GAM
Portfolios

An independent review by our team of experts

GAM Investments offer two main types of services:

Investment management
Private labelling

Their clients include financial intermediaries, institutions, private clients, charities and individual investors.

The strategies offered by GAM Investments are:

Fixed income
Equity
Multi-asset and solutions
Systematic

GAM offers managed fund solutions’ that have an active asset allocation. GAM Investments say that they focus on asset allocation worldwide from a global opportunity set and capture future growth opportunities.

By far the most prevalent of GAM’s funds in the international marketplace are the Star Cautious, Balanced and Growth strategies.

The Star Portfolios are multi-asset risk rated portfolios.

The investment style is to use equity and fixed income asset classes and active mutual funds to try and outperform markets, and provide capital protection.

The information we can access is limited, as GAM have a bespoke arrangement with some offshore advisory firms.

NOTE:

We would recommend reading the 'expert verdict' section of this review to learn why our team of experts gave GAM Star Portfolios 1 out of 5 stars in their independent review.

Additionally, here's a free guide that can help you achieve better results. In this guide, you'll learn:

Academic evidence only shared with a select few firms across the world
A real-life example of why you should never try to outguess the market
Why a fund's past performance is not enough to predict future returns
Why you need to focus on what you can control and why this leads to a better investment experience
Why you should accept the markets for what they are
What can impact behaviour and make people seek instant gratification

The Pros

> Large established group

> Largely institutional

> Brand awareness

The Cons

> Underperformance

> Risk of hidden commissions/retrocessions

> High expense ratios

What is the investment objective of the GAM Star Worldwide Equity Ordinary EUR Accumulation?

The investment objective of this fund is to provide capital appreciation.

The fund seeks to achieve this objective primarily through investment in quoted equity securities (e.g. shares) worldwide with up to 20% of net assets invested in emerging markets.

They actively manage the fund on the basis of a fundamental valuation approach.

The objective is to identify the potential investments that, in the investment manager's opinion, are most attractive and to generate interesting and profitable opportunities for investors.

The fund invests in a broadly diversified equity universe and seeks opportunities for returns wherever they exist.

What is the objective of the GAM Star Global Cautious C EUR Accumulation fund and who is it managed by?

This fund is managed by GAM Fund Management Limited.

The investment objective of the Fund is to achieve long-term capital growth with lower volatility than a fund which invests solely in equities.

The Fund seeks to achieve this objective by investing primarily in open ended collective investment schemes which gain exposure to equities (e.g. shares), fixed income securities (with no restriction on the minimum credit rating), property, commodities and currencies.

What is the GAM Star Asian Equity Ordinary EUR Accumulation fund?

This fund has an investment objective to achieve long-term capital appreciation.

This fund by GAM Star seeks to achieve it's objective by investment in quoted securities which are issued by public companies with principal offices or significant business activities in the Asian region, excluding Japan (up to 40% of net assets may also be in frontier markets).

The fund gives investors easy access to the emerging markets. Many of these countries offer attractive potential returns in various asset classes.

The fund invests in a broadly diversified equity universe and seeks opportunities for returns wherever they exist.

What is a CAT bond and why is it used in GAM Star's Cat Bond Ordinary EUR Income?

A catastrophe bond (CAT) is a high-yield debt instrument. They transfer the risk of catastrophic events from insurance companies, reinsurance companies, corporations, governments, etc. to the capital markets.

GAM Star's fund seeks to achieve it's investment objective through selective investment in a global portfolio of catastrophe bonds (CAT Bonds).

NOTE: Cat bonds are exposed to catastrophes through which they may suffer substantial or total losses of amounts invested.

In such an event or combination of events, which may happen at any time, the fund's value may fall significantly and may not recover.

Expert assessment of GAM Star Portfolios

We believe that there are more cost effective, more transparent and potentially better performing investment options.

The GAM Star portfolios are accessed in the offshore marketplace by financial salespeople on behalf of their clients through offshore bonds.

If you hold a fund via an offshore bond you should double check which share class you hold as it could be costing you more than you need in fees and performance.

The total costs of the offshore bonds, together with an adviser’s commission and charges within funds can create a severe drag on performance. This can, in turn, impact investment returns.

If you’re looking for the strongest possible growth on your investments, and you don’t want that to be undermined by high costs, or you are uncomfortable with your adviser accessing investments through an insurance wrapper and/or receiving kickback commission payments, then you may wish to consider alternative options.

If you’d like a review of your current GAM holdings or your portfolio as a whole (worth £500,000 or more) simply request a Second Opinion today.

The information in this material is intended for the recipient’s background information and use only. It is provided in good faith and without any warranty or, representation as to accuracy or completeness. Information and opinions presented in this material have been obtained or derived from sources believed by AES to be reliable and AES has reasonable grounds to believe that all factual information herein is true as at the date of issue. It does not constitute investment advice, recommendation, or an offer of any services or products for sale and is not intended to provide a sufficient basis on which to make an investment decision. It is the responsibility of any persons wishing to make a purchase to inform themselves of and observe all applicable laws and regulations. Unauthorised reproduction or transmitting of this material is strictly prohibited. AES accepts no responsibility for loss arising from the use of the information contained herein.

‘AES’ refers to the AES Group’s separate but affiliated entities generally, rather than to one particular entity. These entities are AES Middle East Insurance Broker LLC registered with the UAE Ministry of Economy, United Arab Emirates, Licence no. 571368, and Commercial Registration no. 75162 and regulated by the UAE Central Bank license no. 189; AES Financial Services Limited, incorporated and registered in England and Wales with company number 06063185, authorised and regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority FRN: 464494; AES Financial Services (DIFC) Ltd, registered in the Dubai Financial Centre (DIFC) as a foreign company, license no.2128, and regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) Reference No F003476; AES International Limited, a private company incorporated and registered in the British Virgin Islands with company number 1839872; AES International Global Limited, a private company incorporated and registered in the British Virgin Islands with company number 1887885. Please visit our authorisations page for further information on regulation, redress and accessibility.

If you are outside the UK and we advise you or carry out other business, nearly all the rules, regulations and arrangements made under the UK regulatory regime (including the rules made by the FCA and the dispute resolution process provided by the UK Financial Ombudsman Service) will not apply to most aspects of the service you receive, such advice or business being provided from outside the UK. You should therefore clearly understand such rights and protection as are afforded in the jurisdiction where you receive advice. Local law, regulation and redress processes will apply in almost all cases, and will be different from that of the UK.

RISKS

Investments involve risks. The investment return and principal value of an investment may fluctuate so that an investment, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than the capital invested. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results. There is no guarantee strategies will be successful. For further information, please click here.

GAM is a global independent asset management group founded in 1983 and headquartered in Zurich.

It’s been listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange since 2009, following its demerger from the former Julius Baer Group.

It has assets under management of CHF 122.0 billion (as at 31st December 2020), and employs around 701 staff with offices in 14 countries.

GAM Investment Management is regulated by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) since 1987.

GAM
Portfolios

An independent review by our team of experts

REVIEW SUMMARY