But as it has become easier to bundle several different funds together to form a portfolio, investors are increasingly relying on each individual fund to fulfill a specific role.

ECONOMIST: Performance is all, or is it?

In the Americas, it is most unlikely that the Federal Reserve would come to the rescue of an individual Argentine or Mexican bank, so each country would have to build up a safety fund of its own for such purposes.

ECONOMIST: It all depends

The quality of investment advice, whether provided directly to a client or indirectly through a fund, is very important both to the financial markets generally as well as to each individual who benefits or suffers as a result.

FORBES: "Villains" of Financial Crisis Wrestle with Misperceptions