I would say it's a matter of perspective. Yes the fees are...

I would say it's a matter of perspective. Yes the fees are high but as someone with a fiay small value portfolio, the equivalent $ I would spend on brokerage fees and research would easily match 2% if I were to stock pick myself and/or have a financial advisor do it for me. I see these active LICs as a marriage of convenience, allowing me to follow Ben Graham's common stock portfolio theory whilst reducing risk and a lot of time spent researching. I'm in MGG, WLE and WGB, up almost 15% in the past 12 months, I'd say that's pretty decent for a passive investment... I'm not saying I won't opt out of this structure as my portfolio value grows but I'm pretty happy to pay the premium for now