European Growth Trust
Invest in one of the world’s most developed regions
Good for...
Giving investors access to the European markets and a chance to invest in companies which are known all around the world. The fund also allows investors an opportunity to spread their investment risk outside of the UK to diversify their portfolio.
Nothing in life is risk-free, but you should remember this is a different type of investment to a bank or building society account. The value of an investment can go down as well as up and you may get back less than you put in.
“The bias in the portfolio is towards companies that have a greater exposure to the faster growing developing markets. For example, we invest in LVMH where the burgeoning middle classes in China, Russia, Brazil, etc are willing to pay premium prices for luxury brands.”
Linda Desforges, Fund Manager
Fund detail
Launched |
31st January 2000 |
|---|---|
Fund manager profile |
Linda is Head of External Funds and is a key member of the asset allocation team; she has been managing customer portfolios since 1993. In 2003, Linda was appointed Head of North American Equities and in 2006 expanded her experience to cover a broad range of asset classes including UK and overseas equity, bonds, property and alternatives. |
Risk profile |
Higher |
Fund aims and objectives |
This fund looks to increase the value of your money over the medium to long term by investing in Europe. The fund invests in some of the world’s largest and best-known companies like Nestle and luxury goods manufacturer, Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy (LVMH)which have excellent long term growth prospects. |
You should read the following documents before you invest in any of our funds:
(Documentation will open as a PDF in a new window).
- CIS European Growth Trust Key Investor Information Document (PDF - 0.2Mb)
- CIS Supplementary Information Document (PDF - 0.3Mb)
Fund facts
Who can invest?
You must be over 18 to invest. This investment can be held jointly by up to four named people.
Investment limits
You can invest:
- a lump sum (minimum £1000)
- regular monthly contributions (minimum £50)
- or a combination of both.
There is no maximum investment limit, but if you wish to invest in a Stocks & Shares ISA, the total ISA allowance is £11,520. If you wish to invest more than this, simply choose to invest part of your investment inside the ‘ISA wrapper’ and the rest outside the ‘ISA wrapper’ in a unit trust.
Flexibility
There is no fixed investment term and you can choose to increase or decrease your monthly payments, as long as you let us know in advance. And you can even take up to two ‘payment holidays’ in a year if you like.
Income
You can receive an income from this investment on a half-yearly basis. You can choose to add this income back to the fund for greater capital growth or you can receive a cheque/bank transfer into your account.
Withdrawals
You can make partial withdrawals from your investment but you should remember that making any withdrawals will not only reduce the value of your investment, but also any income you receive from it.
Valuations
We will send you a half-yearly statement to let you know how your investment is performing, or you can request a valuation of your investment at any time by calling us on 08457 46 46 46.
You can also check the daily unit price online.
Latest information
How has European Growth Trust been performing?
Take a look at the latest fund factsheet:
(Documentation will open as a PDF in a new window).
- European Growth Trust
fund factsheet (PDF - 0.2Mb)
Fees, charges and taxation
When you invest in European Growth Trust, as either a unit trust investment, or a Stocks & Shares ISA, we will look after and manage your money, to give it the best chance of achieving your investment goals.
There are charges made for this - which are a percentage of the value of your investment at the time.
Here is a summary of the important information:
| Charge (% of the investment value at the time) | What’s this for | How and when is it deducted? | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial charge | If you apply online without receiving financial advice from us. (You may also request a postal application by telephoning us). | 1.5% of your initial investment | The charge for opening a unit trust (or Stocks & Shares ISA) with us. |
One-off charge on ‘day one’ of your investment. You buy units at the buying price and sell them at the selling price. The difference between the two is the initial charge. |
| AND | Annual Management Charge |
1.5% per year* | The annual cost of us managing your money and investing it on your behalf. |
Daily, from the income earned on your investment. |
| AND | Additional Management Charge |
About 0.1% per year | For the additional costs of managing the Trust, such as the Trustees fees and audit expenses. |
Once a year, from the income earned on your investment. |
*Please note that with effect from 1st March 2012 the management charge for the CIS European Growth Trust has been temporarily reduced to 1.375% due to a period of fund underperformance. The performance of the fund will be closely monitored and the management charge will revert back to 1.5% when performance improves.
We aim to keep these charges to a minimum and we will notify you if there are any changes to these.
What about tax?
You will find out more information about taxation in our CIS Supplementary Information Document (PDF - 0.3Mb). You should read this before you invest to make sure you understand your tax position and if you need further guidance, you should seek specialist advice.
- If you invest in this Trust through a stocks & shares ISA, you will have no further tax to pay on your investment.
- If you invest in this Trust outside the ‘ISA wrapper’, any income you earn from an investment in this Trust is taxed as an ‘interest distribution’ so you will pay tax on it subject to your personal income tax liability. You may also have to pay capital gains tax when you sell your units. This will depend on whether you have exceeded your annual capital gains tax exemption.
