Over the course of today’s celebration of all things Anthony Bolton, or more specifically his Special Situations China Trust, we’ve looked at:
- Why Bolton is back and investing in China [1]
- Six reasons why you should invest with Bolton in China [2]
- Six reasons why you shouldn’t back Bolton [3]
Now it’s time to give my own personal verdict!
I’ll also point you to some more resources to help you make your own mind up.
Update 16/2/10: Since writing this article, a trusted reader has advised [4] that the initial charge will be 1.5% and there’ll be annual trail charge of 0.5% paid to brokers. Minimum subscription will be £2,500. This is not a cheap trust and that’s more than I want to punt on it. I likely won’t invest at launch now.
I’ll be investing in China with Bolton (a bit)
I like investment trusts, I like emerging markets for the long term, and I like Anthony Bolton – what he says and writes, as well as his track record.
Also, I don’t like the idea of missing out!
However, I won’t be putting more than a small amount of money into Bolton’s fund – perhaps just £1,000, depending on the initial subscription limits.
Logically, I can’t believe that lightning can strike twice and he can trounce the markets again.
But my heart says what the heck!
If Bolton does repeat his glory days I’ll have £140,000 to show for my £1,000 investment in 28 years, and if he doesn’t, I don’t think he’ll do worse than a Chinese index tracker. The country must be the least suited market to passive investing in the world.
The offer period for the China Special Situations Investment Trust opens on February 26th and closes April 5th. I think it’s likely to trade at a premium once it’s listed, which is planned to start April 19th.
Further reading on Bolton’s new trust:
- Fidelity’s web page about the new China fund [5], where you can register your interest
- Financial Times article on Bolton’s China fund [6]
- A Bloomberg article on Bolton [7] in $ for my American readers
- Bolton penned article on the investment opportunities in China [8]
- Bolton explains his thinking to The Telegraph [9]
- The Wikipedia entry on Anthony Bolton [10] is still pretty sketchy
- Bolton writing on emerging markets [11]
Readers: If you’re a UK investor, do you plan to back Bolton with your own money? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.