For whom are unit trusts most suitable?

Unit trusts are a simple and convenient investment option for people who have a long-term investment horizon but do not have either the time, desire, or expertise to invest directly in financial markets.

Unit trusts can be particularly suitable for smaller, first time investors as they offer the opportunity to establish a broadly diversified portfolio of assets with a relatively small amount of money.

However, larger investors can also benefit from unit trusts as they provide access to the expertise of professional investment managers.

When you invest in a unit trust fund, your money buys 'units' in that fund, at a price that is struck for that particular day. Over the period in which you invest, the unit trust price will move up and down as the value of the investments with the unit trust fund rise or fall. Returns from a unit trust fund are typically calculated based on movements in the bid (or withdrawal) unit trust price and assume any income distributions paid to investors are reinvested in the fund as additional units.