<START> Investors get direct access to corporate bonds Corporate debt is in demand. With blue-chip companies currently higher rated than some European countries, investors have been keen to gain exposure to corporate debt as a reliable source of competitive income. Corporate bonds have widely only been accessible to investors through managed investment funds, but Tideway Investment Partners has paired up with online trading platform Selftrade to launch a bond account offering direct investment into debt issued by 10 different companies. The Managed Bond Account, as it is called, will target a yield of 7pc require a minimum investment of £10,000 and only be charged £7.50 per trade, unlike an investment fund which carries an annual charge of up to 2.5pc. The portfolio will be made up of debt from companies such as BUPA, Standard Life, Lloyds Bank, CO-OP, AXA and Abbey. Tideway chief investment officer, Peter Doherty, said: "Accessing the bond market directly as an individual investor is very challenging even for experienced market professionals. Tideway's new Managed Bond Account will help open up the corporate bond market so that individuals can reap the benefits of direct bond ownership. Two years ago the London Stock Exchange launched a platform called TradElect allowing investors to trade government and company bonds. This was the first time investors could buy corporate and sovereign debt directly, and choosing between 49 government bonds, or gilts, and 10 company bonds on the platform. The company bonds include those issued by Tesco, BT, National Grid, GlaxoSmithKline, Morgan Stanley, GE Capital and Enterprise Inns.