Fund Discovery Briefing — June 2026
- Sheridan Admans
- 5 days ago
- 7 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
New fund research, allocator context and developments relevant to professional investment decision-makers
June’s Fund Discovery Briefing brings together Infundly’s latest fund research, market context and key UK industry developments for professional fund selectors. This edition highlights new research on Pzena Global Value, WS Raynar UK Smaller Companies and Troy’s multi-asset strategies, alongside the latest Macro Snapshot and developments in money-market fund reform, fund flows and IA sector definitions.
June 2026 · Issue 01 · 6-minute read
This month at a glance
Five strategies added to the Fund Discovery research process
A closer look at whether apparent fund differentiation translates into different portfolio behaviour
June’s Macro Snapshot: resilient markets, unsettled assumptions
New analysis covering global equities, strategic bonds and SDR fund labels
Money-market fund reform, changing UK fund flows and revised IA sector definitions
Good fund research should do more than identify interesting strategies. It should clarify why they are different, what role they may play and what evidence would justify greater conviction.
That is the purpose of the Fund Discovery Briefing: to bring together Infundly’s latest research, market context and due-diligence observations in one concise monthly update.
The allocator question
When does a different process produce genuinely different portfolio behaviour?
A distinctive label is not enough. The evidence must show how the stated philosophy shapes investment analysis, portfolio decisions and observable behaviour.
Useful differentiation can be tested through several questions:
Does the philosophy lead to recognisably different decisions?
Is the process clear and repeatable?
Does the portfolio reflect the stated approach?
Has the manager behaved consistently when conditions have been less supportive?
Is the evidence strong enough to justify the level of conviction assigned?
These questions are relevant to this month’s additions. Pzena Global Value, WS Raynar UK Smaller Companies and Troy’s multi-asset strategies follow very different investment approaches.
The key judgement is not whether a fund sounds distinctive. It is whether the available evidence supports the philosophy, process and behaviour claimed.
New to Fund Discovery
Infundly’s research universe is selective by design. Funds are included where the strategy raises a relevant fund-selection or due-diligence question, offers meaningful differentiation, or warrants assessment against a clearly defined portfolio role.
A Research–Conviction Mark reflects Infundly’s assessment of the evidence available at the time of review. It is not a recommendation to invest or a conclusion that a fund is appropriate for any particular portfolio.
Pzena Global Value
· Global equity
· Deep value
· Research–Conviction Established
Pzena Global Value applies a disciplined deep-value process, focusing on companies where current earnings appear depressed relative to their longer-term earnings power.
Infundly’s assessment found a coherent philosophy, repeatable normal-earnings framework, experienced team and sufficient behavioural evidence supporting an Established Research–Conviction designation.
WS Raynar UK Smaller Companies
· UK smaller companies
· Earnings inflection
· Research–Conviction Emerging
WS Raynar UK Smaller Companies focuses on businesses where earnings momentum may be improving before that change is fully reflected in forecasts or valuation.
Infundly’s assessment found a coherent philosophy, deliberate portfolio construction and strong alignment from an experienced lead manager.
Trojan Funds/Investment Trust
Trojan Fund · Trojan Ethical Fund · Personal Assets Trust
· Defensive multi-asset
· Capital preservation
· Research–Conviction Established
Troy’s multi-asset approach seeks to protect and grow capital through quality equities, inflation-linked bonds, gold-related investments, short-dated government bonds and liquidity.
Infundly’s assessment found a clear capital-preservation philosophy, disciplined asset allocation and strong evidence of active defensive behaviour through changing markets.
Market context
Equity resilience, AI momentum and an unsettled macro backdrop
May was a month of market resilience rather than macro comfort. Geopolitical uncertainty remained elevated, central banks continued to face an awkward balance between inflation and weaker growth, and bond markets stayed volatile. Yet equities advanced across the US, Europe, the UK and emerging markets.
The main support came from resilient corporate earnings, continued optimism around artificial-intelligence investment and growing confidence that the immediate energy shock could ease.
From Infundly Perspectives
Global Equity Funds in Concentrated and AI-Driven Markets
Global equity fund selection has become more difficult in a market led by a relatively small number of mega-cap, AI-linked companies.
The central issue is not simply active versus passive. It is whether an active fund has a clearly defined role, credible differentiation and sufficient evidence that its active risk is worth the additional cost and governance burden.
Useful for: global equity reviews, active–passive comparisons and investment committee preparation
Reading time: 12 minutes
Strategic Bond Funds: Portfolio Role, Flexibility and Governance Risk
Strategic bond funds can move across duration, credit quality, geography and currency. That flexibility may be useful, but it can also make the underlying risk engine difficult to understand and monitor.
