Investment companies are trusts, mostly established by banks, which buy shares or bonds, collect them into a fund and issue share certificates.

Investment certificates are securities which record participation in an investment fund. They officially certify rights, particularly the right to joint ownership in a fund.

Investment companies are trustees, who distibute the risks of the various securities through appropriate dispersion of those collected in the fund.

 There are funds which contain a multitude of securities from various enterprises, while other specialize in a few industries or countries.

Option certificates document the right to buy or sell a given amount of a basic stock, such as shares, bonds, currencies and raw materials.