Investment boost welcomed by Shetland Charitable Trust

Shetland Charitable Trust has seen a £20 million boost in its investments in the last year.

Trustees heard at a meeting on Thursday night that the market value of investments at the end of March were at £252 million, up from £232 million in the previous 12 months.

Fund managers gave in-depth and detailed presentations to trustees, giving their views on the financial markets and predictions for the year ahead. They said growth was expected to slow in the next financial year.

The strongest returns were posted by Edinburgh-based fund manager Baillie Gifford, which was awarded a new equity mandate that now accounts for 43 per cent of the Trust’s funds.

The market value of the mandate grew from £87 million to £108 million over the year.

A property mandate managed by Schroders, the diversified growth fund managed by Insight and the passive equity fund managed by BlackRock were close to their targets.

Shetland Charitable Trust chairman Bobby Hunter said: “When we changed our investment strategy in 2016, we placed an emphasis on securing better returns and I’m pleased to say that this is paying off.

“But we always look at market returns over the long term, so we will be looking for this growth to be maintained in what remain fairly volatile global financial markets.

“Since the trust began, over £300 million has been disbursed to a wide range of local charities, organisations and individuals”

“The goal is to inflation proof the trust’s reserves to ensure future generations continue to benefit from trust funding.”

More in next week’s Shetland Times