Fund buyers: What we want from new Woodford fund

Gauging investor demand

Fund buyers said the launch of a new higher income product for Neil Woodford would be a "natural extension" of his firm's range, but warned it will need to be sufficiently differentiated from its existing products to attract investor attention.

Woodford Investment Management sent out a questionnaire to intermediaries this morning to gauge interest for the new product, which would complement the two-year-old £9bn CF Woodford Equity Income fund. Craig Newman, chief executive at Woodford Investment Management, said: "We are currently speaking to private investors, intermediaries and platforms to glean views and appetite for a new equity fund targeting a higher income." According to the proposals, the fund would primarily invest in UK companies but have no geographic restraint. This means it is unlikely to sit in the IA UK Equit...