Top 10 best-selling ISA and SIPP funds this year

Important information - the value of investments and the income from them can go down as well as up, so you may get back less than you invest.

The income offered by cash is still attractive, therefore - even though the Bank of England has cut the base rate twice this year. In these strange economic and political times, it is also a sensible way to diversify your portfolio, alongside assets like bonds, gold, infrastructure and property.

Over long periods of time, however, cash has historically underperformed shares. If you had invested £1,000 in a world tracker fund on New Year’s Eve 1999, you would now have around £5,000. If you had opted for cash instead, you would only have grown your pot to £1,700. Please remember past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.

• Read: Save or invest? 3 charts to help you decide

Cash has pushed technology funds down the rankings. This time last year, the Legal & General Global Technology Index Trust was the third most popular choice for both ISA customers. Now, it sits in fifth place.

The sector still exerts a powerful pull, however, and the L&G trust is a cheap way to tap into it. The fund tracks the FTSE World-Technology Index, offering passive exposure to the likes of Microsoft, Nvidia, Apple and Meta. As these names suggest, the portfolio is highly skewed towards North America.

The Fidelity Index US Fund is another favourite, ranking seventh for both ISA and SIPP customers. The single-country fund tracks the entire S&P 500 Index, but the ‘Magnificent 7’ stocks represent about 30% of the portfolio.

The actively-managed Fidelity Global Technology Fund has a slightly different focus. The fund counts Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) as its biggest holding and has less exposure to the ‘Magnificent 7’ than your typical tech tracker.

America’s place in the world has been under constant scrutiny since Donald Trump took over as president. The country’s withdrawal from global institutions, its debt, and its trade policies have caused many investors to be wary. At the half-year point, however, the S&P 500 has clawed back its ‘liberation day’ losses and artificial intelligence is back in vogue.

Read: Are we witnessing the end of American exceptionalism?

There is evidence that personal investors do want to diversify away from American mega-caps. The Fidelity Index World Fund is the second most popular choice for ISA and SIPP investors this year - a straightforward route to geographic diversification (although the US still represents about 72% of the total portfolio).

Meanwhile, the Rathbone Global Opportunities Fund has made another appearance in the best-sellers list. This fund - which features in our Select 50 - is actively managed and tries to find ‘future winners’. While Nvidia is the third biggest holding, the portfolio is headed up by retail chain Costco and American electronics company Amphenol.

It is at the riskier end of the spectrum, given it is fairly concentrated and targets high growth companies, but has repeatedly proved itself over the years.

Meanwhile, the Fidelity Global Dividend Fund is climbing up the rankings. This fund hunts for the world’s strongest income payers across developed markets. It is notably light on US stocks and heavy on European ones, and the portfolio’s biggest holding is home-grown: Unilever. In general, the experienced stock-picking team is much more interested in sectors like consumer staples and industrials than IT.

Fidelity investment director Tom Stevenson named the Fidelity Global Dividend Fund as one of his top picks for 2025. ‘It’s one of the longest-standing holdings in my own portfolio which has served me very well over the years,’ Tom said. ‘It has delivered steady growth, despite being underweight the US equities which have driven markets higher.’

When it comes to diversification, there is also an interesting addition to this year’s top ISA picks: the Legal & General UK Index Trust. Having flown under the radar for several months, this FTSE All-Share tracker proved very popular in June and has reached sixth position for the year so far.

Finally, it is worth flagging a couple of departures from the best-sellers list. This time last year, the Jupiter India Fund was a hit with ISA investors, having delivered explosive returns between March 2023 and March 2024. Growth in the region has slowed significantly since then, however, and the fund has fallen out of the rankings.

Fundsmith Equity - run by legendary fund manager Terry Smith - is also less popular than it once was. The fund has underperformed the market in recent years, despite delivering impressive long-term gains.

ISA - Best-selling funds year-to-date

1. Fidelity Cash Fund
2. Fidelity Index World Fund
3. Royal London Short Term Money Market Fund
4. Fidelity Global Dividend Fund
5. Legal & General Global Technology Index Trust
6. Legal & General UK Index Trust
7. Fidelity Index US Fund
8. Legal & General Cash Trust
9. Fidelity Global Technology Fund
10. Rathbone Global Opportunities Fund

Source: Fidelity International. Gross ISA sales 1 Jan to 30 Jun 2025 for Personal Investors only.

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SIPP - Best-selling funds year-to-date

1. Fidelity Cash Fund
2. Fidelity Index World Fund
3. Royal London Short Term Money Market Fund
4. Legal & General Cash Trust
5. Fidelity Global Dividend Fund
6. Legal & General Global Technology Index Trust
7. Fidelity Index US Fund
8. Fidelity Global Technology Fund
9. Rathbone Global Opportunities Fund
10. Fidelity Multi Asset Allocator Growth Fund

Source: Fidelity International. Gross SIPP sales 1 Jan to 30 Jun 2025 for Personal Investors only.

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