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Mutual funds: temporary problem or permanent morass?

Author

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  • Paula A. Tkac
Abstract
The improprieties in the mutual fund industry that surfaced in the fall of 2003 prompted the passage and drafting of legislation and regulations that cover nearly every facet of mutual fund pricing and operations. While this regulatory flurry is clearly intended to protect shareholders? interests, the question remains: How will these scandals and regulatory changes ultimately affect mutual fund investors? ; When considering the problems inherent in mutual fund management and the best ways to address them, it is important, the author stresses, to understand current business practices in the industry, who these benefit, and why they exist. ; Mutual fund investors, the author explains, are legally considered owners of a company that pools the investment capital of many investors. In practice, however, investors are often viewed (and often view themselves) as customers of a management firm that acts as an investment adviser. ; Regardless of which view is taken, inherent conflicts exist between investors and advisers because the two parties have differing objectives: Investors want to receive higher returns on their investment while minimizing risk, and advisers want to maximize their own profits without exerting undue efforts (costs). ; The author reviews a number of possible solutions to these conflicts of interest, including compensation-based fee structures, a separation of functions, proposed regulatory and legislative changes, and monitoring and information disclosure. ; By far the strongest weapon investors have in resolving these conflicts is their own demand, the author concludes. ?When unfettered and free of frictions, a competitive marketplace will supply the products and services investors demand at the lowest possible price,? she notes.

Suggested Citation

  • Paula A. Tkac, 2004. "Mutual funds: temporary problem or permanent morass?," Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, vol. 89(Q 4), pages 1-21.
    • Handle: RePEc:fip:fedaer:y:2004:i:q4:p:1-21:n:v.89no.4
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    File URL: https://www.frbatlanta.org/-/media/documents/research/publications/economic-review/2004/vol89no4_tkac.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Diane Del Guercio & Paula A. Tkac, 2000. "The determinants of the flow of funds of managed portfolios: mutual funds versus pension funds," FRB Atlanta Working Paper 2000-21, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
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    7. Ali Hortaçsu & Chad Syverson, 2004. "Product Differentiation, Search Costs, and Competition in the Mutual Fund Industry: A Case Study of S&P 500 Index Funds," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 119(2), pages 403-456.
    8. Louis K. C. Chan & Hsiu-Lang Chen & Josef Lakonishok, 2002. "On Mutual Fund Investment Styles," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 15(5), pages 1407-1437.
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    Cited by:

    1. Eric Zitzewitz, 2014. "Retail Securities Regulation in the Aftermath of the Bubble," NBER Chapters, in: Economic Regulation and Its Reform: What Have We Learned?, pages 545-588, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Sophie Xiaofei Kong & Dragon Yongjun Tang, 2008. "Unitary Boards And Mutual Fund Governance," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 31(3), pages 193-224, September.
    3. Felix Meschke, 2019. "An Empirical Examination of Mutual Fund Boards," Quarterly Journal of Finance (QJF), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 9(04), pages 1-35, December.
    4. Kaniel, Ron & Starks, Laura T & Gallaher, Steven, 2015. "Advertising and Mutual Funds: From Families to Individual Funds," CEPR Discussion Papers 10329, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    5. Saleh Nawaz Khan & Amna Noor, 2023. "Fund governance and flow performance relationship," Macroeconomics and Finance in Emerging Market Economies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(1), pages 1-16, January.
    6. Kurniawan, Meinanda & How, Janice & Verhoeven, Peter, 2016. "Fund governance and style drift," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 40(PA), pages 59-72.
    7. Patrick E. McCabe, 2009. "The economics of the mutual fund trading scandal," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2009-06, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).

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