According to Andy Pettit, director of European data and research strategy, investors can now see this more detailed information on Morningstar’s website while advisers can access it via the group’s Workstation software programme. The added service also enables advisers to screen by longevity of service for the managers listed within the team.
Since last month, where fund managers are not explicitly identified, Morningstar longer offers the option of reporting the management of the fund as ‘team managed’, but will instead report this information as ‘not disclosed’.
In an interview on Morningstar.co.uk, Pettit said knowing such information means investors can better assess what other funds a manager may be involved with.
“It has always been a minority of funds, which tell you no more than the fact that it’s a team managing your money, which gives you nothing to gauge the stability, the size or the tenure of that team,” he said.
“So, what we are doing is to take away that option and redoubling our efforts to be told the individuals that are actually making those decisions on investors’ behalf.”
The move in the UK follows a similar initiative a few years ago in the US, which consequently led to a regulation change requiring such disclosures. Pettit said Morningstar would like to take the initiative forward across Europe and the group has already begun this process in the Netherlands, Germany and Scandinavia.
The next step in terms of UK fund disclosure will be to push for greater clarity over investment objectives, Pettit said. “We still see a lot of funds, which say no more than ‘we are seeking capital growth,’ which doesn’t tell you a lot about how they are going to achieve that.”
Pettit added ideally knowing a bit more information about the stakes managers have in their own funds, would also be useful for advisers.
