Actively managed investment funds
Bourstad particiapnts can acquire and retrocede units of 36 actively managed mutual funds..
These funds are offered to investors by mutual funds firms who distribute them in a variety of ways, either through an exclusive sales force or through investment dealer representatives. Fund units are acquired directly from the manager and not traded between investors, such as exchange-traded funds.
The savings collected by distributing units of the fund to the investing public is entrusted to one or more professional portfolio managers who use the available amount in accordance with the investment policy that defines the fund.
The funds that participants in the Bourstad simulations can purchase are primarily Series D funds, a class of funds available to discount broker clients that manage their investment without the assistance of an investment advisor.