Glossary · Fund structure
Share class
A variant of the same fund with its own charges, currency or income treatment — and its own ISIN.
One portfolio can be sold through several share classes: institutional versus retail pricing, hedged versus unhedged currency, accumulating versus distributing income.
The underlying holdings are identical, so performance differences between classes come from charges, currency and income treatment rather than from investment decisions.
Comparing a cheap institutional class against a retail class of a competitor flatters the first fund for a reason that has nothing to do with how it is run.
Related terms
- ISINA 12-character global identifier for a specific security or fund share class.
- OCFThe annual cost of running a fund, expressed as a percentage of the money you have invested in it.
- Accumulation vs income unitsAccumulation units reinvest the fund’s income automatically; income units pay it out as cash.
More terms on fund structure
Definitions describe how a term is used on Fundology. This is information, not advice.