Unit Investment Trust Funds (uitf)

[julz2006]

If we are talking of UITFs here, the portfolio/asset allocations are required to be disclosed in all marketing materials of the Bank, such as 40% equities if it is a balanced/equity fund or maximum of 20% in cash if it is a fixed income fund. Furthermore, Under BSP Circular 447, UITFs are required to do a quarterly disclosure to their subscribers, usually made available thru the bank's branches, which shows the present holdings as well as the allowable holdings of the UITF plus all charges and expenses that is borne by the fund. Lene is correct in that the bigger reputable banks do this monthly, sometimes on a weekly basis, and some even make these available on their webpage. But generally, even before you make a subscription, you have the right to know where the funds are currently invested, and what other instruments or securities they are allowed to invest in. Just go to the branch or you can ask their Trust Department directly.

 

...thanks doc peps..yeah,,was actually at their branch trying to have a go with it but the good lady from that dept(this is bdo in aurora) flatly said they cannot divulge infos like those(where the funds are being invested)...i argued no more...(and invested no more)..will look for something else..

Edited May 10, 2007 by julz2006

[spadon]

that's my problem din with bdo kaya i didn't invest with their uitf dati. bpi told me the breakdown of their investments kaagad, metrobank/axa told me sa foreign equity naman (since dollar-dominated uitf sya) kaya may trust factor din.

 

hindi ka din naman mag-iinvest sa isang bagay na hindi mo alam kung saan lang nila ilalagay yung pera mo.

Banks regularly report their respective UTIF's performance which you can access in their websites and fund performance reports (usually quarterly reports) in brochures at the banks branches. Fully disclosed are the asset classes and portfolio mix of each UTIF, including the Fund Manger's discussion of the Fund's strategy for the past reported period and Fund's outlook for the immediate future, historical NAVs, etc.

 

Not surprised bank personnel not helpful, I've had the same experience - most seem to have a hazy knowledge about this. Pity!

[spadon]

Anybody knows the latest developments on REITs? Seems the right environment to launch REITs is now...........

[golfer697]

...thanks doc peps..yeah,,was actually at their branch trying to have a go with it but the good lady from that dept(this is bdo in aurora) flatly said they cannot divulge infos like those(where the funds are being invested)...i argued no more...(and invested no more)..will look for something else..

 

 

I find BDOs tellers & most of their managers to be below par. And their priority is servicing the sales ladies payrolls & their tenants! Most of them don't understand what they are doing!!! I try talking with the marketing officers who are even more informed than the managers!! Maybe the tellers are glorified sales clerks from SM??? I even reported one bank manager to the head office!! However the same thing is true for other banks too. I tried to open a UITF account with BPI & they discouraged me from doing so, saying it was too risky. They tried to shift me to their 5 year locked in time deposit!! Metrobank keeps aggressively promoting their AXA & tries to shift clients there but the returns so far are lower than UITFs.

[Guest lene]

Sadly, I think the problem is that there are some bank frontliners who are not too knowledgable regarding the product or find the internal procedure of processing the transaction tedious so they "discourage" clients from investing in UITFs. Normally, it is the marketing officers who are trained to sell the product correctly; even some branch managers are not very knowledgable about the product. Which in itself is a pity since their actions tend to reflect on the bank itself. Like in the case of julz2006, the action of the BDO personnel will create a bad impression on BDO for him.

 

If you are not satisfied with the bank person you are dealing with ( usually the frontliner), request that you talk to an officer about the product. They should be able to address all your inquiries and concerns. Also, do your own research by checking out the website of the bank.

[julz2006]

..copy....thanks lene..tc!!

[CodenameV]

I've tried Metrobank and BDO's UITF and I find BDO to be much more transparent. BDO's trust department issues two advisories weekly (UITF and Economic outlook) aside from their monthly summary that's available on their site. Don't rely on the branch personnel for advice as they are not trained or experienced in knowing the ins and outs of such instruments, rather, they just know how to do the processing. You can talk to BDO's trust department for questions.

[freezer]

yup, this happend to me dati. the lady was aggresively telling me to invest invest invest in the AXA dollar uitf, since i have a metrobank dollar account naman daw, that it doesn't earn me that much in interest and the usual bullshit they tell you. napa-oo naman ako since maganda yung babae.

 

bad trip hindi maganda yung investment ko, tsk tsk tsk

 

I once worked in these kind of investment / financial services and i would say that those are variable insurances and not UITF. The returns are low simply because a part of your investment were paid for life insurance which is only 25% of your total investment and not 125% (That was when I handle those kind of services) Thus, you're principal is a bit lower to be traded. On a lighter side, Variable Life is much better specially when God ask you to be with him this year. :hypocritesmiley: Bottomline, try to diversify your investments and guage your risk factor. Peace!

