DON’T BE PUT OFF BY THE JARGON

MOIRA O’NEILL, head of personal finance at broker Interactive Investor. IT IS easy to be overwhelmed by the sheer number of investments available, while the investment industry can be guilty of using too much jargon.

But one piece of jargon that I would advise beginner investors to understand is ‘multi-asset fund’, as this might be all you need to get started. Often referred to as a onestop-shop fund, a multi-asset fund makes the investment decisions on your behalf — splitting your money across different types of investments, but mainly shares and bonds.

Interactive Investor recommends six carefully selected multi-asset funds for beginners. Three are taken from the Vanguard LifeStrategy range and three from the BMO Sustainable Universal MAP range.

For investors who are comfortable with higher risk and who have at least five to ten years to invest, we like Vanguard LifeStrategy 80 pc equity fund, which offers a cheap way of gaining exposure to thousands of investments across the globe. As the name of the fund suggests, 80 pc of it is invested in shares, with the remaining 20pc invested in bonds and other fixedincome assets.

The sheer level of diversification offered by the fund means investments are protected in a way that funds investing in a handful of holdings aren’t, making it a good long-term option.

While past performance is not an indicator of future results, the fund’s stellar performance record over the decade, beating its sector average and nestling in the top quartile of funds in their sector, instils confidence in the strategy. FIRST FUND TIP: Vanguard LifeStrategy 80. Return on £10,000 after five years: £15,354.

moneymail@dailymail.co.uk