Natural resources, emerging markets, midcaps and young growth companies have been among the best places and themes to invest in this year, according to investment trust performance data as of 9 December 2025.
Trusts managed by Marwyn, BlackRock and Fidelity are among this year’s top performing equity investment trusts, based on best total return performance (share price appreciation plus dividends) year to date, led by BlackRock World Mining Trust’s (BRWM) 63.3% since the start of the year, according to Trustnet data.
BlackRock World Mining Trust
That’s four-times the return of the FTSE All-Share Index’s 15.4%.
The £1.4 billion BlackRock World Mining Trust invests across a range of mining and precious metals operations, largely by taking equity stakes in companies listed on global stock markets. Leading stakes currently include Anglo American (AAL) – in the process of merging with Canadian miner Teck Resources (TECK:TSE) to create a copper powerhouse, Rio Tinto (RIO), another FTSE 100 member, and gold mining giant Newmont (NEM:NYSE).
However, the trust also puts investor’s money to work through fixed-income and money market assets when appropriate.
Based on data up to 9 December 2025, the following investment trusts made up the rest of the best five top performers by total return:
Marwyn Value Investors (MVI): This small Caymen Islands-based trust aims to maximise total returns primarily through the capital appreciation of its Master Fund, which primarily is focused on taking stakes in mid cap businesses in the UK, Europe or North America.
Top stakes currently include Zegona Communications (ZEG), which operates mobile and fixed-line telecoms business in Europe applying a ‘buy, fix, sell’ strategy to deliver attractive shareholder returns. Marwyn is also a backer of AdvancedAdvT (ADVT), an AIM-listed software services business. The portfolio has delivered 61.2% total return year to date.
Marwyn Value Investors
BlackRock Latin American (BRLA): Does what it says on the tin, investing in equity stakes of companies listed across Latin America. It has a wide remit, reflected in its diversified portfolio that includes Vale (VALE:NYSE), a giant Brazilian multinational metals and mining business and the world’s largest producer of iron ore and nickel.
The trust also owns stakes in oil, car rental and financial businesses, and is a backer of Walmart’s Central American operations, a collection of assets that have put up 52.8% total returns year to date.
BlackRock Latin American
Molten Ventures (GROW): This trust is all about seed funding tomorrow’s exciting tech champions, whether that’s household names like UK banking and crypto start-up Revolut and online reviews platform Trustpilot (TRST), or relative unknowns like Ledger, which designs secure hardware wallets and digital asset management for crypto and Web3.
Molten has stakes in more than 100 businesses, many of them still fairly small and majority owned by founders, although it still owns stakes in more mature listed firms, such as those mentioned above and US listed UiPath (PATH:NYSE), the robotic automation process business which Molten backed early. UiPath is now valued at more than $10 billion. Year to date total return stands at 48.8%.
Molten Ventures
Fidelity Emerging Markets (FEML): Launched in 1989, the trust draws on Fidelity’s substantial resources across the globe to build a portfolio of companies which it believes have a strong growth runway in markets from South Africa to Mexico to Taiwan.
Tech features prominently in its biggest holdings, with names like chip giants TSMC (TSM:NYSE) and Samsung Electronics (SMSD), plus South African online conglomerate Naspers (NPN:JSE), currently the trust’s largest overweight holding (the trust’s stake is larger as a percentage than its MSCI Emerging Markets Index benchmark equivalent).
Year to date performance stands at 46.9% total return, versus the low double-digits of its benchmark, while the trust has consistently beaten its benchmark since managers Nick Price and Chris Tennent started running the show in October 2021.
Fidelity Emerging Markets
It is important to remember that past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results, and investment trusts can be volatile, so a long-term perspective is sensible.
Investors also need to be aware that the share prices of investment trusts can trade at a discount (and a premium) to net asset value, which can impact your returns.
Disclaimer: This content is for information only and is not investment advice. Always do your own research before investing. Click here to see full disclaimer.
