Invest in your future: The power of Zurich Prisma multi-asset funds

In October 2013, Ireland was nearing the end of the Troika bailout which had begun in 2010, and the recovering economy was prompting a reversal of pessimistic sentiment in Irish investors. Since then, we have witnessed – *deep breath* - a Chinese stock market crash, Brexit, a US-China trade war, the longest US bull market in history, a global pandemic, record levels of global inflation (and interest rates), and the largest conflict in Europe since World War 2. But throughout all the ups and downs over the past decade or so, one thing that has not faltered is the Prisma proposition.

Navigating uncertainty with the Prisma funds

At the time of writing, the pervasive uncertainty in the market has some investors duly worried about their investments. We believe it is necessary to temper any investor concerns with a reminder of the long-term objective of the Prisma funds and the features and benefits available to investors.

• Risk targeted: The funds aim to generate long-term capital growth while targeting specific levels of volatility in returns appropriate to individual investor risk profiles.
• Fully diversified: Each fund is diversified and can include equities, bonds, property, cash and alternatives. The correlation of returns between separate asset classes can be low or even negative. For example, stocks and gold have been known to often behave conversely, since investors move to stocks when risk appetites are high and to gold when risk appetites are low. It is in times like these that multi-asset funds serve their purpose. Investors in the Prisma range are more insulated from precipitous movements in equities because of their exposure not just to a broad range of sectors and regions, but other risk assets too.
• Actively managed: The Prisma Funds are actively managed by the Zurich Investment team, and it is worth noting that such periods of volatility can provide opportunities to those with a more ‘hands on’ approach. It is our fund managers that make the specific investments within each fund. This means our investment managers can respond to market movements as and when they happen.
• Proven track record: Zurich Investments consists of experienced and highly qualified investment specialists, with a proven track record of making the right asset allocation decisions at the right times. The success of any fund during periods of steady growth is built on the sensible trades that were made in the preceding periods of uncertainty₂.

Short-term volatility. Long-term growth.

As of 21st March, the MSCI US Index has lost –7.61% in value in euro terms since the start of 2025. The turbulence in US equities, which has been accentuated by added weakness in previous outperformers (we’re looking at you “Magnificent Seven”), has helped to drag the Year-To-Date (YTD) return of each of the Prisma funds into the red. The Prisma Max and the Prisma 5 funds have had the weakest performance YTD at –6.01% and –4.33% respectively, due to US equities being most prevalent at the riskier end of the Prisma range.

Prisma 2 has been the strongest performer, returning -0.25%. In fact, Prisma 2, 3, 4 & 5 have all outperformed the MSCI World Index due to their diversification away from equities into bonds and alternatives. Gold in particular has added over 10% in euro terms this year as investors have rushed to the safe-haven asset.

However, short-term performance is more easily influenced by market swings. A much better metric for which to judge a fund is its performance in the long-term. As of the end of February 2025, Prisma 3, 4 & 5 are all above their peer group average over the last 1, 3, 5, 7 & 10 years₁.

As highlighted in the beginning of this article, the past 10 years have been fraught with unexpected shocks that have heavily impacted activity in the market. Yet, the Prisma range demonstrated consistency in returns over that period, as demonstrated in the chart below₁.

Readers can rest assured that Zurich’s Investment team is finely attuned to the recent market movements and the prevailing economic and geopolitical climate. As in the past, Zurich Investments is not, and will not, be afraid of volatility. Instead, we will continue to actively manage the Prisma range with the same principal goal in mind: The long-term accumulation of growth for investors.

Want to know more?

For personalised advice and a comprehensive strategy that considers a range of factors, we recommend speaking to your Financial Broker or Advisor or visit zurich.ie.

Sources:

₁Performance figures are provided gross of AMC by Longboat Analytics/www.fund-focus.com. Performance figures for all fund managers are based on close of markets prices 28/02/2025, based on best available information. Annual management fees apply. Returns are based on offer to offer performance and do not represent the return achieved by individual policies linked to the fund. Note that not all competitors manage their risk constrained funds in the same manner or using the same volatility bands. This makes any comparison more difficult. Where a provider has multiple fund ranges we use the most prominent, and where risk targeting methodologies differ we seek to use the most comparable fund.

₂Zurich, March 2025.