History of the MSCI World Index

The MSCI World Index was introduced in 1969 by MSCI, and was originally intended to measure the performance of markets in the developed world. It quickly became popular as a benchmark for global equity investments due to its broad diversification and representative coverage of developed market economies.

The index has evolved over the years:

  • In 1988, the index was restructured and began using market-capitalization-weighted compositions.
  • In the 1990s, the index was further refined and gained broader global appeal, becoming the standard for global investment funds.
  • Today, the MSCI World Index is followed worldwide by institutional investors, pension funds, investment advisors, and other stakeholders in the financial sector.

Why investing in the MSCI World via ETF's?

- The MSCI World index offers a worldwide diversification and gives exposure to a wide range of industries

- Easy to buy via ETFs

- Low fees : expense ratio (TER) of MSCI World ETFs ranges between 0.12% and 0.50% per year

- Possibility of passive investing due to a proven track record

 

 

The importance of a long-term horizon in shares & periodic investing!

Above you see the evolution of the MSCI World from 1999 to 2024.

While everyone is currently chasing the MSCI World & books are being published such as 'The Hammock Investor',

people forget that this index has not always done great for people with an investment horizon of a maximum of 15 years.

Everyone talks about long-term investing, but what exactly is 'long term'?

Count on at least 20 years! So much? Yes!, because the MSCI World 2000 & 2015 did not achieve any returns.

Yes, if you entered the MSCI World in 2000 and exited in 2015, you would not have been able to beat inflation.

However, if you have entered periodically during this time period, you will have achieved good returns.

Conclusion? Investing is a matter of discipline, staying invested & buying more periodically. Don't try to time the market!