The Slow and Steady passive portfolio update: Q3 2026

Our in-house passive portfolio is having a distinctly average year: up 7.8% so far in 2026, or about 4.7% after inflation. The tale is one of double-digit equity gains, dragged down by bond fund ankle weights: Actually, the story of 2026 is the story of the portfolio’s lifetime. The equities bloc (in the green zone below) has performed creditably to amazingly. The 13.7% annualised return of Developed World ex-UK going back well over a decade is extraordinary: However nominal UK government bonds have almost single-handedly stolen the icing on the cake. The gilty party has lost 3% per year, leaving the Slow & Steady with a 7.6% annualised return since launch. (Which I’m happy with, to be clear. The objective was only ever to be average.) The Slow & Steady is Monevator’s model passive investing portfolio. It was set up at the start of 2011 with £3,000. An extra £1,360 is invested every quarter into a diversified set of index funds, tilted towards equities. You can read the origin story…