Your Investment Options

With Bank of Scotland, you can invest in a wide range of assets from shares to funds, investment trusts and more. Learn more about the investment options we have available, along with details of fees and charges and how you can find the right investment for you.

Please remember that the value of investments and the income from them can fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you invest.

UK Shares

When you buy shares, you are buying a stake in a company. UK shares (or equities as they’re also known) are listed on the London Stock Exchange and their price will fluctuate through the trading day.

International shares

You can also buy and sell shares directly on international stock exchanges in New York, Paris, Frankfurt, Milan, Amsterdam and Brussels. You can trade indirectly on other global stock markets using investments called depository receipts – these are securities which represent an interest in an overseas security.

Funds

A fund is a collective investment where a professional Fund Manager will pool together money from lots of different investors and will invest the money on their behalf.

Investing in funds gives you cost effective exposure to a much wider range of investments than you would be able to obtain as an individual. Spreading your money between different sectors, indices or geographical locations can also help to reduce the risk involved in stock market investing.

Actively managed funds: the Fund Manager will monitor investments to try and ensure the fund achieves its objective of investment growth or regular income.

Passively managed funds: the Fund Manager will follow predetermined guidelines (e.g. tracking an index) in order to meet its objective.

Top fund picks

Our Select List makes it easier for you to create your own portfolio with a shortened list of funds. Morningstar assist us in picking these funds based on a set of criteria. You can find our select list on our funds centre.

  • The Select list of funds are based on merit and not on commission.
  • The funds cover a broad range of sectors, risk profiles and fund types, for example; active and index trackers.
  • Morningstar monitor how the Select List funds perform and may suggest to change some of the funds – View historic changes to our select list.

Keep in mind, the inclusion of funds within this list should not be considered a personal recommendation but instead as a helpful aid to your own research.
 

View our select list

Track the market

If you prefer to track the market rather than trying to outperform it, you could invest in an Exchanged Traded Fund (ETF) or Exchange Traded Commodity (ETC). An ETF will track an index such as the FTSE 100 or S&P 500, and an ETC will invest in a commodity such as gold or platinum. ETFs and ETCs are designed to replicate an index, sector, currency or commodity so the Fund Manager will invest in assets with the aim of closely tracking the performance of the underlying market.

Investment Trusts

Investment Trusts are companies that invest in the shares of other companies on behalf of investors. Investors' money is taken and pooled together by a professional fund manager who will then purchase stocks and shares in a wide variety of companies. An investment trust’s net asset value (NAV) is the value of its assets, divided by its units. As investment trusts trade on a stock exchange in the same way as shares, its price may trade at a higher or lower value than its NAV – this is also known as trading at a premium or a discount.

As investment trusts have a fixed number of units, the Fund Manager can decide when to buy and sell assets – this works differently to a fund where investors joining or leaving the fund can dictate when assets must be sold. Some investment trusts may also borrow money to try and increase returns – this is known as gearing. Gearing can allow Fund Managers to take advantage of investment opportunities but can also increase the potential for losses if the investment value falls.

Bonds and Gilts

Issuing bonds and gilts is a way for companies or governments to raise capital. By investing in a bond or gilt, you are lending money to a company or government for a fixed period in return for a fixed rate of interest, although this can vary depending on the bond or gilt. They carry a nominal value that will be paid back to the holder on a stated date (the Redemption Date).

Call us on 0345 606 11 88 to trade a bond or gilt

Can’t find what you’re looking for?

If you want to trade something that we haven’t mentioned here, please call us on 0345 606 11 88.

In some circumstances, investing in or receiving returns on investments in certain companies (or funds which include investments in certain companies) may be an offence under UK anti-money laundering legislation if the company’s activities abroad were illegal if carried out in the UK. An example would be companies involved in the legalised cannabis industry abroad. Please ensure you carry out careful due diligence on these types of investments before investing. If you have any concerns please seek independent legal advice.

Open an account

If you’re new to investing with Bank of Scotland, we offer a range of accounts to help you get started.

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Your Investment Options | Investing | Bank of Scotland

Bank of Scotland Share Dealing Service is operated by Halifax Share Dealing Limited. Halifax Share Dealing Limited. Registered in England and Wales no. 3195646. Registered Office: Trinity Road, Halifax, West Yorkshire, HX1 2RG. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, 12 Endeavour Square, London, E20 1JN under registration number 183332. A Member of the London Stock Exchange and an HM Revenue & Customs Approved ISA Manager.