Anthony Bolton, investment director at Fidelity International, believes the troubles affecting collateralised debt obligations, where several hedge funds have reported losses, have much in common with the split capital investment trust debacle five years ago.

Speaking at Fund Forum in Monaco, Bolton said: "These CDOs are based on a model and the model is based on a set of assumptions. If something changes in the world and the assumptions prove wrong, the models and the structures will be wrong. It reminds me a lot of split level investment trusts."