Investors should not rush for the exit on the news that FE fundinfo Alpha Manager Helge Skibeli is to retire, standing down from the JPMorgan Global Growth & Income trust (JGGI), experts have said.
Skibeli, who took over the 149-year-old closed-end fund seven years ago and is credited with reviving the trust’s fortunes, will leave JP Morgan Asset Management in February 2028 after 40 years in the industry.
His responsibilities move to co-managers Sam Witherow and James Cook, both established members of the team, with the board expecting an orderly handover.
During Skibeli’s term, the trust performed strongly. The net-asset value (NAV) return of 176% from March 2019 to the end of August beat the 151% advance in the MSCI AC World index over the same period.
Over 10 years, the trust leads its six-strong AIC Global Equity Income sector with a 287.8% total shareholder return, well ahead of the 167.6% peer group average.
More recently, however, the £3.3bn trust has trailed competitors Murray International and Invesco Global Equity Income over one and three years, as the team turned more cautious on technology valuations.
Below, Trustnet asked four fund selectors whether Skibeli's departure changes their view of the trust.
Performance of fund against index and sector over 10yrs
Source: FE Analytics
Chris Salih, head of multi-asset and investment trust research at FundCalibre, said JPMorgan Global Growth & Income is “an all-weather portfolio with a focus on high-quality companies with faster earnings growth and attractive valuations”.
He said the past year's weaker showing reflects quality being out of favour rather than a change in process, highlighting the trust's underweight to emerging markets and its avoidance of lower-quality semiconductor and software names that have rallied in 2026.
On the succession itself, Salih was unconcerned.
“Helge Skibeli is a 40-year veteran at JP Morgan, so his decision to retire is not a huge surprise, but it should be noted that he remains as portfolio manager at the firm until February 2028,” he said, adding that Cook and Witherow both have long JPM tenures and strong internal support.
Salih flagged the Invesco Global Equity Income trust, with its more concentrated 40 to 60 stock portfolio, as a possible diversifier.
Rob Morgan, chief equity analyst at Charles Stanley, largely agreed that investors have little reason to worry, adding that JPM's research-driven process, backed by a large analyst team, reduces key person risk compared with smaller management teams.
On performance, he said the trust's recent lag in performance should be a good sign as it reflects discipline.
“Recent relative returns have been weaker than before as it has become less exposed to the AI winners, but that demonstrates the valuation discipline of the process, which won't always work over short periods,” Morgan said.
Still, for investors leaning more on growth he preferred Monks, while for income he suggested Murray International, which he said has produced better recent form and has an attractive natural yield (meaning it is paid out of dividends, whereas JGGI pays income out of capital).
Ben Yearsley, director at Fairview Investing, was more sceptical on the JP Morgan trust, questioning the balance of JGGI's income. The payout is fixed based on the trust’s net asset value (NAV) annually and paid regardless of underlying income generated.
This means JPMorgan Global Growth & Income “has ridden the growth wave well” but “isn't a balanced income portfolio” given how little value exposure it has held.
“JGGI wouldn't be my go-to for global income. I'd look at Artemis Global Income or Guinness Global Equity Income,” he said, adding that he tends to build income exposure through regional building blocks such as BNY US Equity Income and Jupiter Asian Income alongside UK funds.
Still, he acknowledged the trust is “decent value” with a strong delivery record and said Skibeli's exit is “an opportunity to reassess” rather than a reason to sell outright.
Jason Hollands, managing director at Bestinvest, which ranks JGGI in its Best Fund buy list, was the most positive of the four.
“Skibeli's retirement is still some way off, with his departure not scheduled until February 2028. That provides a long and orderly period for the handover, so there is no need for investors to take any immediate action following the announcement and we are not remotely concerned,” he said.
JGGI remains the only global income investment trust on Bestinvest's Best Funds list, alongside open-ended options Fidelity Global Dividend, Guinness Global Equity Income and Evenlode Global Income.
“JPMorgan Global Growth & Income currently offers the highest yield of these options, has the lowest ongoing charges, and has also delivered the strongest five-year returns,” Hollands said, though he added that this does not make it automatically right for everyone.