Will RDR help investors avoid fixating on costs?

Evan Bruce-Gardyne, director of investor relations at Alliance Trust says, in time, the Retail Distribution Review will help encourage investors to look at the wider picture before committing capital to a fund.

The Retail Distribution Review has done a long overdue job of making the cost structure of parts of the investment industry more transparent. The playing field is now closer to level than it was, because financial advisors are no longer incentivised to recommend funds to their clients. It is clear investment trusts as an asset class are seeing some significant benefits from this, as advisers embrace this new found freedom and are advising and investing their clients in trusts.   Dual effect It was always clear, however, that RDR would have two major effects on investment trusts. On ...