LCI Annual Strategy Review December 2025
Performance Overview
The 12 months to 31 December 2025 were an equity-driven year. Global equity carried every sleeve, led by a standout Korean position and broad strength across Brazilian, Eurozone and US exposure. The active-enhanced (SE) sleeves earned a second leg of return from their gold allocation (+43% to +63% in reference currency over the year). Currency was the dominant relative swing factor: USD weakness against the franc and euro dragged on CHF- and EUR-referenced sleeves, while USD-referenced sleeves enjoyed a meaningful FX tailwind.
Performance - 2025
Semi-Passive (S) | Active-Enhanced (SE)
| Semi-Passive (S) | Active-Enhanced (SE) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strategy | 12M | vs Bench | p.a. SI | vs Bench SI | Strategy | 12M | vs Bench | p.a. SI | vs Bench SI | |
| LCI Yield CHF S | +4.71% | -117 bps | +2.28% | +145 bps | LCI Yield CHF SE | +7.81% | +193 bps | +3.66% | +283 bps | |
| LCI Balanced CHF S | +7.70% | +121 bps | +4.37% | +250 bps | LCI Balanced CHF SE | +10.09% | +359 bps | +5.35% | +348 bps | |
| LCI Growth CHF S | +10.72% | +54 bps | +6.42% | +324 bps | LCI Growth CHF SE | +12.38% | +219 bps | +7.02% | +384 bps | |
| LCI Yield EUR S | +4.79% | -330 bps | +3.74% | +180 bps | LCI Yield EUR SE | +7.67% | -42 bps | +4.97% | +303 bps | |
| LCI Balanced EUR S | +7.58% | -53 bps | +5.99% | +287 bps | LCI Balanced EUR SE | +9.79% | +168 bps | +6.79% | +367 bps | |
| LCI Growth EUR S | +10.38% | -206 bps | +8.21% | +392 bps | LCI Growth EUR SE | +11.91% | -53 bps | +8.60% | +431 bps | |
| LCI Yield USD S | +13.23% | +284 bps | +5.45% | +136 bps | LCI Yield USD SE | +16.44% | +605 bps | +6.60% | +252 bps | |
| LCI Balanced USD S | +18.06% | +464 bps | +7.65% | +249 bps | LCI Balanced USD SE | +20.21% | +680 bps | +8.39% | +323 bps | |
| LCI Growth USD S | +23.04% | +896 bps | +9.79% | +315 bps | LCI Growth USD SE | +24.07% | +999 bps | +10.14% | +349 bps | |
Returns in reference currency; SI = since inception (annualised). Positive figures in green, negative in red. Source: La Côte Invest.
Since-Inception Cushions
Annualised since-inception returns range from +2.28% p.a. (Yield CHF S) to +10.14% p.a. (Growth USD SE). The SE sleeve is ahead of its S counterpart at inception level in every family pairing, the gap widening with risk profile. All 18 strategies remain ahead of their benchmarks since launch.
Best Performer
Amundi MSCI Korea ETF was the single best holding of the year by a wide margin: +76.1% (CHF), +77.7% (EUR) and +101.7% (USD) in reference currency. iShares MSCI Brazil ETF (+30% to +49%) and the gold allocation in the SE sleeves (+43% to +63%) rounded out the top of the book across sleeves.
Worst Performer
Amundi MSCI Indonesia ETF was the weakest holding of the year: −13.4% (CHF), −12.7% (EUR) and −0.9% (USD) in reference currency, followed closely by the Amundi MSCI India II ETF (−11.2% CHF / −10.4% EUR / +1.7% USD). On the fixed-income side, the iShares JPMorgan $ EM Corporate Bond ETF and the iShares $ Treasury 3-7Yr ETF were the main detractors for the CHF/EUR sleeves (around −5%). The expired SPX structured product (−100% at maturity) is excluded — its outcome reflects product maturity, not a market loss.
FX Impact
CHF sleeves carried the largest currency drag (−215 to −480 bps), driven almost entirely by USD weakness against the franc, with JPY a secondary detractor.
EUR sleeves saw a similar drag (−331 to −577 bps) from the same USD and JPY moves.
USD sleeves enjoyed a tailwind instead (+116 to +435 bps), as EUR and CHF exposure translated favourably. The franc and euro strength against the dollar was the defining macro feature of the year for relative results.
Portfolio Changes
The S sleeves were largely held to their strategic allocations. Across the book a consistent two-step rotation took place: in February, North American equity was trimmed and the proceeds rotated into rest-of-world equity (Asia Pacific, Eurozone, Swiss and UK); in June, government bonds were cut and a new ILS (insurance-linked securities) bond sleeve was introduced of equal size. Equity and fixed-income net weights were broadly unchanged — the moves were rotations within each asset class rather than directional shifts.
Editorial Note
This was a year to be invested in equity and, for the SE sleeves, in gold — and the book was. The Korean overweight was the decisive alpha source, and the SE gold allocation produced clean outperformance across every family. The main lesson sits with the S sleeves in the EUR Yield and Growth families, where the defensive bond core lagged a fully-invested benchmark in a runaway equity year. Watch whether the new ILS sleeve and the rest-of-world equity rotation continue to add once breadth normalises and the USD trend stabilises.
