Factors Influencing Mutual Fund Performance

Existing literature on performance comparison of mutual funds managed by different types of financial institutions reported conflicting results. Until the 1990s, finance literature reported bank-managed funds being inferior to their non-bank counterparts but a later study showed bank-managed bond funds were not inferior to their counterparts from other institutions. Literature on fund performance differences focused on fund manager characteristics. This book details an empirical study of how factors influencing fund performance differ with type of fund management institution--banks as well as insurance and investment companies. Studying performance of unit trusts invested using Singapore''s defined-contribution pension plan reveals effects of such factors on funds managed by banks and non-banks. Bank-managed equity funds are not inferior to non-bank ones. Previous research reporting under-performance of bank-managed funds ignored their differing fiduciary standards. By providing a conceptual model relating characteristics of funds to their performance, this book should be most useful to finance professionals and students conducting mutual fund research.