80-20 Investor Best of the Best Selection – December 2025 Update

Commentary

The BOTB selection finished in negative territory for the month, for the first time since May. The fact that the BOTB outperformed its benchmark but lagged the Mixed Investment 40-85% sector average suggests that it was the BOTB's asset mix which was the bigger drag on performance.

Despite this, 17 funds have retained their position in this month's BOTB. Digging deeper into the performance of individual funds, UK and European equities were the biggest positive contributors. Artemis SmartGARP European Equity was the standout performer, a fund which I hold in my own portfolio.

Fund	November 2025 % return
Artemis SmartGARP European Equity	2.21
Artemis SmartGARP UK Equity	1.49
UBS UK Equity Income	0.5
M&G Recovery	0.4
Jupiter Merlin Conservative Select	0.39

At the other end of the scale, emerging market and Asian equities were among the biggest losers, along with technology stocks. A stronger US dollar is often a headwind for emerging market assets, plus geopolitical risks were a drag on Russian equities alongside the general risk-off sentiment that dominated a large part of November.

Fund	November 2025 % return
Baillie Gifford Pacific	-4.35
L&G Global Technology Index Trust	-4.61
Barings Korea Trust	-4.91
AXA Framlington Global Technology	-6.94
Liontrust Russia	-8.23

In terms of asset mix, December's BOTB is very much in line with November's, despite a negative month for the BOTB in terms of average performance. However, the 80-20 Investor algorithm considers momentum over the medium term, and doesn't just focus on what has happened in recent weeks.

UK Equities remain the largest single component of the equity portion of the BOTB; the geographical allocation is still split fairly evenly across UK, North America, Asia, Emerging Markets, European and Japanese equities. The full asset breakdown can be found at the foot of this article.

Below I list this month's selection in full with the 17 funds that regained their place in black while the new additions are in green. As usual, I have included the full list sorted alphabetically by name and then by risk category.

December's Best of the Best Selection - (A-Z by fund name)

(funds unchanged from last month are in black while new additions are in green):

Name	Sector	ISIN Code	Risk
abrdn Emerging Markets Equity	Global Emerging Markets	GB0033228197	Higher risk
abrdn Strategic Bond	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00BWK27X12	Lower risk
Artemis Global Income	Global Equity Income	GB00B5N99561	Medium risk
Artemis Monthly Distribution	Mixed Investment 20-60% Shares	GB00B6TK3R06	Lower risk
Artemis SmartGARP European Equity	Europe Excluding UK	GB00B2PLJD73	Medium risk
Artemis SmartGARP Global Equity	Global	GB00B2PLJP95	Higher risk
Artemis SmartGARP UK Equity	UK All Companies	GB00B2PLJM64	Medium risk
AXA Framlington Biotech	Specialist	GB00B784NS11	Higher risk
AXA Sterling Corporate Bond	Sterling Corporate Bond	GB00B1Z48Z43	Lower risk
Barings Eastern Trust	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B2PSLG53	Higher risk
BNY Mellon Multi-Asset Diversified Return	Targeted Absolute Return	GB00B81C8395	Lower risk
Fidelity Asia	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B6Y7NF43	Higher risk
Fidelity Japan	Japan	GB00B882N041	Medium risk
Invesco Asian (UK)	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B1W7HW60	Higher risk
Invesco High Yield (UK)	Sterling High Yield	GB00B3RW7649	Lower risk
Jupiter Merlin Conservative Select	Mixed Investment 0-35% Shares	GB00B8GDMB34	Lower risk
L&G Global Technology Index Trust	Technology & Technology Innovation	GB00B0CNH163	Higher risk
Liontrust US Opportunities	North America	GB00B7K9LQ88	Higher risk
M&G Recovery	UK All Companies	GB00B7759Y38	Medium risk
Man Sterling Corporate Bond Fund	Sterling Corporate Bond	GB00BNLYQX62	Lower risk
Premier Miton Multi-Asset Growth & Income	Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares	GB00B78H4K93	Medium risk
Royal London Sterling Credit	Sterling Corporate Bond	GB00B8GJ8S05	Lower risk
Schroder European Recovery	Europe Excluding UK	GB0007221889	Medium risk
Schroder Global Healthcare	Healthcare	GB00B76V7Q08	Higher risk
Schroder Sterling Corporate Bond	Sterling Corporate Bond	GB0009379370	Lower risk
Schroder Strategic Bond	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B7FPS593	Lower risk
UBS UK Equity Income	UK Equity Income	GB00B4W58959	Medium risk
Vanguard FTSE UK Equity Income Index	UK Equity Income	GB00B59G4H82	Medium risk
Vanguard Global Emerging Markets	Global Emerging Markets	GB00BZ82ZY13	Higher risk
WS Morant Wright Nippon Yield	Japan	GB00B42MKS95	Medium risk

December's Best of the Best Selection - (grouped by risk)

(funds unchanged from last month are in black while new additions are in green):

