The shares yo buy through pearler are in your name, not theirs. That is what CHESS is about, and that provides better protection compared to the custodian model used in US. Pearler seem to have made a good attempt to protect your cash account too, but if some external party is really going after pearler, the cash seems to be in their name even if the sub-accounts are in your name, so I bet cash is at risk to a good lawyer.