Investment Companies Daily: NBPE May NAV/realisations, SERE Managed Wind Down, JEGI/UEM final results, BNKR co-manager to retire, AIE RCF

Research evidence excerpt

Investment Companies Daily: NBPE May NAV/realisations, SERE Managed Wind Down, JEGI/UEM final results, BNKR co-manager to retire, AIE RCF

though these will decline as the

portfolio is sold.

• The Bankers Investment Trust (BNKR, Neutral) - Interims/Alex Crooke to retire -

In its interim results announced today, BNKR announced that after 23 years managing

the trust, Alex Crooke would be retiring from the industry in December 2026. Mr Crooke

will continue in his current role until then, after which Richard Clode will continue as

fund manager. Mr Crooke has delivered an annualised return of 11% during his tenure.

Mr Clode was appointed co-manager of BNKR on 3/9/25. He joined Janus Henderson as

a PM in 2014 and has 22 years' investment experience and a proven track record of

performance, notably The Global Technology Leaders fund, which he co-manages. Since

November 2025 he has also been the manager of BNKR’s North American sleeve, where

his significant experience investing in technology has added a new dimension.

• Over the reporting period of the six months to 30/4/26, the NAVTR was 3.7% and the TSR

6.5% vs the FTSE World return of 5.5%. Regional allocation was a positive contributor,

notably the overweight allocation to Japan, while sectoral performance has seen a wide

dispersion of returns. BNKR has been adapting its investment approach. With the

appointment of Mr Clode, the US portfolio was realigned to capture more of the growth

opportunity in the US given its greater exposure to technology and AI. This was achieved

cross-sector, maintaining diversification, and with a natural balance to the non-US

holdings where these exposures are scarcer and, according to the managers often more

expensive due to that scarcity. New stocks added in the AI theme included memory maker