This note considers how selectors can distinguish useful discretion from uncontrolled complexity, and what should be documented before a strategic bond fund is assigned a portfolio role.
Useful for: fixed-income reviews, manager comparisons and monitoring-framework design
Reading time: 11 minutes
SDR Fund Labels: Due-Diligence Questions for Fund Selectors
The UK Sustainability Disclosure Requirements provide a more structured starting point for sustainable fund assessment, but the label does not replace professional judgement.
The note examines the fund’s stated sustainability objective, the evidence standard supporting portfolio alignment, stewardship, key performance indicators and the monitoring questions selectors may need to retain.
Useful for: sustainable fund research, governance files and label-based due diligence
Reading time: 4 minutes
On the research desk
A small number of developments stood out this month because they may affect fund research, governance or portfolio monitoring.
UK money-market fund reform moves forward
The Financial Conduct Authority has set out its intended approach to reforming the UK money-market fund regime following the Government’s plans to replace the existing regulation.
The FCA has modified its earlier liquidity proposals following consultation feedback and further analysis with the Bank of England. It now intends to retain existing minimum requirements in its rules, supported by higher supervisory expectations for weekly liquid assets, while proceeding broadly with measures including the delinking of liquidity thresholds from redemption-management tools.
Why selectors may care
Money-market funds are often treated as operationally simple cash-management vehicles. The proposed reforms are a reminder that liquidity construction, redemption design and resilience under stress remain relevant areas of due diligence.
Users may need to understand:
what type of money-market fund is being used;
how liquidity is managed during periods of elevated redemptions;
whether regulatory changes could affect yield, portfolio composition or operating arrangements;
how the vehicle differs from a bank deposit or other short-duration exposure.
UK fund sales record a sixth consecutive month of inflows
Investment Association data showed £1.5 billion of net retail inflows during April, slightly ahead of March’s £1.3 billion and marking a sixth consecutive positive month.
North American equity funds returned to inflows, although the broader picture remained uneven. Equity trackers attracted new money while active equity funds continued to experience redemptions, and UK, European and Asian equity funds remained in outflow.
Why selectors may care
We know flows do not establish the investment case for an asset class or fund. They can, however, provide useful context around investor behaviour, capacity, liquidity and the commercial pressures affecting managers.
The return of North American equity inflows coincided with a strong US earnings season and continued investment in artificial intelligence. For selectors, the useful question is whether renewed demand reflects broadening confidence in the market or remains concentrated in index-led exposure to the largest US companies.
IA Property and Healthcare sector definitions change
Revised Investment Association Property and Healthcare sector definitions took effect on 1 June 2026.
The former property categories have been replaced by separate Direct and Hybrid Property and Listed Property sectors, while biotechnology funds can now enter the renamed Healthcare and Biotechnology sector. The IA says the changes better reflect current market practice and should support more meaningful like-for-like comparisons.
Why selectors may care
A sector classification is a navigation tool, not a substitute for understanding the underlying portfolio.
Changes in classification can affect peer groups, comparative performance, screening results and the way a fund appears in research systems. Historical comparisons may also become less straightforward where the composition or purpose of a sector changes.
Selectors may therefore need to check:
whether a fund’s peer group has changed;
whether historic rankings remain comparable;
whether the revised sector better reflects the fund’s actual opportunity set;
whether internal monitoring reports or benchmarks require adjustment.
One question for your committee
Where two funds appear to offer diversification, what evidence shows that they will actually behave differently when the portfolio needs that diversification most?
Explore Infundly Research
Infundly provides selective, independent fund research for professional advisers, DFMs, MPS teams, family offices and investment committees.
The research focuses on manager edge, process discipline, governance quality, portfolio role, risk and the evidence that could change the view.
Important information
This material is intended for professional advisers, regulated firms, discretionary managers, institutional investors and other professional investment decision-makers. It is not intended for retail clients and should not be relied upon by retail investors.
This material is provided for informational and professional research purposes only. It reflects general market observations and Infundly’s analysis at the time of writing, unless otherwise stated. It does not constitute investment advice, a personal recommendation, investment management, arranging activity, or an invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity.
Infundly is a trading name of AdmansPraxis Limited. Infundly is not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and does not provide personal financial advice.
References to individual funds explain their characteristics and the questions they raise for professional due diligence. Inclusion within the Fund Discovery process does not constitute a recommendation, product endorsement or conclusion that a fund is appropriate for any portfolio. Regulated firms and professional users remain responsible for their own research, due diligence, product approval, suitability assessments and client outcomes.
The views, figures and data included are based on information available at the time of writing and sources believed to be reliable, but their accuracy, completeness and timeliness are not guaranteed. Markets, funds, personnel and circumstances can change without notice. The value of investments may fall as well as rise and capital is at risk. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
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