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Put up to four markets on the same ruler. The shapes do most of the explaining.

Market 1 Market 2 Market 3 Market 4

Corporate bonds 28 Moderate Credit risk in a low-maintenance wrapper, though most individuals can only reach it through funds.
High-yield bonds 38 Moderate Equity-sized drawdowns wearing a bond's clothes — the volatility axis gives it away.

	Corporate bonds	High-yield bonds
Exit difficulty	3	3
Volatility	3	4
Leverage	1	1
Carry cost	1	1
Fraud risk	1	2
Protection gap	2	2
Barrier to entry	3	3
Expertise needed	3	4
Difficulty	28 Moderate	38 Moderate
In a sentence	Company debt, sold in large denominations to institutions, where you take credit risk for a spread over government yields.	Debt from borrowers the rating agencies do not trust, paying a large spread that is sometimes compensation and sometimes a warning.
Unit	Typically £100,000 minimum denomination	Large institutional denominations
Smallest realistic trade	Often £100,000 — which is why most retail exposure is via funds	Practically, via a fund
Settlement	T+2, over the counter	T+2 OTC

The fingerprint measures how demanding a market is to take part in. It is not a rating or a recommendation.