"The fund had a particularly difficult 2016, which is reflected in the three year performance ranking."
The largest fund, in terms of assets, on the worst performers list, was the £1.4bn Aviva Investors Multi Strategy Target Income. This fund has lost investors 8.6 per cent in three years.
A representative of Aviva Investors said: "In 2018, we made changes to the portfolio management line-up across our AIMS funds and added resources to the broader multi-asset and macro function. We have also strengthened in other areas of the investment floor, notably equities.
"We believe these changes will improve processes, idea generation and, over time, performance across our AIMS range.
"Looking ahead, we will continue take a longer-term perspective across our portfolios. We believe we are well-positioned for an environment in which growth expectations stabilise and bond yields begin to move higher again.
"However, we are equally conscious of the risks to this positioning and are constructing our portfolio to reflect a range of different market outcomes."
Standard Life's GARS fund, which was once the largest absolute return fund on the market, lost 6.4 per cent over the past three years, meaning it avoided placing among the bottom 10 worst performers.
The fund is currently £12.6bn in size after a haemorrhaging cash in recent years amid poor performance. As recently as early 2017, GARS was £24bn in size.
david.thorpe@ft.com
