Trustnet Magazine 95 May 2023 | Page 46

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BNY Mellon Multi-Asset Balanced

This fund has delivered strong returns since it reduced its emphasis on capital preservation back in 2017

Investors who are looking for growth but who may not be comfortable with the volatility associated with pure equity exposure may wish to consider a multi-asset fund . One of the most highly rated of these is BNY Mellon Multi-Asset Balanced : the fund has the maximum FE fundinfo Crown Rating of five and is headed up by an FE Alpha Manager in Bhavin Shah , alongside Simon Nichols and Paul Flood . The analysts at Square Mile also hold it in high regard , citing the convictiondriven approach taken by the managers , the experience and tenure within the business of Nichols and the well -regarded global analyst team . Many funds with some focus on the downside currently have more of a value slant in their equity weighting , but BNY Mellon Multi-Asset Balanced maintains significant exposure to growth : while its largest position is in bonds at 19.1 %, its second largest is in tech stocks , at 12.8 %. Nichols justified this by saying this is where he and his fellow managers see the highest long-term growth potential , despite recent setbacks . “ Technology is going to be the key driver of most economies ,” he explained . “ Once they ’ re past this cyclical hump , these will be great companies to invest in . They had supernormal returns in the Covid period , but I see no reason why they shouldn ’ t be fantastic in the future .” While the fund ’ s tech weighting detracted from performance last year , its fall of 4.2 % was less than
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