10 June 2026
4 min read
Summary
CFS Investments has launched the Index 150 SMA portfolio, expanding its managed accounts suite with a new option that incorporates selective geared exposures within a diversified, index-based structure.
CFS Investments expands SMA suite with new Index 150 portfolio
CFS Investments has launched the Index 150 SMA portfolio, expanding its managed accounts offering with a new option designed to provide increased equity market exposure through the use of geared building blocks within a diversified, index-based structure. The addition draws on CFS’s long-standing capability as Australia’s largest provider of geared share funds with approximately $13.58 billion in FUM, supported by decades of experience and scale in managing geared investment strategies¹. The team has successfully navigated key periods of volatility since 1997.
The launch comes as managed accounts continue to gain momentum, with 61% of advisers now using managed accounts, with 81% of flows going into an SMA structure².
Responding to adviser demand
The shift toward SMA-only implementation highlights the growing preference for more streamlined portfolio management approaches.
“Managed accounts are transforming how advisers deliver value to their clients.”
— Al Clark, Head of CFS Investments
The Index 150 portfolio has been designed to complement the existing suite, offering an additional way to access market exposure with consistency and implementation efficiency. As Al Clark added, “Index 150 provides advisers with an efficient way to gear up their clients’ returns,” reinforcing its role in supporting scalable, outcome-focused portfolio construction.
What is unique about CFS Index 150 SMA
The portfolio combines a diversified set of index-based building blocks, including selective exposure to strategies that incorporate gearing. It expands the existing range of risk profiles, offering greater choice for advised clients with longer investment horizons and a higher tolerance for risk. It is competitively priced, part of the Accelerate 100 offer, and designed to integrate seamlessly alongside the existing range. It's engineered around 3 core principles:
Simplicity
In line with the CFS Index range, the Index 150 keeps the number of building blocks to a minimum. It relies on broader benchmarks to achieve diversified coverage, without unnecessary complexity.
Efficiency
Lower gearing levels (e.g. 130) are inherently inefficient – they require ungeared building blocks to dampen exposure, effectively pressing the accelerator and brake at the same time. At 150, gearing works cleanly and as intended, allowing the portfolio to express its exposure more consistently.
Value
The benefits of gearing can outweigh the incremental impact of active building blocks, supporting a more fee-efficient outcome than a more active alternative.
Asset allocation
The Index 150 portfolio is constructed using a diversified mix of index-based building blocks, including selected exposures to strategies that incorporate gearing.
Allocations are indicative only and subject to change as part of ongoing portfolio management.
CFS SMAs - A unified portfolio framework
The portfolio forms part of a broader managed accounts framework, designed to support different client needs through a consistent investment philosophy and disciplined portfolio construction approach.
“The CFS managed account suite has been designed as an ecosystem. Advisers can serve distinct client cohorts with consistency in philosophy, house view and portfolio construction.”
— Ritesh Prasad, Multi Sector Portfolio Manager
Three solutions. One philosophy – Adviser efficiency meets portfolio efficiency. Discover the suite below:
Across the suite, portfolios are designed with increasing levels of sophistication and precision, enabling advisers to match solutions to client needs while maintaining a consistent underlying approach.
This structured approach enables greater adviser efficiency, with portfolios designed to scale across client segments while maintaining consistency in philosophy and execution.
CFS Investments has also seen strong momentum within its SMA series, with funds under management increasing from $147 million in April 2025 to $472 million in April 2026, representing year-on-year growth of approximately 266%³.
Learn more
Learn more about the CFS SMAs Managed Accounts suite or connect with a CFS Business Development Manager via our online contact form.
¹ Morningstar Direct, Geared Funds Sector report (Australia), based on funds under management (FUM), as at 30 April 2026.
² Investment Trends, Managed Accounts Report (17th edition), March 2026, based on data collected November 2025 to January 2026.
³ CFS Edge Managed Accounts data – funds under administration increased from $147 million (April 2025) to $472 million (April 2026), representing year-on-year growth of approximately 266%. Past performance is no indication of future performance.
Adviser use only
Avanteos Investments Limited ABN 20 096 259 979, AFSL 245531 (AIL) is the trustee of the Avanteos Superannuation Trust ABN 38 876 896 681 and issuer of CFS Edge Super and Pension. Colonial First State Investments Limited ABN 98 002 348 352, AFSL 232468 (CFSIL) is the Investor Directed Portfolio Service (IDPS) operator, administrator and custodian of the Avanteos Wrap Account Service and issuer of CFS Edge Investments. CFSIL is also the issuer and responsible entity of the Colonial First State Separately Managed Account (Scheme) ARSN 618 390 051, of which the Signature Managed Account is a class of interest.
This document is based on current requirements and laws as at 4/06/26. While all care has been taken in preparing the information contained in this document (using reliable and accurate sources), to the extent permitted by law, no one including AIL and/or CFSIL, nor any related parties, their employees or directors, accept responsibility for loss suffered by anyone from reliance on this information. This document provides general information for the adviser only and is not to be handed to any investor. It doesn‘t take into account anyone’s individual objectives, financial situation, needs or tax circumstances. You should read the relevant Product Disclosure Statement (PDS), Investor Directed Portfolio Service Guide (IDPS Guide) and Financial Services Guide (FSG) before making any recommendations to a client. The PDS, IDPS Guide and FSGs can be obtained via cfs.com.au/cfsedge or by calling us on 1300 769 619. Past performance is no indication of future performance.