Learn what happens from when money leaves your bank account to when it's invested.
The first step is to sign up through itsme. After sharing your investment goals, NNEK will assign a portfolio suited to you.
Once your account has been verified by NNEK, you will be able to make your first investment.
The money leaves your bank account and is sent to an account at Rabobank in the name of the custodian, Stichting Noordnederlandse Beleggersgiro. The money will remain there for a couple of days at most before the investments are made.
NNEK gives the order to purchase shares from the funds in your portfolio. Every € is invested thanks to fractional shares.
Upon receiving the shares, the Stichting Noordnederlandse Beleggersgiro, as the custodian, makes you the beneficial owner. From then on, its only job is to safeguard your assets.
The custodian is strictly regulated by both the AFM and Dutch National Bank. In the unlikely event of embezzlement or theft, your assets are still protected up to €20,000 by the European Investor Protection Scheme.
You will receive a notification via the app that NNEK has invested your money. You now have 24/7 access to your portfolio.
You are free to withdraw your money at any time or choose to make more investments.
Curvo offers the app through which you can invest. NNEK manages your investments while the custodian (Stiching Noordnederlandse Beleggersgiro) safeguards your assets.
The custodian has been running since 2001 as its own legal entity for NNEK's customers.
Neither Curvo nor NNEK holds any of your investments. Instead, they're kept in your name by the custodian, which is a separate and independent entity. This ensures that you keep all your assets in the event of either Curvo or NNEK shutting down. The custodian cannot go bankrupt as it has no commercial activity.
All portfolios currently consist of funds from three providers.
Vanguard: Founded in 1975, Vanguard is a US-based investment management company holding over $3tn in assets under management. Vanguard is the largest provider of mutual funds in the world. Its founder John Bogle is also credited as the inventor of index funds.
BlackRock: Founded in 1988, BlackRock is the world's largest asset manager with over $4.5tn in assets under management. It's popular in Europe through its iShares brand.
BNP Paribas: One of France's largest financial institutions.
In the eyes of the law, there are two types of ownership:
The beneficial owner is the true owner. In your case, you are the beneficial owner of your assets which gives you total control. However, for safety and convenience, the custodian (Stichting Noordnederlandse Beleggersgiro) holds your assets for you and is therefore the legal owner.
The main goal of the European regulatory framework for investment firms is to protect consumers such as yourself. For instance, it makes sure that:
Before the EU introduced the European Investor Protection Scheme, there were cases where fraudulent behaviour by investment firms went undetected and customers suffered losses. The scheme protects up to €20,000 of your investments against fraud and embezzlement, and it applies to all European customers of an investment firm, including you.
Learn how it differs from the €100,000 deposit guarantee scheme
Through the app, you may choose to sell some (or all) of your assets. Once your request is received, the order is sent to sell your positions. You'll be notified through the app once they're sold. Your money is then sent straight to your bank account using a regular bank transfer. The whole process may take a couple of days.