Reuters – Britain’s new Personal Accounts scheme, a plan for savers without a company pension, is "highly unlikely" to invest in hedge funds and private equity, said the head of the authority in charge of setting up the scheme. <\/p>\n
The investment portfolio of the Personal Accounts scheme, which is set to grow to 150 billion pounds ($279 billion) in 50 years’ time, has not been decided, although the scheme has said its default fund is likely to consist mainly of index-tracking funds.<\/p>\n
Tim Jones, chief executive of the Personal Accounts Delivery Authority (PADA), told Reuters on the sidelines of an industry conference: "My personal view is that it highly unlikely because that’s not where our low to middle income earners are."<\/p>\n
Hedge funds, which have been blamed for adding to current market volatility due to their role in short-selling stocks, are viewed by pension funds as a diversifier, although returns have been disappointing for many investors this year.<\/p>\n
Jones also said the scheme is likely to offer around a dozen funds for savers to select from.<\/p>\n