What caught my eye this week.
Here’s a reminder as to why I tag Moguls – our premium membership content for select Monevator readers – as ‘not for everyone’.
Our last two Moguls articles showcased a model portfolio of mostly actively managed investment trusts that aims to deliver a natural yield for long-term income.
In contrast, the latest SIPP report just dropped from Interactive Investor. And it reveals that for the first time, passive funds have overtaken active funds as the most popular choices for SIPP investors on the II platform – for both accumulating and deaccumulating investors.
According to the accompanying bumph:
Appetite for investment trusts has waned in recent years, and our data illustrates this is the case for investors across the board.
By contrast, allocations to ETFs have surged with SIPP investors wooed by their simplicity and low costs.
Play a sad bagpipe lament from Spotify as you peruse the waning of the investment trust era:
Source: Interactive Investor
Six out of the top ten funds for accumulators are now passive funds. Three of them are Vanguard LifeStrategy offerings. Global trackers make up the rest of II’s popular passives list.
This is all to be celebrated.
My pitch for Moguls is not a cunning bluff. I believe most people should be passive investors. That this message has got through – and that more investors are widely-diversifying using the funds highlighted – is cheering, and a far cry from when this blog began life back in 2007.
Some of us are investing nutters though. Or we just have a competitive urge to try to do better.
I hope investment trusts survive to help us scratch our itch. And if they don’t, there’s always stockpicking.
Passive investors can be passionate investors too, of course. Please sign-up to our Mavens premium content if that’s you. The Accumulator has been knocking it out of the park with his monthly deep dives.
A quick note on RSS feeds
I was surprised to learn this week that a few Monevator readers still follow our site via RSS. (If you’re under 30 and have no idea what I’m talking about, ask the nearest Gen X-er).
Sadly I found out this because our age-old RSS feed seems to have broken.
We’re not yet sure exactly what’s gone wrong. It looks like some kind of redirection issue. But as best I can tell this source feed should be good for now. You might have to resubscribe to follow it.
I’m aware some icons around the site still point to the old and possibly terminally knackered RSS feed. But I’m not changing the links until I’m sure what’s up.
Personally I’d subscribe via email. The writing has been on the wall for RSS for years. But we’ll try to keep supporting it for as long as we can.
Have a great weekend!
From Monevator
Money market vs bonds: which is best? – Monevator
Monzo, EIS, crowdfunding and capital gains tax – Monevator
From the archive-ator: Swap rates and mortgage rates – Monevator
News
New warning over ‘stealth’ £9bn income tax raid – City AM
Bond managers fear Rachel Reeves will break her fiscal rules – Morningstar
Property sales in May reached a four-year high, says Zoopla – Mortgage Strategy
Starling’s profits drop 25% as bank takes the blame for Covid loan losses – Guardian
Billionaire tech entrepreneur joins non-dom exodus – City AM
The ultra-rich are moving their money to Singapore as global risks mount – CNBC
Coin collection hidden from the Nazis sells for £5.7m at auction – This Is Money
UK car making plunges to lowest in 70 years [I wonder what happened in 2016?] – BBC
Products and services
Get £180 plus another £20 with Santander’s switch offer – Be Clever With Your Cash
Safe and easy ways to recycle and get money for your old gadgets – Guardian
Six questions to ask yourself before buying travel insurance – Which
Get up to £1,500 cashback when you transfer your cash and/or investments to Charles Stanley Direct through this link. Terms apply – Charles Stanley
Fears 300,000 electricity meters won’t work after tech switch off – Guardian
Vet complaint process often ‘stacked against pet owners’ – Guardian
Nine myths about income protection busted – Which
End-of-terrace homes for sale, in pictures – Guardian
Comment and opinion
If anything, bond markets are returning to normal – Bloomberg via AP
Can you still make money from UK property? [Paywall] – FT
The rise of middle-class multi-millionaires – Financial Samurai
Morgan Housel on spending money [Podcast] – At The Money
Anything above zero compounds – A Teachable Moment
You don’t lose money in bonds if you wait long enough – Of Dollars and Data
How rich is rich, anyway? [Paywall] – FT
Why value investing has worked better outside the US – Morningstar
“I left London for a cheaper life, but I’m still paying £150 for a haircut” – i Paper
Should you decant a pension into an ISA to get ahead of IHT? – This Is Money
Generational wealth vs ‘enough’ – White Coat Investor
Can you avoid inheritance tax by owning a historic listed building? – This Is Money
People earn more when their mortgage rates rise [Research] – Alpha Architect
Government’s UK pension fund makeover mini-special
Pension plans to double £25bn-plus megafunds and boost investment… – Gov.uk
…handily summarised by the BBC – BBC
Reeves confirms plans can set ‘binding’ asset allocations – City AM via Yahoo
Will megafunds really put an extra £6,000 in the average pension? – Guardian
Naughty corner: Active antics
Improve returns by facing your fears, says Billions inspiration – Morningstar
How to ‘cheat’ – Behavioural Investment
Tariff impacts are starting to show up in the US economy… – Bond Dad
…but at least data centre buildouts are adding 1% to US GDP – Axios
Stock drawdowns and recoveries [Research, PDF] – Morgan Stanley
Kindle book bargains
Hype Machine: Inside the Cult of Crypto by Joshua Oliver – £0.99 on Kindle
The Price of Money by Rob Dix – £0.99 on Kindle
The Great Crashes: Lessons from Global Meltdowns by Linda Yueh – £0.99 on Kindle
Failed State: Why Britain Doesn’t Work by Sam Freedman – £0.99 on Kindle
Or pick up one of the all-time great investing classics – Monevator shop
Environmental factors
Celebrating 25 years of London’s extra lungs – BBC
How penguin poop helps Antarctica keep its cool – Biographic
Earth is heading for 2.7 degrees of warming this century. That’s dire – The Conversation
Robot overlord roundup
The people who think AI might become conscious – BBC
A 1000x increase in AI demand – Tom Tunguz
Amazon workers say they have to work harder, faster, with AI – NYP via Yahoo
Using facial recognition to assess loan delinquency risks [Research, for now…] – Alpha Architect
Not at the dinner table
Seven truths about trade – Tim Harford
The four phases of institutional collapse in the age of AI – Kyla Scanlon
‘Radical uncertainty’ and Trump’s tariffs – Behavioural Scientist
Trump Media is getting into BTC hoarding – CNBC [also GameStop]
Off our beat
How to become a fantasy sports millionaire [US ‘football’ but interesting] – Rolling Stone
Unhappy hour: the demise of after-work drinks – Slate
Why doesn’t North America speak French? – Unchartered Territories
The workload fairy tale – Cal Newport
The light beyond sight: exploring the universe – Aeon
Roche working on first breakthrough antibiotic in 50 years – Fast Company
Move to Portugal and become a crypto nomad – Coin Telegraph
Look east: a weekend in London’s new cultural quarter – Guardian
Gulp! Gen X to become elder statesmen and women – Dave Nadig
And finally…
“We begin our lives as growth stocks, but end our lives as value stocks.”
– Nick Maggiulli, Just Keep Buying
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