JPMorgan Cracks the Mutual Fund Top 10

JPMorgan Chase is finding that shrewd salesmanship can overcome mediocre investment returns in the mutual fund business. In 2011 it became the first bank to crack the list of the 10 largest U.S. stock and bond fund managers, according to research firm Strategic Insight. JPMorgan’s funds pulled in more new money, as a percentage of assets, than any rival with at least $50 billion under management.

The largest U.S. bank by assets isn’t attracting money because of a star fund manager or chart-topping investment returns: Its stock and bond funds, on average, beat just 47 percent of competitors in 2011. JPMorgan’s strategy is courting financial advisers to complement its in-house sales force and offering hedge fund-like products that have become more popular as investors flee traditional stock funds. “Their performance as an asset gatherer has been phenomenal,” says Geoff Bobroff, a mutual fund consultant in East Greenwich, R.I. “Their fund performance isn’t one to gather a lot of attention, but they’re solid from a business standpoint.”