Rob Morgan, investment analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown
"Martin Gray, who manages CF Miton Strategic Portfolio, fared extremely well in the last downturn. His fund sits in the Balanced Managed sector, but it is more defensive than its peer group." "He takes a very top-down view and has a high-conviction strategy – something you need in a time of crisis. He read the macro situation very well in 2008, and increased his exposure to alternative investments like gold, Swiss francs and yen, rather than equities and bonds, which both suffered major sell-offs."
"Gray currently has a very conservative strategy, holding 25 per cent in cash and only a third of his portfolio in defensive, blue-chip equity stocks. He also has a substantial weighting to Japan, which he sees as excellent value."
CF Miton Strategic Portfolio was the best-performing fund in the IMA Balanced Managed sector in 2008, with returns of 14.66 per cent. Only four Balanced Managed funds broke even over the 12-month period.
"Philip Gibbs is one of the most bearish fund managers around at the moment," Morgan continued. "He believes there is no long-term viable solution to the Western debt crisis, and has positioned his Jupiter Absolute Return portfolio to reflect that."
"So far he has gotten it completely wrong, as bond yields have continued to compress and equity markets have held up. However, we like him as a manager as he’s doing the absolute opposite to what everyone else is doing – if he is proven right, it is a good fund to have."
Tom Becket, manager of the Psigma Balanced Managed fund
"Investec UK Special Situations, managed by Alistair Munday, is a fund that did well in the last crisis, and I like where the portfolio is in relation to the economic cycle. It has a high cash holding and the manager has recently added some high-quality defensive stocks." "I think high-quality defensives have the best value at the moment and recent macro developments have made these types of stock even more attractive."
"Munday’s focus on recovery stocks also helped the fund during the bounce-back in 2009."
According to FE Analytics data, the fund has returned 32.84 per cent over a five-year period, outperforming its FTSE All Share benchmark and IMA UK All Companies sector average by 11.75 and 14.5 per cent respectively.
Of 305 funds in the UK All Companies sector, only eight lost less capital than Investec Special Situations in 2008.
"Globally, I would have to go for Angus Tulloch. I’ve held the First State Pacific Leaders fund for nine years now," added Becket.
"He’s a manager who can deliver far more than his benchmark in any market environment. The sort of stocks Tulloch invests in – high-quality staple Asian businesses – are long-term growth plays, which don’t lose that much money in downturns."
FE Alpha Manager Angus Tulloch was one of the biggest 'winners' of the last financial crisis. The manager lost 18.52 per cent in 2008 – 13.77 per cent less than his peer group composite.
David Coombs, manager of Rathbone Multi Asset Total Return
"Global brands tend to have pricing power and thus defensive qualities in a downturn. This leads us to William Lock’s Morgan Stanley Global Brands fund."
"He employs a strong valuation-led investment process, meaning the portfolio comprises high-quality companies. The aim is attractive absolute returns with less-than-average volatility."
"The fund employs a buy-and-hold approach towards a concentrated portfolio of 20 to 40 stocks. It performed particularly well in the difficult markets of 2007 and 2008, and in the past has stuck to its low-risk mandate, even through the sharp market rises."