Can managers’ characteristics explain European bond mutual fund performance?

Abstract

This study aims to discover whether the characteristics of European bond fund managers affect mutual fund performance and risk. Based on 7,930 fund-year observations, gathered from the Morningstar database for the period 2005–2019, we have compared several performance and risk measures among team-managed and single-managed funds. We have also analysed the impact of gender diversity on fund performance and risk. Our results indicate that funds managed by teams do not exhibit statistically significant differences in performance or risk when compared to single-managed ones. Management teams with greater gender diversity do not significantly impact fund performance or risk in relation to all-male or all-female teams. Overall, our findings indicate that the underrepresentation of women in the fund industry, or gender bias, does not make economic sense.