New investment approaches for risk-averse Canadians By Jason Heath on April 28, 2021 Old-school investors may find the capital preservation techniques they have relied on in the past won't work the same in the future. Advertisement Photo by Ono Kosuki from Pexels Bonds have long been the solution for investors seeking capital preservation and reducing portfolio volatility. But falling interest rates have made it tough to earn a fixed income return while preserving capital. Advertisement Advertisement The current weighted average yield to maturity for the FTSE Canada Universe Bond Index is about 1.72%. According to Morningstar’s 2019 Global Investor Experience Study, the asset-weighted median expense ratio for Canadian fixed income mutual funds was about 1.49% for investors receiving commission-based advice. For investors in fee-based accounts, it was 0.85%, plus management fees (often another 1%).