Your Investment Options

The Fund offers members flexibility when it comes to the investment of your retirement savings.

You can choose where to invest your retirement fund savings by selecting one of two investment options:

THE AUTOMATIC LIFE STAGE INVESTMENT OPTION

HIGH GROWTH GROWTH MEDIUM GROWTH
Up to age 56 At age 57 At age 58

The biggest proportion of the money in the Fund is invested in the Balanced Portfolio

  • High Growth
  • Growth
  • Medium Growth

This portfolio invests in

  • various shares
  • listed property
  • bonds
  • cash in the domestic and global markets.
MEDIUM CONSERVATIVE CONSERVATIVE STABLE
At age 59 At age 60 At age 61

The De-risking Portfolio

  • Medium Conservative
  • Conservative
  • Stable

is used to transition members’ investments as they approach retirement. It aims to deliver more stable, lower-risk returns during this period.

Over the past three years this portfolio’s return was 7.9% per year.

Over the past five years the return was 9.7% per year.

FINAL YEAR
PORTFOLIO
From age 62 to 63

The primary aim of the Final Year Portfolio is to prevent the loss of money. As we would expect, it has delivered the lowest return over the past three years. Members are invested in this portfolio for only the last year before their retirement.

Members who are younger than 57 are invested in the High Growth portfolio. Their Fund Credit is automatically moved into a less volatile portfolio from age 57 onwards until they are invested in the Stable portfolio by age 61.

Automatic Life Stage is an appropriate long-term investment strategy for members with a moderate risk profile.

  • Your retirement savings are automatically allocated to an investment portfolio based on your years to normal retirement (age 63).
  • Automatic Life Stage is a ‘balanced’ investment approach where the investment managers are given discretion to decide on the most appropriate equity content of each portfolio based on their readings of investment conditions.

THE AUTOMATIC LIFE STAGE INVESTMENT OPTION

This portfolio is suitable for all members of the Fund who are planning to retire at age 63, who have a moderate risk profile, and do not wish to be actively involved in managing their own investments.

Who Manages these portfolios?

Under this arrangement, the Trustees have selected Allan Gray, Prudential and Coronation to manage the Growth portfolio via the Investment Solutions multimanager platform.

The Growth, Medium Growth, Medium Conservative portfolios will also be managed by the above three managers, as well as Prescient Investment Management, in varying proportions depending on the portfolio.

The Stable portfolio will be managed by Prescient Investment Management, Prudential Portfolio Managers and Investment Solutions.

How does Automatic Life Stage work?

  • Your funds will be allocated to a portfolio based on your number of years to normal retirement age (63).
  • The Fund’s administrators automatically switch you from more volatile (High Growth) to less volatile (Conservative/Stable) portfolios as you get closer to retirement.
  • The actual returns earned on the portfolio in which you are invested are added to your Fund Credit on a daily basis.
  • You do not have to make any investment decisions unless your circumstances change and you want to move to one of the other investment options.

THE LIFE STAGE CHOICE INVESTMENT OPTION

HIGH GROWTH GROWTH MEDIUM GROWTH
MEDIUM CONSERVATIVE CONSERVATIVE STABLE
CASH SHARIAH

In the Life Stage Choice investment option the member needs to decide on the investment portfolio. The member is entirely responsible for any switches and movements between portfolios.

This investment strategy option offers members the same range of portfolios as those offered under Automatic Life Stage, but also includes the Cash portfolio, which is 100% invested in cash and short-dated money-market instruments. Under this option, members must decide in which portfolios they want to invest and must switch portfolios as and when they deem appropriate. There is no automatic movement between investment portfolios within this option.

Who Should Consider Life Stage Choice?

  • Members who wish to retire early and want to protect their investments against excessive volatility.
  • Members who are planning to resign and want to protect their capital.
  • Members who want to remain in an aggressive/ higher risk investment for longer, say after age 57.
  • Members who have other investments and want to remain in an aggressive/higher risk investment for longer.
  • Members who are confident of making their own investment decisions.

Who Manages these portfolios?

Under this arrangement, the Trustees have selected Allan Gray, Prudential and Coronation to manage the Growth portfolio via the Investment Solutions multimanager platform.

The Growth, Medium Growth, Medium Conservative portfolios will also be managed by the above three managers, as well as Prescient Investment Management, in varying proportions depending on the portfolio.

The Stable portfolio will be managed by Prescient Investment Management, Prudential Portfolio Managers and Investment Solutions.

How does Life Stage Choice work?

  • You select one of the eight portfolios described under the Automatic Life Stage or the Cash portfolio, based on your needs and retirement savings plan.
  • The actual returns earned on the portfolio in which you are invested will be added to your Fund Credit on a daily basis.
  • All investment decisions are your own responsibility.
  • You can move to another portfolio within Life Stage Choice at any time, free of charge. You will need to complete a Switching Form and fax it to the number on the form. Your switching request will be processed within five working days after date of receipt.