Radtastic investment funds and savings accounts (UK)
Chuffed to see you here, mate! This is the UK version of this page. Saffers, this is the one you want.
Friends, there are a lot of different accounts and funds out there, and I’m not listing every single one of them here. These are just some of the funds that I’ve personally scouted out as potential candidates for my own portfolio.
I like to choose things that:
- Have the lowest possible costs (look for the “total expense ratio” or “total investment cost”) - this almost always means passive index investing. You should read chapter 7 of the book for the full debate on active vs. passive funds and make up your own mind about this.
- Are with reputable, legit companies that won’t vanish with my money.
- Are friendly for people who like to handle their investments themselves, online because, come on, it’s the 21st century.
Of course, you need to choose the right type of fund, with the right asset allocation, for your time period, which will tell you what your risk appetite should be. The basic rule for this is that the sooner you want to spend that chunk of money, the lower the risk rating you’re looking for.
New funds come out all the time! And I’m also not a wizard, so I might have missed some really great options. If you’ve found a fund that you think is hella-mega-cool, let me know about it so that we can keep building this list together.
Last updated: 20 November 2020
Heyyyyyyy… remember how I’m not a professional, qualified financial adviser? Just reminding you of that fact. Do your own homework before you put your money in something and talk to an actual financial adviser if you need to. Kthnxbai.
Looking for a savings account for your emergency fund or table flip fund?
No point re-inventing the wheel! MoneySavingExpert has a great list of options for you.
Looking for a global equity index fund/ETF for your freedom fund?
These are all simple, low-cost global funds that form a great foundation for most long-term investment portfolios. With one simple product, you can diversify your money all around the world.
| Provider | Fund name | Link | Ongoing Fund Charge | ISIN/Symbol |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HSBC | FTSE All-World Index Fund C Accumulation | Fund link | 0.13% | GB00BMJJJF91 |
| HSBC | FTSE All-World Index Fund C Income | Fund link | 0.13% | GB00BMJJJG09 |
| Vanguard | FTSE All-World Income | Fund link | 0.22% | VWRL |
| Vanguard | FTSE All-World Accumulation | Fund link | 0.22% | VWRP |
| Fidelity | Fidelity Allocator World Fund W Accumulation | Fund link | 0.25% | GB00B9777B62 |
Income funds pay you dividends (usually annually), while accumulation funds reinvest the dividends for you automatically. Accumulation funds are usually a better idea for lazy sods like me.
Looking for an ESG fund (one that prioritises environmental, social and governance factors)? Try the Vanguard ESG All Cap Equity Index Fund (0.2%, developed world only) or the L&G Future World Fund (0.23%).
Vanguard's Lifestrategy funds are another good option for smart, lazy investors. They give you pre-mixed funds with different ratios of shares and bonds. The Lifestrategy 100 (100% shares) has ongoing charges of 0.22%.
The iShares MSCI World funds (0.2%) are another popular option, but they exclude emerging markets so aren't as "world" as they say they are ;)
Looking for low-cost index funds for different asset classes, like bonds? Monevator has a good list.