Investors are snapping up complex securities linked to some of the markets deemed most vulnerable to the coronavirus-driven economic slump, a sign that the yearslong reach for yield has survived the market shock.

Faced with withering share prices and falling yields on safe government bonds, portfolio managers are seeking out returns in an array of strategies that in some instances take them into esoteric corners of the financial markets. One popular spot is the market for asset-backed securities, typically bonds whose payments to investors are generated by the cash flows collected from a large pool of car loans, property leases or other agreements.