Real estate funds halt redemptions

Winnipeg-based Great-West Life Assurance Co. and London, Ont.-based London Life Insurance Co. have announced temporary moratoriums on redemptions in two real estate funds. Great-West Life Real Estate Fund No. 1 and London Life Real Estate Fund 2.17G are segregated funds that hold diversified portfolios of high-quality, income-producing properties. Given the current economic environment, redemption requests have recently increased. In accordance with the terms of the information folders governing the funds, the companies say that a temporary moratorium on redemptions is necessary to ensure equitable treatment for all investors in the funds. The temporary moratorium was put in place on Dec. 15, 2008.

Fidelity aims at high net-worth investors

A new set of investment pools from Toronto-based Fidelity Investments Canada ULC targets high net-worth clients. The Fidelity Private Investment Program features nine pools covering various asset classes and volatility levels, including Canadian and global equities, fixed-income, money market and two diversified balanced pools. Managing the pools are portfolio managers from Fidelity Management and Research Co. and Fidelity-owned institutional investment-management firm Pyramis Global Advisors. All equity and balanced pools within the program are available within the Fidelity corporate structure as well with 5% and 8% tax-efficient cash-flow options. The pools are available in B-class and I-class units, thus providing advisors with the flexibility to negotiate fees with clients. Advisor commissions are 0%-5% for front-end sales in both classes. Trailing commissions are 1% for B-class units and 0%-1.25% for I-class units of the equity and balanced pools. Trailing commissions for the premium fixed-income private pool are 0.5% for B-class units and 0%-0.75% for I-class units; trailers for the premium money market private pool are 0.25% for B-class units and 0%-0.5% for I-class units. For both classes, management fees vary for all pools and decrease as assets contributed increase. For example, the management fee for Fidelity Canadian Equity Private Pool B-class units is 1.75% for the first $250,000, decreasing to 1.55% when assets reach more than $2 million; for the I-class units, the management fee is 0.75%-2% for the first $250,000, decreasing to 0.55%-1.8% when assets reach more than $2 million. The minimum investment for each pool is $150,000 or, with a minimum of $500,000, investors can use the custom portfolio service to spread their investments across any of the pools.

Morgan joins Mackenzie

George Morgan has joined Toronto-based Mackenzie Financial Corp. as senior vice president and portfolio manager with its Mackenzie Cundill Investment Management subsidiary. Morgan will manage Mackenzie Cundill American Class Fund and provide research coverage for North American equities and the global energy sector. Morgan is an experienced global value investor who brings many years of investment experience to the Cundill team; he has been a member of the Cundill Investment Advisory Committee for the past two years. Prior to his position at Cundill, Morgan was a senior officer and portfolio manager with Franklin Templeton Investments Corp. in Toronto from 1995 to 2000. In January 2001, he transferred to Nassau, Bahamas, and was named the lead portfolio manager of Templeton Growth Fund Ltd., one of the best-known global equity funds in Canada. Morgan managed that fund until he left the organization in October 2006. Prior to joining Templeton, Morgan was a senior analyst and portfolio co-manager for Waterloo-based Sun Life Investment Management.

AGF launches dollar-cost averaging fund

Toronto-based AGF Funds Inc. has introduced AGF Dollar Cost Averaging Fund, into which clients can make lump-sum investments over a 12-month period. That money will be systematically transferred in increments into the designated AGF funds of the client’s choice. Clients may choose their designated funds from more than 50 AGF mutual funds across a broad range of asset classes. AGF Dollar Cost Averaging Fund automatically divides an investment into smaller regular purchases, which can help lower the impact of dramatic market swings, says AGF. Dollar-cost averaging is the discipline of investing a fixed amount at regular intervals, averaging out the purchase price as the markets move up or down. By investing systematically, the dollar-cost averaging process may help to reduce the risk associated with timing a single, lump-sum investment. Advisor commissions for front-end sales are 0%-6%, 5% for deferred sales or 2.5% for the low-load option. Redemption fees begin at 5.5% in Year 1 and end at zero after Year 7 for the regular DSC schedule, or begin at 3% in Year 1 and end at zero after Year 3 for the low-load schedule. Trailing commissions are 1% for front-end sales and 0.5% for deferred and low-load options. Management fees are 1% for MF-series units and 0.85% for D-series. Minimum investment is $1,000.

@page_break@Compiled by Clare O’Hara (cohara@investmentexecutive.com).