what is a unit trust ut 
a unit trust is an unincorporated mutual fund structure that holds assets and provides profits to individual unit owners instead of reinvesting into the fund a unit trust is established under a trust deed and the investor is the beneficiary monty rakusen getty imagesunderstanding unit trusts uts a unit trust is a collective investment packaged under a trust deed the fund manager may invest in bonds or shares on the stock market and the fund is split into units which investors purchase unit trusts provide access to securities mortgages and cash equivalents unit trust structures vary by region but are offered in guernsey jersey fiji ireland new zealand australia canada namibia kenya singapore south africa the u k the isle of man and malaysia in asia a unit trust is the same as a mutual fund in canada these investments are called income trusts managing a unit trustfund managers direct the portfolio of unit trusts trustees are assigned to ensure that the fund manager runs the trust following the fund s investment goals and objectives and are often fiduciaries protecting the best interest of the beneficiaries owners of unit trusts are called unit holders and they hold the rights to the trust s assets registrars act as middlemen or liaisons for both parties 