Debate continues to rage over when–not if–the Federal Reserve will begin tightening interest rates. The discussion has prompted some fund firms to look for ways to profit from the speculation. Instead of jumping into any new solutions, investors should consider this established player.

When it comes to the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy, uncertainty reigns supreme. Many critics have identified the Fed’s quantitative easing program as the source of the food and commodity price inflation that triggered the current unrest in the Middle East and North Africa. Inflation hawks have called for action before rising prices become a crisis in the US.

But the Fed’s is tasked with a dual mandate of achieving full employment while maintaining price stability. Consequently, there’s little incentive for the Fed to stop building up the US money supply.

As a result, a growing number of analysts have warned that when the Fed starts to hike interest rates, it won’t do so in a gradual way. The rate increases, these analysts say, will come fast and sharp.

As those worries build toward a crescendo, a number of mutual fund firms have said they may launch funds focused on floating-rate loans to provide investors with a cushion against rapidly rising interest rates. But there’s already a floating-rate fund on the market that serves that purpose and is inexpensive to boot.

Fidelity Floating Rate High Income (FFRHX, 800-544-4774) launched in 2002. Christine McConnell, who takes a conservative approach to portfolio management, has helmed the fund since its inception.

Many of the fund’s peers, and new floating-rate funds, load up on highly illiquid or poorly rated loans. But McConnell places a premium on liquidity and holds many higher-quality loans–the portfolio’s average credit rating is BB. McConnell also favors debt from large-cap issuers and doesn’t rely on leverage.

The fund invests primarily in loans to asset-heavy companies that carry strong collateral claims, providing ample recourse in the unlikely event that a company goes under. And unlike many managers who delegate the bulk of the research, McConnell insists on scrutinizing and vetting each loan herself.

Bank loans entail a high degree of credit risk and can be extremely volatile. However, McConnell does an excellent job of risk management. In 2008, a year in which the average bank loan fund lost more than 30 percent, Fidelity Floating Rate High Income gave up only 16.5 percent.

The fund’s beta, a measure of its volatility relative to its benchmark, is only 0.52 relative the S&P/LSTA Leveraged Loan Index, and just 0.23 relative to the broader Barclays Capital US Aggregate Bond Index.

But the fund isn’t a pure play on floating-rate bank loans; McConnell devotes about 12 percent of investable assets to short-dated, plain-vanilla bonds that offer high yields.

Investors should favor managers who are willing to seek out opportunities beyond their niche without putting too much capital at risk. The financial crisis has served as a grim reminder that shifting some assets to cash is a prudent idea. A cash stake amounting to 14 percent of assets provides investors an extra layer of protection.