This research aimed to understand the lived experience of investors participating in the asset management decision-making process. In the management literature, this type of customer participation in the value creation process is termed co-creation. The study sought to understand how investors who use the services of portfolio management companies to manage their asset, experience and make sense of their participation in decision-making and interaction with the portfolio manager. The research method was descriptive phenomenology, and the population consisted of investors who had the experience of co-creation with portfolio managers. To answer the research question, interviews lasting 60 to 90 minutes were conducted with a sample of 19 individuals, and the data were analyzed using Colaizzi's seven-step method. From 1012 meaningful statements extracted from the interviews, 27 initial themes and 6 main themes were derived: feeling a role change from a passive depositor to an intellectual partner, experiencing a live communication process, learning and empowerment, the intertwining of trust and control, the emotional experience of gain and loss, and participatory tensions. Finally, based on the research findings, policy and institutional recommendations for the capital market supervisory body, practical recommendations for portfolio management companies and financial institutions, and research recommendations for scholars were presented.