Citywire is delighted to make an exciting double announcement regarding its coverage of investment trusts and investment companies.
This Thursday will see us launch the new Investment Trust Insider website, building on the success of the e-zine of the same name we have published for three years.
And we are thrilled to reveal that Ian Cowie (pictured), investment columnist for the Sunday Times’ Money pages, has agreed to write a weekly opinion piece for our new website.
Cowie, former head of personal finance at the Telegraph Media Group, is a long-standing fan of investment trusts, prizing the historic reputation these stock exchange-listed funds have for superior performance and lower costs.
He writes:
‘There has never been greater focus on investors getting value for money than now. Low interest rates and modest nominal returns on investment mean management costs are no longer a tedious detail but clearly a matter of importance.
‘Few people cared when headline returns were in double digits but now costs can absorb a quarter of total returns from expensive pooled funds.’
Cowie believes investment trusts are an invaluable tool for investors and, as the listing of his own investments will reveal, he has put his money where his mouth is over the years.
‘Pension freedom has created a vast new army of investors, relying on investment returns to fund retirement. You no longer need to retire as an investor when you retire from being a butcher, baker or candle-stick maker.
‘Having built my Sipp [self-invested personal pension] from scratch into a seven-figure fund, I know from personal experience over the last three decades what value investment trusts can provide and am keen to share the news.
‘But I also know the practical problems investors face and look forward to tackling these tough issues, the cons as well as the pros, in Britain's leading website for individual investors.’
Registered readers of Citywire Money will be able to access all the content on Investment Trust Insider. The new website will be packed with news, analysis and guides to give you the inside track on this important and fascinating funds sector.