The managers running the biggest active funds picked stocks that beat the market in 2025 — and most still lagged their benchmark. A Morningstar do-nothing experiment and a body of academic research explain why active funds underperform even when the picking is good: skilled buying undone by poor selling, the hidden cost of trading, and the incentives that keep managers churning. The UK evidence points the same way.
Private equity is heading into UK pension funds — backed by government policy and industry enthusiasm. But the evidence for ordinary savers capturing meaningful returns, after fees and illiquidity costs, is far weaker than the sales pitch suggests. Before your retirement savings are redirected, here's what the research actually shows.
Robin Powell
Mar 510 min read
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