Global Masters Fund FAQ

Global Masters Fund Limited is an Australian listed investment company (LIC) that trades on the ASX under the code GFL. It was established for investors seeking long-term capital growth through high-quality global assets, with Berkshire Hathaway as its principal holding.

A listed investment company is a company whose business is owning a portfolio of investments. Shareholders buy and sell its shares on the ASX like any other listed company, and in doing so gain exposure to every holding in the portfolio. Because an LIC has a fixed pool of capital, the manager is never forced to sell assets to meet redemptions, which suits a patient, long-term approach.

GFL was founded in New South Wales in May 2004 and listed on the ASX in May 2006. That gives the Company a public track record spanning more than two decades of market cycles.

The portfolio is managed by EC Pohl & Co, under the guidance of Chief Investment Officer Emmanuel (Manny) Pohl. Performance is monitored by the GFL Board of Directors.

GFL is built for investors with a long horizon: people who value quality, patience and the steady compounding of capital over decades rather than quarters. Many of our shareholders are approaching or enjoying retirement and want global exposure without the complexity of investing offshore directly.

There are two main routes. You can open an international brokerage account and buy Berkshire Hathaway shares directly on the New York Stock Exchange, which means dealing in US dollars and managing offshore holdings yourself. Alternatively, you can buy shares in GFL on the ASX, gaining exposure to Berkshire Hathaway as the Company's principal holding through an Australian-listed, AUD-denominated share.

Berkshire Hathaway is one of the clearest expressions of the principles we invest by: durable businesses, disciplined capital allocation and the patient reinvestment of earnings. It owns a wide range of operating businesses, from insurance and railways to energy and manufacturing, alongside major shareholdings in companies such as Apple, American Express and Coca-Cola. Through a single holding, GFL shareholders own a share of that entire franchise.

Berkshire Hathaway is the Company's principal stake, representing approximately 60% of the portfolio. The current allocation is published in each quarterly report and on globalmastersfund.com.au. You can see the full portfolio breakdown here.

No. GFL is an independent Australian company that holds Berkshire Hathaway shares as an investment. We do not speak for Berkshire Hathaway, and our commentary on the company draws on its public reporting.

Greg Abel succeeded Warren Buffett as Chief Executive Officer at the start of 2026, with Mr Buffett remaining Chairman. Berkshire's strength has always rested on its operating businesses, its capital base and a culture of disciplined allocation built over six decades. We assess the company on those foundations, and we watch Mr Abel's capital decisions closely.

The ASX represents a small share of the world's listed companies and is concentrated in banks and miners. Many of the world's most durable franchises, in technology, healthcare, payments and consumer brands, are listed offshore. Global exposure widens the set of quality businesses available to an Australian investor.

Most US companies are not listed on the ASX. GFL offers one way to hold US and other global businesses through an ASX-listed share, settled in Australian dollars through your existing broker and held alongside your Australian shares.

A global LIC is a listed investment company whose portfolio is invested mainly in companies outside Australia. GFL is a global LIC, with holdings across the United States, the United Kingdom and Europe.

We invest in the world's best businesses, for the long term. Our objective is high, long-term capital growth, achieved by owning quality franchises and allowing their earnings to compound over many years. Read more about our philosophy here.

We define risk as the failure to compound capital over time, not as short-term price volatility. A share price can fall in a difficult quarter while the business beneath it grows stronger. The real risk is owning businesses whose earning power erodes, or selling good ones at the wrong moment.

Each business is assessed against our Quality Franchise Score, a framework built on six pillars: Business, Industry, Competition, Sustainability, Management and Financials. A company must demonstrate strength across all six before it earns a place in the portfolio. We favour operational resilience over market timing.

The ECP Global Growth Fund is a sub-fund of an Ireland-based Irish Collective Asset-management Vehicle (ICAV), managed by the ECP team. GFL seeded the fund with $10 million in March 2023, giving shareholders exposure to a portfolio of high-quality global growth companies alongside the Berkshire Hathaway holding.

Yes, by design. We prefer depth of understanding over breadth of holdings. Owning fewer, carefully chosen businesses lets us know each one well and gives our best ideas a meaningful say in long-term returns.

GFL does not currently pay a dividend. The primary source of value for shareholders is capital growth in the share price. Income the Company receives is first applied to expenses, and any excess is reinvested in the portfolio.

Berkshire Hathaway retains its earnings and reinvests them in its operating businesses, acquisitions and listed shareholdings. The reasoning is straightforward: if each retained dollar can be put to work at a high rate of return, it creates more value for owners than a dollar paid out. That principle sits at the centre of GFL's own approach.

Compounding is the process of earning returns on past returns. When earnings are reinvested rather than distributed, the capital base grows, and each year's growth builds on a larger foundation. The effect is modest at first and powerful over decades, which is why we measure our progress in years, not quarters.

Reinvesting earnings within the portfolio, rather than distributing them, means shareholders are not taxed on regular income from GFL and can defer tax until they choose to sell. Individual circumstances differ, so investors should consider their own tax position.

GFL shares are bought and sold on the ASX under the code GFL, through any online or full-service stockbroker. Your first purchase must meet the ASX minimum parcel size.

Net tangible assets (NTA) per share is the value of the Company's investments, less its liabilities, divided by the number of shares on issue. It shows what each GFL share is backed by in underlying assets. We report NTA both before and after tax.

GFL announces its NTA monthly on the ASX, and publishes it alongside quarterly reports at globalmastersfund.com.au/reports-announcement.

As with all LICs, GFL's share price is set by buyers and sellers on the ASX, while NTA reflects the value of the portfolio. When the share price sits below NTA, the shares trade at a discount; above it, at a premium. The gap moves with demand for the shares over time.

We publish quarterly reports, monthly NTA updates and regular commentary on our portfolio and on Berkshire Hathaway. You can subscribe to our newsletter or follow Global Masters Fund on LinkedIn, and all reports are available at globalmastersfund.com.au.