Name	Sector	ISIN Code	Risk
Jupiter Merlin Conservative Select	Mixed Investment 0-35% Shares	GB00B8GDMB34	Lower risk
Man Sterling Corporate Bond Fund	Sterling Corporate Bond	GB00BNLYQX62	Lower risk
Royal London Sterling Credit	Sterling Corporate Bond	GB00B8GJ8S05	Lower risk
Artemis Monthly Distribution	Mixed Investment 20-60% Shares	GB00B6TK3R06	Lower risk
Schroder Strategic Bond	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B7FPS593	Lower risk
Schroder Sterling Corporate Bond	Sterling Corporate Bond	GB0009379370	Lower risk
abrdn Strategic Bond	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00BWK27X12	Lower risk
AXA Sterling Corporate Bond	Sterling Corporate Bond	GB00B1Z48Z43	Lower risk
BNY Mellon Multi-Asset Diversified Return	Targeted Absolute Return	GB00B81C8395	Lower risk
Invesco High Yield (UK)	Sterling High Yield	GB00B3RW7649	Lower risk
Artemis SmartGARP European Equity	Europe Excluding UK	GB00B2PLJD73	Medium risk
Fidelity Japan	Japan	GB00B882N041	Medium risk
WS Morant Wright Nippon Yield	Japan	GB00B42MKS95	Medium risk
M&G Recovery	UK All Companies	GB00B7759Y38	Medium risk
Artemis SmartGARP UK Equity	UK All Companies	GB00B2PLJM64	Medium risk
UBS UK Equity Income	UK Equity Income	GB00B4W58959	Medium risk
Artemis Global Income	Global Equity Income	GB00B5N99561	Medium risk
Premier Miton Multi-Asset Growth & Income	Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares	GB00B78H4K93	Medium risk
Vanguard FTSE UK Equity Income Index	UK Equity Income	GB00B59G4H82	Medium risk
Schroder European Recovery	Europe Excluding UK	GB0007221889	Medium risk
AXA Framlington Biotech	Specialist	GB00B784NS11	Higher risk
L&G Global Technology Index Trust	Technology & Technology Innovation	GB00B0CNH163	Higher risk
Artemis SmartGARP Global Equity	Global	GB00B2PLJP95	Higher risk
Liontrust US Opportunities	North America	GB00B7K9LQ88	Higher risk
abrdn Emerging Markets Equity	Global Emerging Markets	GB0033228197	Higher risk
Barings Eastern Trust	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B2PSLG53	Higher risk
Fidelity Asia	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B6Y7NF43	Higher risk
Invesco Asian (UK)	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B1W7HW60	Higher risk
Schroder Global Healthcare	Healthcare	GB00B76V7Q08	Higher risk
Vanguard Global Emerging Markets	Global Emerging Markets	GB00BZ82ZY13	Higher risk

The funds that dropped out of the Best of the Best Selection

For reference, the funds from last month that dropped out of the 80-20 Investor Best of the Best list are listed below:

Name	Sector	ISIN Code	Risk
Artemis High Income	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B2PLJN71	Lower risk
AXA Framlington Global Technology	Technology & Technology Innovation	GB00B4W52V57	Higher risk
AXA Framlington Japan	Japan	GB00BRJZVR88	Medium risk
Baillie Gifford Pacific	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB0006063126	Higher risk
Barings Korea Trust	Specialist	GB0000840719	Higher risk
BNY Mellon Global High Yield Bond	Sterling High Yield	GB00B7KWF216	Lower risk
Fidelity Emerging Markets	Global Emerging Markets	GB00B9SMK778	Higher risk
Fidelity Multi Asset Income	Mixed Investment 0-35% Shares	GB00BJ4L7S87	Lower risk
L&G Strategic Bond	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B1TWMW95	Lower risk
Liontrust Russia	Specialist	GB00B86WB793	Higher risk
Man High Yield Opportunities Fund	Sterling High Yield	GB00BJK3W057	Lower risk
Ninety One UK Special Situations	UK All Companies	GB00B1XFJS91	Medium risk
T. Rowe Price US Large Cap Growth Equity	North America	GB00BD5FHW12	Higher risk

The Asset mix

The current asset mix of the new Best of the Best Selection is shown below with last month's figures in brackets:

• Global Fixed Interest 20% (21%)
• UK Fixed Interest 3% (2%)
• Alternatives 11% (10%) - includes absolute return strategies
• North American Equities 13% (11%)
• Emerging Market Equities 7% (8%)
• Asian Equities 10% (10%)
• European Equities 9% (9%)
• Japanese Equities 7% (8%)
• UK Equities 14% (14%)
• Cash 0% (0%)
• China Equities 0% (0%)
• Property Equities 0% (0%)
• Other International Equities 6% (7%)
• Commodities and Energy 0% (0%)

80-20 Investor's outperformance continues

As you know the Best of the Best Selection is the shortlist of the best funds highlighted by our 80-20 Investor algorithm split into high, medium and low-risk categories. This shortlist is updated at the start of every month.

The green line in the chart below (click to enlarge) shows how a portfolio would have performed since inception (in August 2014) if it had been split equally between the Best of the Best Selection funds and then switched each month when each new shortlist was published. I have also charted the performance against that of the average cautious managed fund (blue line) and the average managed fund with up to 85% equity exposure (red line). In reality, the 80-20 Investor's asset allocation typically lies between these two as it usually has 40-60% exposure to equities at any one time. So they provide a good comparison of how fund managers with a similar remit have fared over the same period.

As you can see, since launch in August 2014 the 80-20 Investor BOTB has outperformed the average managed fund and the market and has doubled in value.

 

 

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