Norwich Unit Trusts will offer a unit trust-linked retirement annuity from May 1, 1997, it announced last week. The product is intended to create wealth for retirement through long-term capital growth.
The unit trust-linked retirement annuity will invest in the Norwich Managed Bonus Fund, which in turn invests in a broad range of assets.
The Managed Bonus Fund satisfies the Prudential Investment Guidelines for pension and provident funds, having a maximum equity component of 75 percent. However, Norwich cautions that a unit trust-linked retirement annuity is volatile and offers no guarantees, so it is not prudent to invest all your life savings in this plan.
The unit trust-linked retirement annuity will offer all the tax and security features associated with a life office retirement annuity but at the same time will show the benefits of unit trust growth.
A minimum lump sum investment of R10 000 or regular monthly contributions of at least R200 are needed, and R1 000 in ad hoc contributions are also allowed.