10 Aussie and global fixed-income funds that excelled in 2025
Originally appeared in Live wire markets
Fixed income is back, but selectivity is key. We break down the Australian and global funds that outperformed in 2025.
Australian fixed-income attracted record levels of capital over the past year, but not all yield is created equal. As the market matures, the gap is widening between funds delivering sustainable returns and those simply chasing headline distribution rates.
The top performers have stayed focused on what matters: cashflow-generating assets, robust structural protections, and disciplined credit selection. Some managers are delivering returns more than 5% above the cash rate, even as competition intensifies and spreads across public markets.
Last year also brought increased regulatory scrutiny, with ASIC shining a light on disclosure practices, a welcome development for investors.
Globally, fixed-income markets are being reshaped by central bank easing and widening divergence across regions.
While credit spreads remain tight, there’s opportunity in the details: non-U.S. developed markets offer more attractive valuations, European fiscal dynamics are creating relative value plays, and high yield continues to benefit from improved credit quality and low default expectations.
How we compiled these lists
Our performance data is sourced from Morningstar, and the funds listed are available on Livewire’s Find Funds menu (located in the top-right corner of the webpage). Please note that this is not an exhaustive list of all Australian and global fixed-income funds available in the market.
Here’s how we filtered the results:
- Fund type – Managed funds
- Asset class – Fixed-income (Australian; Global)
We then manually refined the list based on 1-year returns.
NOTE: While it is an interesting exercise to examine fund performance over a one-year period, most funds recommend minimum investment periods of five years or more. As such, it would be worthwhile to consider longer-term performance across cycles when researching funds or making investment decisions. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future return.
