Using estimated data from Morningstar, the AIC has revealed that AUM has reached £100.8bn, the highest level ever, while the average investment company discount was 7.1% at the end of January. This was its lowest level since July 2007 when it was 7%.
“It’s very encouraging to see the industry’s assets at record levels, passing the £100bn milestone for the first time.” said Ian Sayers, director general of the AIC.
“While hitting the £100bn mark shows the health of the sector, long-term performance is still the most important measure of success and the sector continues to have an impressive story to tell.”
Industry Evolution
The analysis also revealed the changing nature of the investment trust industry over the past 10 years. Two of the twenty largest AIC members are from the Sector Specialist: Infrastructure and HICL Infrastructure and International Public Partnerships, a sector that did not exist a decade ago.
Further, both Commodities & Natural Resources and UK Smaller Companies are both now represented in the top 20, in contrast to ten years ago, while four of the top 20 largest members are domiciled offshore, whereas none were a decade ago.
Sayers said: ““With the industry 145 years old and counting, those companies that have stood the test of time continue to hold as much relevance today. However, the changes in our top twenty members over the decade demonstrate that this is a dynamic, evolving sector using the closed-ended structure to allow investors access to asset classes that other funds can’t offer.”
Alliance, Scottish Mortgage and Foreign & Colonial occupy the top three positions, all of which operate in the Global Growth Sector and are domiciled in the UK.
