What is the difference between active and passive investing?

Active investment management involves a fund manager making decisions about which assets to hold, aiming to outperform a benchmark. Passive investing tracks an index, holding all or a representative sample of its constituents. Active management typically carries higher costs but seeks to add value through selection. Passive strategies offer lower costs and broad market exposure. Most well-constructed portfolios consider both approaches in the context of the client's overall plan.

How is investment risk assessed?

Investment risk assessment considers both your attitude to risk, how comfortable you are with the possibility of short-term losses, and your capacity for loss, meaning the actual financial impact a loss would have on your plans. These are assessed through a structured conversation covering your goals, timescale, income needs and existing assets. Neither alone is sufficient; a balanced assessment considers both.

How often should an investment portfolio be reviewed?

At a minimum, an investment portfolio should be reviewed annually. Reviews ensure the portfolio remains aligned with your goals, risk profile and time horizon, and allow rebalancing where asset class weightings have drifted. More frequent reviews may be appropriate following significant life events, market movements or changes in legislation, such as the Finance Act 2026 pension IHT changes, that affect the role of investments within the overall plan.

Investments & Wealth Management

This service supports clients who are:

Young Professionals Planning in Your 30s & 40s Mid-Life Planning Business Owners Approaching Retirement In Retirement

Overview

Investing with purpose, not on hunches

Good investing is rarely about picking winners. It is about getting the basics right and sticking to them. The right mix of investments for your timescale. A sensible level of risk. Costs kept under control. A clear plan you can follow when markets get bumpy.

We start by understanding what the money is for. Retirement income in twenty years looks very different from a house deposit in three. From there we build a portfolio that matches the job, using straightforward, well-known funds, and we keep the costs and the tax wrappers as efficient as we can.

Then we leave it alone, mostly. Rebalancing when needed, reviewing each year, and only making bigger changes when something in your life or the plan genuinely calls for it.

How we think about investing

Six principles we keep coming back to

These are not slogans. They are the things we believe deliver the best results for clients over time, and they shape every recommendation we make.

Match the investment to the goal

Money you need next year should not be invested like money you need in twenty. We separate short, medium and long-term pots, and invest each one accordingly.

Diversify properly

Spreading risk across regions, sectors and types of investment means no single bad outcome wrecks the plan. We do not bet the portfolio on any one country, sector or style.

Keep costs low

Every percent of charges is a percent less for you. We use low-cost funds where they do the job well, and only pay more when there is a clear reason.

Use the right wrappers

ISAs, pensions and general investment accounts have different tax treatment. Using each one properly can make a meaningful difference over the years, without changing the underlying investments.

Stay invested

The biggest mistake most investors make is jumping in and out at the wrong moments. We help you stay the course when markets wobble, because that is where most of the long-term returns come from.

Review, but do not tinker

An annual review keeps the portfolio aligned with the plan. Outside of that, we resist the urge to react to every news cycle. Quiet discipline tends to beat constant activity.

The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate Wills, Trusts, Tax advice or Cash Flow Planning. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future. The value of your investments can go down as well as up, so you could get back less than you invested.

Talk to an investment adviser

Book a no-obligation conversation. We will talk through where you are now and explore whether we can help.

Book a meeting

Frequently asked questions

What investment approach does Aetas Wealth use?

We build portfolios around your goals, timeline and attitude to risk. We favour low-cost, diversified investment strategies using passive and active funds where appropriate, and we make sure the right investments are held in the right tax wrappers such as ISAs, SIPPs and general investment accounts.

How do you assess my attitude to investment risk?

We use a structured risk profiling process that considers both your financial capacity for loss and your emotional response to market falls. We also look at your investment timeline and what the money is for. Risk profiling is revisited at each annual review.

What is a general investment account and when should I use one?

A general investment account (GIA) holds investments outside a tax wrapper like an ISA or pension. It offers no tax shelter but is useful once you have used your ISA allowance, or when you want access to funds before retirement without pension restrictions. Capital gains tax and dividend tax apply on returns.

How are investment portfolios monitored?

We monitor portfolios throughout the year and rebalance when allocations drift materially from target. We review your investments at each annual meeting and provide written updates when market conditions or your circumstances change in a way that matters.