Edited May 15, 2007 by freezer

[Dr_PepPeR]

guys, what do you think of the ltncd offered by bpi? kausap ko kasi yung manager ng bpi kanina sa f. castillo malapit sa office namin and he was offering it to me. nasa 6% ata ang interest per quarter and other things. sabi ko padalhan nya ako ng literature para mapag-aralan ng mabuti.

 

looks like the same banana if you ask me.

 

The rate for the BPI Long Term Negotiable Certificate of Deposit is 6.125 per annum, interest payable every quarter to the holder. Good enough rate if you are an individual and hold it to maturity to get it tax-exempt. But it is competing against the BSP Special Deposit Account which is giving 8.0% gross per annum for 184 days. BPI will have to really push their LTNCDs to their clients.

[Dr_PepPeR]

ganun na pala kataas ang mga sda ngayon? kelan issue date po nito and minimum amount for investment?

 

thanks a bunch!

 

To avail of the BSP's SDA, you have to go through the Bank's Treasury Department if they can accommodate you. If not, you will have to go through the Trust Department and open a trust account. It depends on each bank on what the lot sizes will be, but for the BSP SDA itself, the minimum lot size is P10 Million and multiples of P1 Million thereafter.

 

The SDA was opened for trust accounts last May 10.

[golfer697]

Sadly, I think the problem is that there are some bank frontliners who are not too knowledgable regarding the product or find the internal procedure of processing the transaction tedious so they "discourage" clients from investing in UITFs. Normally, it is the marketing officers who are trained to sell the product correctly; even some branch managers are not very knowledgable about the product. Which in itself is a pity since their actions tend to reflect on the bank itself. Like in the case of julz2006, the action of the BDO personnel will create a bad impression on BDO for him.

 

If you are not satisfied with the bank person you are dealing with ( usually the frontliner), request that you talk to an officer about the product. They should be able to address all your inquiries and concerns. Also, do your own research by checking out the website of the bank.

 

 

I agree with lene. I deal with the marketing officers!!! Aside from being knowledgeable, they know how to treat you right!!!

[golfer697]

yup, this happend to me dati. the lady was aggresively telling me to invest invest invest in the AXA dollar uitf, since i have a metrobank dollar account naman daw, that it doesn't earn me that much in interest and the usual bullshit they tell you. napa-oo naman ako since maganda yung babae.

 

bad trip hindi maganda yung investment ko, tsk tsk tsk

 

 

Hehehe...Correct!!! Buti n lang hindi maganda yung nagaalok sa akin kaya hindi ako umoo!!!

[golfer697]

buti nga natapos na din eh! withdraw na ako kaagad.

 

sana sa kanya ako nag-withdrawal pero fr na yun! :mtc:

 

 

He he and hindi yan applicable in this topic!!

[Guest lene]

guys, what do you think of the ltncd offered by bpi? kausap ko kasi yung manager ng bpi kanina sa f. castillo malapit sa office namin and he was offering it to me. nasa 6% ata ang interest per quarter and other things. sabi ko padalhan nya ako ng literature para mapag-aralan ng mabuti.

 

looks like the same banana if you ask me.

 

this is a bit late since i think the offer period ended last week but personally, even if the rate looks pretty good at the moment, i wouldn't buy this product. it is tax-exempt to the investor if you hold on for the whole term of 5 years and 1 month. however, i don't think the low rates are sustainable within the 5 year period and sooner or later, the market rates will go up,maybe even higher than the 6.125% net. if the client sells it back within the period, he gets hit with the tax plus he gets hit with the loss on principal, should market rates be higher than his ltncd coupon rate. in short, for him not to lose, he is stuck with the paper for the whole term. as dr. pepper said earlier, BPI would really have to push the product since they competed head-on with the SDA.

 

having said that, i heard the reception was very good. offer size was supposedly 2 billion with a greenshoe option but bpi alone sold more than that, not including the volume standard chartered sold. goes to show that a reputable bank will never have problems selling a product to a public that trusts its name.

[golfer697]

kumuha nga ako minimum placement pero parang nag-aalala ako ngayon kasi baka tumaas ang interest rate ng mga banks pero mukhang hindi naman ganun kataas. sana nga pala nag-invest na lang ako sa stocks!!!!

 

 

Yes... 6.125% too low & 5 years 1 month too long!!