Polar Capital Global Financials Trust plc (the "Company"): The Company is an investment company with investment trust status and its shares are excluded from the Financial Conduct Authority’s (“FCA”) restrictions on the promotion of non-mainstream investment products. The Company conducts its affairs, and intends to continue to conduct its affairs, so that the exemption will apply.
The Company is an Alternative Investment Fund under the EU's Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive 2011/61/EU as it forms part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.
The Investment Manager: Polar Capital LLP is the investment manager of the Company (the "Investment Manager"). The Investment Manager is authorised and regulated by the FCA and is a registered investment adviser with the United States' Securities and Exchange Commission.
Key Risks
- Investors' capital is at risk and there is no guarantee the Company will achieve its objective.
- Past performance is not a reliable guide to future performance.
- The value of investments may go down as well as up.
- Investors might get back less than they originally invested.
- The value of an investment’s assets may be affected by a variety of uncertainties such as (but not limited to): (i) international political developments; (ii) market sentiment; and (iii) economic conditions.
- The shares of the Company may trade at a discount or a premium to Net Asset Value.
- The Company may use derivatives which carry the risk of reduced liquidity, substantial loss and increased volatility in adverse market conditions.
- The Company invests in assets denominated in currencies other than the Company's base currency and changes in exchange rates may have a negative impact on the value of the Company's investments.
- The Company invests in a concentrated number of companies based in one sector. This focused strategy can lead to significant losses. The Company may be less diversified than other investment companies.
- The Company may invest in emerging markets where there is a greater risk of volatility than developed economies, for example due to political and economic uncertainties and restrictions on foreign investment. Emerging markets are typically less liquid than developed economies which may result in large price movements to the Company.
Important Information
Not an offer to buy or sell: This document is not an offer to buy or sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy or sell any security, and under no circumstances is it to be construed as a prospectus or an advertisement. This document does not constitute, and may not be used for the purposes of, an offer of the securities of, or any interests in, the Company by any person in any jurisdiction in which such offer or invitation is not authorised.
Information subject to change: Any opinions expressed in this document may change.
Not Investment Advice: This document does not contain information material to the investment objectives or financial needs of the recipient. This document is not advice on legal, taxation or investment matters. Prospective investors must rely on their own examination of the consequences of an investment in the Company. Investors are advised to consult their own professional advisors concerning the investment.
No reliance: No reliance should be placed upon the contents of this document by any person for any purposes whatsoever. None of the Company, the Investment Manager or any of their respective affiliates accepts any responsibility for providing any investor with access to additional information, for revising or for correcting any inaccuracy in this document.
Performance and Holdings: All data is as at the document date unless indicated otherwise. Company holdings and performance are likely to have changed since the report date. Company information is provided by the Investment Manager.
Benchmark:The Company is actively managed and uses the MSCI ACWI Financials Net TR Index as a performance target and to calculate the performance fee. The benchmark has been chosen as it is generally considered to be representative of the investment universe in which the Company invests. The performance of the Company is likely to differ from the performance of the benchmark as the holdings, weightings and asset allocation will be different. Investors should carefully consider these differences when making comparisons. Further information about the benchmark can be found www.mscibarra.com.
Third-party Data: Some information contained in this document has been obtained from third party sources and has not been independently verified. Neither the Company nor any other party involved in compiling, computing or creating the data makes any warranties or representations with respect to such data, and all such parties expressly disclaim all warranties of originality, accuracy, completeness, merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose with respect to any data contained within this document.
Country Specific Disclaimers
United States: The information contained within this document does not constitute or form a part of any offer to sell or issue, or the solicitation of any offer to purchase, subscribe for or otherwise acquire, any securities in the United States or in any jurisdiction in which such an offer or solicitation would be unlawful. The Company has not been and will not be registered under the United States Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”) and, as such, the holders of its shares will not be entitled to the benefits of the Investment Company Act. In addition, the offer and sale of the Securities have not been, and will not be, registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). No Securities may be offered or sold or otherwise transacted within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of U.S. Persons (as defined in Regulation S of the Securities Act). In connection with the transaction referred to in this document the shares of the Company will be offered and sold only outside the United States to, and for the account or benefit of non-U.S. Persons in “offshore- transactions” within the meaning of, and in reliance on the exemption from registration provided by Regulation S under the Securities Act. No money, securities or other consideration is being solicited and, if sent in response to the information contained in this document, will not be accepted. Any failure to comply with the above restrictions may constitute a violation of such securities laws.
