Episode Description

In this episode of Fund Selectors, host Lucy Walker sits down with Ben Conway, CIO and Head of Fund Management at Hawksmoor.

Ben shares deep insights into Hawksmoor’s fund selection philosophy, including their unique approach to portfolio construction, the importance of absolute returns, and how they think about valuation through the lens of a fund’s own history.

The discussion covers the role of investment trusts, boutique managers, and why they avoid strategic and tactical asset allocation.

Ben also speaks candidly about the campaign to reform investment trust cost disclosures and the unintended consequences of regulation on fund buyers.

This wide-ranging conversation reveals what it truly means to build portfolios with discipline, curiosity, and a firm commitment to investor outcomes.

0:03 – Introduction by Lucy Walker

0:20 – Guest introduction: Ben Conway

2:22 – Hawksmoor’s bespoke fund research approach

3:59 – Rejecting strategic and tactical asset allocation

5:11 – Portfolio cheapness relative to its own history

6:42 – The importance of margin of safety

8:00 – Growth vs value and valuation dispersion

12:50 – The power of qualitative fund manager interviews

13:59 – The question every manager must answer: “Why now?”

17:28 – What good sales engagement looks like

21:05 – Portfolio construction and position sizing

24:55 – Common-sense mean variance optimisation

26:28 – Role of alternatives and fixed income

27:55 – Why Hawksmoor avoids strategy-based funds

30:02 – Ideal fund manager traits and boutique preferences

35:04 – Proportion of boutiques in Hawksmoor portfolios

39:02 – Turnover and portfolio changes through time

41:09 – Views on passive investing and the active/passive debate

45:09 – Investment trust cost disclosure campaign

52:58 – Statement of operating expenses initiative

55:00 – Concerns about inclusion of investment trusts in CCI regime

58:07 – Book recommendations and reflections on investment learning

1:00:11 – Behavioural bias: forming judgments too quickly

1:02:27 – Final question for next guest