Edinburgh-based Baillie Gifford said its board has concluded that all 32 funds in its UK-authorised range “delivered value to investors based on a holistic assessment of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) seven criteria.”
That’s despite the majority of the Baillie Gifford funds underperforming their benchmarks over the five-year period in question.
In addition to fund performance, the FCA’s criteria includes quality of service, costs, and “appropriateness” of share classes.
Baillie Gifford had £209 billion of assets under management and advice as at August 4, 2025.
“Our assessment concluded that fees remain low relative to peers, in line with our policy of maintaining fees at fair and reasonable levels,” said the firm.
“Fees for our funds also generally align with charges to other funds managed by Baillie Gifford, offering comparable services, including entry-level institutional clients in similar strategies.
“Despite being impacted by the underperformance of some funds, feedback from a broad range of clients demonstrates consistently high service standards. We are also comfortable that clients invest in appropriate share classes in the funds.”
A Baillie Gifford spokesperson added: “The results concluded all 32 funds were deemed to provide value.
“The overall conclusion is binary: a fund either provided value or did not provide value.
“However, the outcomes from the review of the FCA’s seven criteria are individually RAG rated in the report and 21 of the funds were rated red for Performance (three were rated amber, six were rated green and two new funds were not rated this year).
“The majority of Baillie Gifford funds have underperformed their benchmarks over the five-year period in question. Following a comprehensive review, enhancements have been made to risk oversight and portfolio construction.
“Recent returns have been more positive, and our investment teams remain optimistic that the fundamentals of the growth businesses in our portfolios will be more fully reflected in share price terms in time.
“The Board reviewed six other value criteria to ensure high service standards and to confirm that our investment process is well-resourced and our research is thoughtful and meaningful.
“Our client-centric approach aims to keep our fund fees competitive and of the 32 funds assessed this year, 28 were ranked in the first quartile (lowest costs) when compared to the peer group.”