Further Information about the Company: Investment in the Company is an investment in the shares of the Company and not in the underlying investments of the Company. Further information about the Company and any risks can be found in the Company’s Key Information Document, the Annual Report and Financial Statements and the Investor Disclosure Document which are available on the Company's website, found at: https://www.polarcapitalglobalfinancialstrust.com
Fund Manager Commentary As at 30 September 2025
Market and Trust review
Global markets remained strong in September with market sentiment supported by resilient corporate earnings, expectations for continued interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and the support to growth from AI-related capital expenditure. This has enabled investors to look through a complex investing landscape which has included lingering concerns on the US labour market, ongoing tariff negotiations and the prospect of a government shutdown.
MSCI ACWI Financials rose 1.4% during the month led by European financials with the region’s banking sector continuing its outperformance on the back of earnings upgrades. The Fund’s NAV rose 1.0% with the relative performance impacted by the underweight in Canada and Japan along with sharp moves in US online trading stocks such as Robinhood Markets.
Conference season
European banks gave a positive message during the conference season, noting tailwinds from a steeper yield curve, signs of loan demand picking up (particularly in southern, central and eastern Europe) alongside a stable asset quality environment. Managements reiterated capital return plans implying total yields (including buybacks) of 8-9% over the next two years along with an increased appetite to deploy surplus capital for acquisitions.
While political risk has become more evident in recent months with references to bank taxes and government intervention in M&A, underlying trends for European banks remain healthy and reflective of a more normalised interest rate environment. Despite material outperformance in recent years, valuations remain undemanding at 9x 2026 EPS and 1.1x 2026 book value per share with relative P/E valuations (to both broader European markets and global financials) remaining well below historic averages. The Trust remains overweight European banks, an area we have added to in recent months.
AI
The impact of artificial intelligence on financial services continues to grow in importance, particularly following the launch of new AI services, such as Anthropic’s Claude for Financial Services released in July, which has highlighted AI’s transformative capabilities. Consequently, the debate on AI has rapidly evolved from focusing on future efficiency savings – often referenced in vague guidance in outer years – to more immediate impacts on companies’ competitive positioning, pricing power and total addressable markets given potential new distribution possibilities.
The companies perceived as most at risk from AI have experienced a material derating in recent weeks and have included data providers, exchanges, rating agencies and risk analytics businesses. A key determinant in assessing vulnerability is the extent to which the data is proprietary, how integrated a company is into client workflows and whether the client requires real-time and highly accurate data. The Trust has very limited exposure to incumbent businesses in these subsectors but we now consider the scale of the derating has opened up potential investment opportunities in companies where we are confident they can capitalise on the structural growth in demand for data which AI is set to accelerate. The Trust has recently built a position in London Stock Exchange Group.
UK
UK financials have materially outperformed in 2025 led by strong returns from the banking sector on the back of robust operating trends and a low valuation starting point. However, speculation on taxation ahead of November’s budget has weighed on sentiment recently with reports that the government is considering additional bank taxes – a 3% bank tax surcharge and a 10bps bank levy on UK balance sheets is already applied. In particular, a recommendation by the IPPR to utilise reserve tiering, raising additional bank taxes by £3.6-10bn annually, led to pressure on UK bank stocks. We think it is unlikely that the government would increase bank taxes by such a large amount – Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey has spoken against reserve tiering – but expect such speculation to remain an overhang until the budget in November.
UK bank managements noted that market sentiment on UK fiscal health is at odds with current operating trends with no sign of issues on asset quality while they welcomed a slight shift in tone from the regulator which now has growth and competitiveness as an objective. In light of the policy uncertainty in the UK, we have reduced our UK banking exposure and offset it with additions in mainland Europe.
Outlook
While there is ongoing political noise related to both trade negotiations and budget discussions, we have been encouraged by recent management feedback on operating trends which points to continued confidence on delivery. A backdrop of more normalised interest rates, steeper yield curves – in part a reflection of large public deficits and populist policies – and an easing in regulation as governments shift to a more pro-growth stance provides a supportive backdrop for the sector.
While this shift in environment has supported the sector’s relative performance – it has outperformed over one, three and five years – valuations remain attractive, particularly in relation to the broader market.
Nick Brind
Nick’s experience comes from running specialist and generalist funds with UK and global mandates for the past 25+ years
George Barrow
George is a specialist financials fund manager as well as an analyst across Europe, Asia and emerging markets
Tom Dorner
Tom joined Polar Capital in 2023 as a financials fund manager and is the analyst responsible for the global insurance sector.
Historical Fact Sheets