Editor’s note: This article was first published in September 2010. The ‘this year’ ranking, the shift away from equity funds, the 824 million euros raised by FonCaixa Bienvenida and JPMorgan AM’s lead in returns are 2010 data; the funds and managers named may since have been closed, merged or renamed.
Those of you who know me are aware that I’m not a fan of investing in mutual funds, because I believe the best investment fund is the one we can build ourselves with a well-diversified portfolio. Even so, let’s look at which funds passed the test this year, 2010.
There’s no doubt the crisis has changed investment habits, and so this year investment in equity funds has fallen. All the fund managers agree that there has been strong demand for guaranteed funds, preferably fixed-income ones.
We have prioritized minimizing risk over getting a high return from our funds. The most successful fund in Spain has been the guaranteed fund FonCaixa Bienvenida, with which InverCaixa has raised more than 824 million euros.
A globally recognized name, JPMorgan AM, which has been in Spain for several years, has managed to improve the returns on its investment funds well ahead of other firms, in some cases with fairly high returns.
I haven’t had the pleasure of working with JPMorgan, but several colleagues share the same view of the firm. So, without meaning to give it free advertising, for those who like handing the risk over to someone else, I think JPMorgan is a good option. Take a look at its JPM Emerging Markets Equity Fund.
As for the rest of the investment fund market, we’re still stuck with the same dilemma: most of what the banks offer us ends up, after two years, earning less than most of the investments an average investor makes on their own.
That’s hard to explain, given the supposed expertise of analysts and fund managers, which is why I’m increasingly convinced that we should only consider bank investment funds once we belong to their “private banking” division.
Remember: When choosing an investment fund, the current recommendation is a fund that invests in emerging-market regions. These funds are suited to the long term.
Further reading
