In this guide
Managed funds, as the name suggests, are an investment structure where professional fund managers select and manage the fund’s investments on behalf of their investors.
Managed funds have long appealed to people who may not have the time, inclination or expertise to invest in certain asset classes on their own behalf. And as investors pool their money, managed funds also give them access to a wider range of investments than their financial resources might otherwise give them access to.
Traditionally, managed funds were ‘unlisted’, which meant units in the fund could only be purchased by applying to the fund. In recent years, many were listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) mFunds service so units can be bought and sold through a broker. Increasingly, many are also being offered as exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Importantly, fund managers will deduct management fees (and often performance-based fees) from fund earnings before distributing income.
Today there are thousands of managed funds in Australia, although they are losing ground to ETFs. They are held by a range of investors, including super funds, insurance companies, SMSFs and personal investors. The size and maturity of the managed funds industry mean there is a wide variety of investment strategies on offer.
Some managed funds invest in a single asset class, such as shares or fixed interest, a geographical area such as Asia, or emerging markets. Others focus on a strategy, such as high-yield shares or a theme such as sustainability. So-called multisector funds invest across multiple asset classes.
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Some fund managers actively select and trade investments to try and beat the market, while passive or index funds aim to track a particular market or market index. Generally, the higher the degree of active management, the higher the fees.
How are SMSFs using managed funds?
It is often claimed that SMSFs are not as diversified as large super funds, with too much focus on Australian shares and cash and not enough exposure to international markets. But that view fails to recognise indirect investment by SMSFs via managed funds.
At first glance, the latest figures from Class as of 30 June 2025 show just 10.1% of SMSFs hold direct international shares. But dig a little deeper and 31.5% of SMSFs hold investments in traditional managed funds (representing 13.3% of total SMSF assets) and 34.1% have money in ETFs. What’s more, more than half of the 20 most popular managed funds invest in global shares and fixed interest.
The 20 most popular managed funds invested in by SMSFs
The top 20 list of managed funds is ranked by the percentage of SMSFs that hold these funds, rather than the value of those assets as a percentage of total SMSF managed fund investments, although both figures are provided in our table.
Big shifts occurred in SMSF managed fund preferences in 2024–25. Former favourites Magellan Global Fund and Platinum International Fund slipped further down the rankings to ninth and fifth place respectively. Previously these two were held by more than 20% of SMSFs with managed funds, but are now held by 4.7% and 6.3% respectively.
The Janus Henderson Tactical Income Fund topped the list, held by 8% of SMSFs with managed funds. And in second place, up from 19th previously, is Partners Group Global Value Wholesale fund. This is a private equity fund, an alternative asset that has been enjoying good returns and is hard for individuals to access directly.
As a sign of the growing preference for index funds, the top three managed funds by value were all Vanguard index share funds. Along with its Australian Property Securities Index Fund, Vanguard had four of the most popular funds in the top 20.
New to the top 20 is Realm Short Term Income Fund, which invests in cash and Australian fixed-interest securities. Six of the top 20 were income funds, after the local and global bond markets had their best year in six years. Global bond markets are also difficult for individuals to access, making diversified managed funds attractive.
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Find out more20 most popular managed funds invested in by SMSFs
| Rank | Security code | Description | % of funds with managed funds that hold this security | % of total SMSF managed fund investments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | IOF0145AU | Janus Henderson Tactical Income Fund | 8.0% | 0.9% |
| 2 | ETL0276AU | Partners Group Global Value Wholesale | 7.6% | 1.1% |
| 3 | ETL0018AU | PIMCO Global Bond Fund – Wholesale Class | 7.4% | 0.8% |
| 4 | CSA0038AU | Bentham Global Income Fund | 7.0% | 0.6% |
| 5 | PLA0002AU | Platinum International Fund | 6.3% | 0.9% |
| 6 | VAN0003AU | Vanguard Wholesale International Shares Index Fund | 5.5% | 1.5% |
| 7 | VAN0002AU | Vanguard Australian Shares Index Fund | 5.0% | 1.4% |
| 8 | EVO2608AU | Metrics Direct Income Fund | 4.9% | 0.6% |
| 9 | MGE0001AU | Magellan Global Fund | 4.7% | 0.7% |
| 10 | LAZ0014AU | Lazard Global Listed Infrastructure Active ETF | 4.7% | 0.4% |
| 11 | VAN0105AU | Vanguard International Shares Index Fund (Hedged) | 4.6% | 1.1% |
| 12 | AUS0112AU | Aus Unity Healthcare Property Wholesale | 4.5% | 0.5% |
| 13 | MAQ0277AU | Macquarie Income Opportunities Fund | 4.5% | 0.4% |
| 14 | FID0008AU | Fidelity Australian Equities Fund | 4.5% | 0.6% |
| 15 | ETL7377AU | GQG Partners Global Equity Fund – A Class | 4.4% | 0.4% |
| 16 | LTC0002AU | La Trobe Australian Credit Fund – 12 Month Term Account | 4.4% | 0.8% |
| 17 | VAN0004AU | Vanguard Australian Property Securities Index Fund | 4.3% | 0.4% |
| 18 | WHT0015AU | Resolution Capital Global Property Securities Fund (Managed Fund) | 4.1% | 0.3% |
| 19 | ETL0071AU | T. Rowe Price Global Equity Fund | 4.1% | 0.6% |
| 20 | OMF3725AU | Realm Short Term Income Fund – Ordinary Units | 4.0% | 0.4% |
| Total (Percentage that the top 20 make up of total SMSF investments in managed funds) | 14.17% | |||
Source: Class. Data as of 30 June 2025 derived from 189,000 SMSFs that use Class software.
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