What are assets?
An asset is a good to which a value can be attached. These can be tangible or intangible assets.
Assets in different contexts
Depending on the environment in which the term is used, there are differences in the definition of assets:
Assets in the financial sector
Designation for securities, including bonds, shares, derivatives, investment funds
Assets in business administration
Assets that can be recognized in the balance sheetor for which a specific monetary value can be determined, e.g. machinery, IT technology, buildings
Assets in economics
Refers to the total assets of a state
What assets are there?
A distinction must be made between different asset classes. The most important include
- Shares
- Bonds
- Money market
- Commodities
- Real estate
The various asset classes sometimes differ greatly in terms of characteristics such as security, liquidity and profitability. Investors should of course take this into account when deciding on an investment.
In the broadest sense, personal items can also be regarded as assets, e.g. vintage cars, furniture or jewelry. After all, these can also be turned into money. However, whether returns are possible with these objects depends very much on demand and how much the buyer is prepared to pay for them.
What are real assets?
These are real tangible assets that you can touch or look at. Real assets include, for example:
- Real estate
- Commodities
- Infrastructure investments
These assets are considered to be stable in value and generate a long-term cash flow.
Wealth management – asset management
Which assets should be purchased? How can the capital be best allocated to the various assets? Asset management deals with these questions. In principle, risk diversification makes sense, i.e. capital should be spread across several assets.