City veteran Terry Smith unveils new fund to tap smaller companies

Fund manager Terry Smith is ploughing £25 million of his own cash to launch a fourth Fundsmith investment fund targeting smaller companies around the world.

Smithson Investment Trust, which will act as a mini-me of his £17 billion main Fundsmith Equity Fund, will list on the London stock market and raise £250 million from investors.

The junior fund’s name is a play on the phrase Son of Smith and also references British chemist James Smithson, who gave his name to the US Smithsonian Institution.

Goldman Sachs alumni Simon Barnard and Will Morgan will run it.

“They will talk to me only when they want to buy or sell something,” said Smith, speaking from his office in Mauritius. “I’ve read every single company note they’ve produced and I will continue to read every piece of research they produce.”

Smith said the new fund would consider investing in stocks like US fast-food chain Wingstop, UK drinks maker Fever-tree and US airline reservations business Sabre Corporation.

“We couldn’t get any of these into the main fund (Fundsmith Equity Fund) because they are too small. We would have to buy so much of it it would be illiquid,” he said.