You Manage Other People's Money — and Answer for Every Decision.
Protecting the firms that manage, advise, and move capital
Investment companies manage and deploy capital for others — hedge funds, private equity and venture capital firms, broker-dealers, registered investment advisers, and asset and wealth managers. The defining feature is that the business is built on fiduciary and professional duties to investors, so a strategy that loses money, a disclosure that's challenged, a conflict of interest, or a data breach becomes an investor lawsuit or a regulatory action, not an ordinary claim. That management-liability-plus-professional-plus-cyber profile is what defines the space and separates it from ordinary businesses. An investment company needs coverage built around management liability, professional liability (E&O), and cyber — sized to its assets under management and regulatory footprint. This is a corner of financial-institution insurance built for how investment firms actually get sued.
Properly structured coverage protects the firm, its principals, and the investors who trusted it with capital.
The Investment Company's Signature Exposures
The defining exposure is a stack of financial-lines coverages. Management liability (D&O) responds to claims against the firm and its principals over strategy, governance, valuation, and conflicts. Professional liability (E&O / investment management insurance) responds to claims that the firm breached its duty in advising or managing money. Regulatory exposure is constant — SEC, FINRA, and state examinations and enforcement. Cyber and privacy is a front-line peril given the sensitive financial and personal data these firms hold and the wire-fraud they're targeted for. Fidelity/crime, ERISA fiduciary (for the firm's own plans and any it advises), and key-person and partnership disputes round it out.
Investment Firms We Insure
Coverage is tailored to the specific type of firm, including:
Hedge funds, private equity, and venture capital fund managers — see hedge fund, PE & VC insurance
Broker-dealers and securities firms — see broker-dealer insurance
Registered investment advisers and asset & wealth managers — see asset & wealth management insurance
Retail-facing advisors and planners — see financial advisor insurance
Each carries its own regulatory regime and claim patterns, which is what most defines the space.
Core Coverages for Investment Companies
A properly built investment-company program typically includes:
Directors & Officers / Management Liability — Covers claims against the firm and its principals over strategy, governance, valuation, and conflicts of interest.
Professional Liability / E&O (Investment Management) — Covers claims that the firm breached its duty in advising, managing, or executing.
Cyber & Privacy Liability — Covers breach of investor data, wire fraud, ransomware, and regulatory response.
Fidelity / Crime (incl. Social Engineering) — Covers employee dishonesty, theft, and funds-transfer fraud.
ERISA / Fiduciary Liability — Covers fiduciary exposure for the firm's own and advised benefit plans.
Employment Practices Liability — Covers discrimination, harassment, and wrongful-termination claims.
Commercial GL/BOP & Umbrella — Cover premises and add limits over a large financial-lines claim.
What's Commonly Overlooked
Investment-company programs are most often weakened by:
Off-the-shelf D&O and E&O not tailored to the firm's structure, funds, and AUM
Regulatory-investigation costs (SEC/FINRA) not adequately covered
Cyber and social-engineering limits below the wire-fraud and data exposure
ERISA fiduciary exposure for advised plans overlooked
Coverage that doesn't track new funds, strategies, or entities as the firm grows
The gaps that hurt most are untailored management/professional coverage and thin cyber.
Real-World Claim Examples
An investor sues over losses, valuation, or an alleged breach of duty
An SEC or FINRA examination becomes an enforcement action
A wire-fraud or social-engineering scheme diverts funds
A breach exposes investor financial and personal data
A partner or key-person dispute triggers a management-liability claim
Any one of these can be significant, and the management-liability and professional/regulatory claims are the most distinctive.
Regulatory & Licensing Context
Investment firms are among the most heavily regulated businesses. Depending on type, they register with and answer to the SEC (Investment Advisers Act, Investment Company Act), FINRA and SIPC (broker-dealers), state securities regulators, and, where they touch retirement money, ERISA. Compliance programs, custody rules, marketing and disclosure rules, and cybersecurity expectations (Reg S-P, SEC cyber rules) all bear directly on the D&O, E&O, and cyber exposure. Fund structures (GP/LP), custody arrangements, and AUM drive how coverage must be built.
Why Proper Placement Matters
Underwriters weigh the firm type and strategy, assets under management, fund and entity structure, regulatory history, compliance and cyber controls, and claims experience. Because the exposures are specialized financial lines, investment companies are placed through management-liability and financial-institution markets that write D&O, E&O, and cyber together and tailor them to the firm. Matching coverage to the firm's structure and AUM, covering regulatory investigations, and sizing cyber to the threat are the essential steps.
Our Approach
At Cory Washington & Co., we insure investment companies around the duties and decisions the business runs on — placing management liability, professional (E&O), and cyber tailored to your structure, strategy, and assets under management, with fidelity, ERISA, and employment coverage to match. We build the program by firm type, whether you're a hedge fund, PE, or VC manager, a broker-dealer, or an asset and wealth manager.
You manage other people's money and answer for every decision, which makes an investment company a distinct risk — we build the coverage to match it, management liability, E&O, and cyber included.
All insurance descriptions on this website are provided by Cory Washington & Co. LLC strictly for general informational purposes. They are not intended to be, and should not be relied upon as, legal, financial, or insurance advice. The information presented is general in nature and does not guarantee the availability, terms, conditions, or scope of any insurance coverage. Actual coverage is determined solely by the specific policy language issued by the insurer and remains subject to underwriting approval. Nothing on this website creates or implies an agent-client relationship, binds coverage, or alters any existing policy. Cory Washington & Co. LLC expressly disclaims any liability for actions taken, or not taken, based on the content provided here. For advice regarding your particular situation, please consult directly with a licensed insurance professional at Cory Washington & Co. LLC or another qualified insurance professional, and always review your policy documents in full.
See the coverages an investment company business may carry — core, prevalent, and situational — plus the gap most often missed, in the Investment Company Coverage Checklist.
Complete the Investment Company Supplemental online in a few guided steps, download the fillable PDF, or browse all applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get investment company insurance through Cory Washington & Co.?
Request a quote or contact our team. We start with a short conversation about your operations, analyze your exposures, then negotiate investment company insurance across multiple carriers that compete for your account and present options with the trade-offs explained. Cory Washington & Co. LLC is licensed in all 50 states.
How much does investment company insurance cost?
It depends on your exposure. Investment company insurance is priced on factors like your industry, size, prior claims, and the limits and deductibles you select — so two businesses rarely pay the same. We shop your account across competing carriers and present the trade-offs in plain English.
Who needs investment company insurance?
Requirements vary. Investment company insurance may be mandated by statute, or required under your contracts, leases, or loan agreements — and in many cases it is simply prudent given the risks involved. We look at your specific obligations and exposures, then recommend the coverage and limits that fit.
What if another agency has already declined or non-renewed my coverage?
Difficult, specialty, and previously-declined placements are a core part of our work. We access excess & surplus (E&S) and specialty markets that many generalist agencies cannot, and we explain the trade-offs clearly so you can decide with confidence.
Available in all 50 states. See how requirements differ in California, Texas, Florida, New York, or choose your state.