co-Founder of arvy, and reviewed by Patrick Rissi, CFA, and Florian Jauch, CFA. Last updated March 2026.

Disclaimer: This article is for general information purposes and does not constitute personal investment advice. arvy is one of the compared providers and has a commercial interest. We receive no affiliate commissions from other providers. All fee information is based on publicly available data as of March 2026 and may change. Verify directly with each provider. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. arvy is a FINMA-supervised asset manager. Imprint & Legal Notice