1 FTSE 100 share I want to keep forever – and it’s on offer

Scottish Mortgage Investment Fund (LSE:SMT) is one of only a few funds listed on the FTSE100and it's one of the few stocks that I can see myself holding for a very, very, very long time.

So why is that?

Fund flexibility

Obviously, Scottish Mortgage as an investment fund is inherently more flexible than a house builder like Vistry or a bank like LloydsThe company invests in a range of companies in growth-oriented industries and is able to change direction depending on market conditions and new opportunities.

Since its inception, the Trust has proved very adept at investing in the success of other companies, picking many of today's big winners before most of us had even heard of them.

In addition, the fund has a flexible mandate and can invest in a range of public and private companies from different sectors, regions and company sizes.

The company simply adjusts its positioning based on its assessment of long-term growth trends.

And that makes it easier for me to say I have a 'perpetual position'. Investments like Vistry or Lloyds are not as flexible as a trust, although I like both stocks.

Commitment to British growth

What is particularly attractive about Scottish Mortgage is the opportunity to invest in shares that are predominantly quoted in dollars.

Direct investments in US listed companies such as NVIDIA (which is Scottish Mortgage’s largest holding) usually means I incur platform and foreign exchange fees. On some platforms, such as Hargreaves Lansdownthat's really quite expensive.

Therefore, it is great to invest in these companies without those foreign exchange fees. Additionally, Scottish Mortgage does not experience the same exchange rate volatility that might occur when investing in a single US stock.

Exchange rates make a difference, as the net asset value (NAV) of the Trust's holdings is affected by currency fluctuations, but this difference is not as pronounced as with individual investments in shares denominated in currencies other than the UK.

A successful portfolio

There is no guarantee that Scottish Mortgage's portfolio will continue to outperform the market, but over the past decade the fund managers have selected a successful portfolio.

I admit that I am not 100% enthusiastic about all the investments that Scottish Mortgage has selected. I believe there is no guarantee that Moderna will deliver its drug pipeline. Plus Tesla Stocks are hugely expensive and need to dominate the autonomous driving market to justify this. And Ferrari The valuation has appeared excessive for some time.

Pursue	Hold
NVIDIA	6.8%
ASML	6.5%
Moderna	6%
Amazon	5.7%
Free Market	5.3%
Space exploration technologies	4.4%
Tesla	4.1%
PDD investments	3.5%
Ferrari	3.1%
Meituan	2.6%

But that's the benefit of a fund. The trust has around 50 investments. And while I'm uncertain about some of them, I'm very bullish on companies like SpaceX.

I have held this stock for a little over a year and bought it when the discount to net asset value was around 20%.

Fortunately, the stock is still on offer and is trading at a discount of around 11% to net asset value. I am convinced that it can be a long-term winner and so I recently contributed it to my daughter's pension.