Register For Our Mailing List

Register to receive our free weekly newsletter including editorials.

Home / 249

Third Link Growth Fund’s 10th anniversary

It’s a personal thrill that Third Link Growth Fund has just passed its 10th anniversary. The Fund opened for investment on 10 April 2008, in hindsight a difficult time to launch with the global financial crisis around the corner.

With the passing of these 10 years, it’s a good time to pause, reflect and celebrate the achievements of the Fund. These include:

  • The Fund has grown to $163 million at the end of March 2018, a significant achievement given there has been no sales force selling the product. It relies on word-of-mouth, the innovative charitable angle whereby all fees are donated to charity (a structure since copied successfully as well), a good performance track record and some favourable press.

  • Over the 10 years since inception, the Fund has achieved a compound annual return of 9.6% after fees. During this same time period the bank bill rate has yielded 3.4% per annum.

  • From February 2012, the Fund altered its objective from a multi-sector growth fund (invested in a combination of Australian shares, international shares, property and fixed interest) to one that invested only in Australian shares. Since that time, the Fund has achieved a compound annual return of 13.6% after fees compared with the S&P/ASX300 Accumulation Index increasing by 9.8% per annum. The Fund outperformed this benchmark by 3.8% per annum.

  • Zenith Investment Partners, an independent research group, currently has a ‘Recommended’ rating on the Fund. Furthermore, the Australian financial data provider, FE, and Money Management have recently launched the FE Crown Fund ratings in Australia (a quantitative measure of performance, consistency and volatility) and Third Link Growth Fund has received the maximum score of 5 crowns. The Fund sits within the top 10% of its peer group.

  • Since inception, over $7,500,000 has been donated to charities (all listed on the Fund’s web site, and which include Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience (AIME), National Centre for Childhood Grief, The Song Room, batyr, Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal, Dismantle, SHINE for Kids, BackTrack, Mirabel Foundation, Raise Foundation and Children’s Ground) from the fees received in managing the Fund. Donations are now running at around $175,000 every month!

Of course, none of this could have been achieved without the extraordinary generosity of the underlying investment managers and service providers who all provide their services on a pro bono basis. The investment managers include Aberdeen Asset Management, Bennelong Australian Equity Partners, Colonial First State Global Asset Management, Cooper Investors, Greencape Capital, Harness Asset Management, JBWere Wealth Management, L1 Capital, Lazard Asset Management Pacific Co, Lennox Capital Partners, Montgomery Investment Management, Ophir Asset Management, Paradice Investment Management, and Pengana Capital. And the service providers include Bennelong Funds Management (Responsible Entity), RBC Investor Services Trust (custodian and administrator), Minter Ellison (legal work), Deloitte (auditors of the Fund), Ernst & Young (auditors of the Manager), KPMG (tax advisers to the Fund) and Nexia Australia (tax advisers to the Manager).

Thank you to those who have supported the Third Link Growth Fund and helping make the concept a reality. The Fund closed to new investors in September 2017.

 

Chris Cuffe is the Founder and Portfolio Manager of Third Link Growth Fund. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. This information provided is general and does not constitute personal financial, tax or legal advice.

RELATED ARTICLES

Charitable giving and tax deductions

Reform needed to allow donations from super to charity

Gail Kelly reveals how her family gifts money

banner

Most viewed in recent weeks

Simple maths says the AI investment boom ends badly

This AI cycle feels less like a revolution and more like a rerun. Just like fibre in 2000, shale in 2014, and cannabis in 2019, the technology or product is real but the capital cycle will be brutal. Investors beware.

Why we should follow Canada and cut migration

An explosion in low-skilled migration to Australia has depressed wages, killed productivity, and cut rental vacancy rates to near decades-lows. It’s time both sides of politics addressed the issue.

Are LICs licked?

LICs are continuing to struggle with large discounts and frustrated investors are wondering whether it’s worth holding onto them. This explains why the next 6-12 months will be make or break for many LICs.

Australian house price speculators: What were you thinking?

Australian housing’s 50-year boom was driven by falling rates and rising borrowing power — not rent or yield. With those drivers exhausted, future returns must reconcile with economic fundamentals. Are we ready?

Retirement income expectations hit new highs

Younger Australians think they’ll need $100k a year in retirement - nearly double what current retirees spend. Expectations are rising fast, but are they realistic or just another case of lifestyle inflation?

Welcome to Firstlinks Edition 627 with weekend update

This week, I got the news that my mother has dementia. It came shortly after my father received the same diagnosis. This is a meditation on getting old and my regrets in not getting my parents’ affairs in order sooner.

  • 4 September 2025

Latest Updates

Shares

Why the ASX may be more expensive than the US market

On every valuation metric, the US appears significantly more expensive than Australia. However, American companies are also much more profitable than ours, which means the ASX may be more overvalued than most think.

Economy

No one holds the government to account on spending

Government spending is out of control and there's little sign that Labor will curb it. We need enforceable rules on spending and an empowered budget office to ensure governments act responsibly with taxpayers money.

Retirement

Why a traditional retirement may be pushed back 25 years

The idea of stopping work during your sixties is a man-made concept from another age. In a world where many jobs are knowledge based and can be done from anywhere, it may no longer make much sense at all.

Shares

The quiet winners of AI competition

The tech giants are in a money-throwing contest to secure AI supremacy and may fall short of high investor expectations. The companies supplying this arms race could offer a more attractive way to play AI adoption.

Preparing for aged care

Whether for yourself or a family member, it’s never too early to start thinking about aged care. This looks at the best ways to plan ahead, as well as the changes coming to aged care from November 1 this year.

Infrastructure

Renewable energy investment: gloom or boom?

ESG investing has fallen out of favour with many investors, and Trump's anti-green policies haven't helped. Yet, renewables investment is still surging, which could prove a boon for infrastructure companies.

Investing

The enduring wisdom of John Bogle in five quotes

From buying the whole market to controlling emotions, John Bogle’s legendary advice reminds investors that patience, discipline, and low costs are the keys to investment success in any market environment.

Sponsors

Alliances

© 2025 Morningstar, Inc. All rights reserved.

Disclaimer
The data, research and opinions provided here are for information purposes; are not an offer to buy or sell a security; and are not warranted to be correct, complete or accurate. Morningstar, its affiliates, and third-party content providers are not responsible for any investment decisions, damages or losses resulting from, or related to, the data and analyses or their use. To the extent any content is general advice, it has been prepared for clients of Morningstar Australasia Pty Ltd (ABN: 95 090 665 544, AFSL: 240892), without reference to your financial objectives, situation or needs. For more information refer to our Financial Services Guide. You should consider the advice in light of these matters and if applicable, the relevant Product Disclosure Statement before making any decision to invest. Past performance does not necessarily indicate a financial product’s future performance. To obtain advice tailored to your situation, contact a professional financial adviser. Articles are current as at date of publication.
This website contains information and opinions provided by third parties. Inclusion of this information does not necessarily represent Morningstar’s positions, strategies or opinions and should not be considered an endorsement by Morningstar.