in light of technological advances, collective trusts have gained market share in the defined benefit and defined contribution markets. Collective trusts pursue a wide variety of investment strategies across the equity and fixed income spectrum. These strategies may be passive (e.g., indexed or model-driven) or actively managed (e.g., pursuing growth or value strategies). In addition, in recent years collective trusts have pursued their investment strategies by employing more innovative investment techniques, such as investing in other investment vehicles or using more innovative investment instruments, such as exchange-traded funds. In addition to equity strategies, collective trusts also pursue a wide range of fixed income strategies, including actively managed strategies, passive strategies and others. Fixed income collective trust funds typically invest primarily in various types of debt instruments, such as Treasury bonds, Treasury bills, corporate bonds, sovereign government bonds, secured and unsecured loans, and different types of derivatives based on these instruments. Pros and cons Among the advantages of collective trusts versus other investment vehicles are: economies of scale, low operating costs, ease and speed of establishment, pricing and fee flexibility, diversification and access to investment talent. Disadvantages include less transparency than traditional mutual funds, difficulty tracking performance, less oversight of management, and an inability to rollover to an Individual Retirement Account. References Wills and trusts Pensions Banking Financial services Retirement plans in the United States