Trustnet is an invaluable research facility for all IFAs.

Panacea Trustnet includes the main databases and the Portfolio Scanner which can provide a picture of past performance and volatility, in graphic and in numeric form

TrustNet was formed in December 1995 and in October 2002 was acquired by Financial Express Holdings (UK) Limited. Financial Express specialises in the collection, validation and distribution of fund and equity prices, and fact sheet information, and is the main supplier of data to the UK financial sector.

Our service is aimed at private investors and Independent Financial Advisers and covers UK collective investment funds. All information is intended to be entirely factual and unbiased.

We offer completely free access to our website as the fund management companies whose products are covered pay us a subscription fee. A reduced level of information is available for funds not paying a subscription. Revenue is also generated from the banner adverts placed throughout the site.

Price and performance data is provided daily for all funds, where available (sourced from Financial Express and Thomson Financial Datastream). Fund profile pages are filled with information collected and collated directly from fund management companies by TrustNet's own Data Team. News feeds are supplied by Incisive Media.

TrustNet also provides a number of the UK's leading financial portals, websites and Independent Financial Advisers with integrated web based solutions including FT.com, The Investment Management Association (formerly AUTIF), IFAOnline, Allenbridge, Bankhall, Panacea and many others.

With more than 3,400 UK open-ended funds available to investors picking the right one has never been more difficult

Even when the fund selection process is complete, ensuring a portfolio remains balanced is a demanding job, but the rewards for success, for you and your clients, are clear.

Modern portfolio theory tells us that diversification is an essential part of reducing risk and optimising performance, and this is particularly pertinent at a time when there is no single market theme to follow.

With this in mind Trustnet Adviser, the adviser-only section of free online fund information provider Trustnet, has introduced a new tool to help advisers keep track of their clients' portfolios and build new fund portfolios on sound principles of asset allocation.

Instead of presenting the portfolio as a collection of funds, the tool allows the adviser to view the underlying composition through the portfolio itself – presenting stock, geographic, sector and asset class summaries for the portfolio as a whole.

In doing so, Portfolio Scanner allows the adviser to make informed, analytical decisions on asset allocation, by gathering together the fact sheet-based research the adviser would otherwise have to do by hand and presenting it in a clear, simple to understand format.

Portfolio Scanner can provide a picture of past performance and volatility, in graphic and in numeric form, helping the adviser to identify those areas where excessive volatility is not producing sufficient returns and where the portfolio is under or overexposed to geographical regions, sectors and asset classes, and even individual stocks.

The Portfolio Scanner report creates ratios to aid performance analysis – incl uding Alpha, Beta, Sharpe ratios and standard deviation. Charts displaying portfolio performance can be created against the adviser's choice of sector averages or market indices over a variety of time periods.

A breakdown of geographical exposure, asset class and sector weightings is also available and the entire report can be created as a quality PDF document allowing the adviser to save, print and email the document accordingly.