Pimco, the world's biggest bond fund manager, is to stop charging its investors for analyst research, joining rivals Vanguard and JPMorgan Asset Management in shouldering costs ahead of a change to European trading rules.

The investment company, which manages $1.61tn of assets, will cover the expense of using external analyst research from its own pocket, according to a person familiar with the matter. In doing so, Pimco gets ahead of rule changes that will potentially dent the profits of investment managers and force them to reveal more information about the fees they charge investors.