Do You Know What an Investment Trust is?

Four in 10 Morningstar readers invest in closed-end funds. But do you know what makes them different from OEICs? And why they have an investment board?

Emma Wall 9 February, 2015 | 1:32PM
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This article is part of Morningstar’s Guide to Investment Trusts, highlighting the benefits of these unique investment vehicles – busting the investment trust jargon, revealing potential pitfalls and celebrating those experienced managers who have earned the top ranking from Morningstar fund analysts.

 

 

 

 

An investment trust is a composite fund which is listed on the London Stock Exchange. Investment trusts are run by fund managers who typically invest in between 50 and 100 holdings – made up of stocks, bonds or alternatives or a mixture of all three. Trusts are closed-end funds, meaning they issue a fixed number of shares at launch, and then do not subsequently buy shares back or issue new shares, except in rare circumstances.

As well as a fund manager and team of analysts who manage an investment trust, as a listed entity a trust has an independent investment board. The board provides a unique layer of governance that has responsibility to act in shareholders' interest at all times, something that unit trusts do not have.

The information contained within is for educational and informational purposes ONLY. It is not intended nor should it be considered an invitation or inducement to buy or sell a security or securities noted within nor should it be viewed as a communication intended to persuade or incite you to buy or sell security or securities noted within. Any commentary provided is the opinion of the author and should not be considered a personalised recommendation. The information contained within should not be a person's sole basis for making an investment decision. Please contact your financial professional before making an investment decision.

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About Author

Emma Wall  is former Senior International Editor for Morningstar

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