RBC Asset Management Inc. on Monday announced the combining and renaming of its families of mutual funds in conjunction with the renewal of its fund prospectus.

Effective immediately, the Royal Mutual Fund and the RBC Advisor Funds families will be renamed under a single product line known as RBC Funds.

RBC Funds will continue to be offered through RBC Royal Bank branches and independent advisors. In a statement the company said the new fund name reflects the consistent corporate branding of RBC Financial Group. As an example, “Royal Dividend Fund” will be renamed as “RBC Dividend Fund”.

“RBC Asset Management now offers one integrated fund family, which includes load and no-load product offerings to meet a variety of portfolio needs,” said Brenda Vince, president, RBC Asset Management Inc. “Bringing our fund families together under the RBC name simplifies our product line for investors and their advisors.”

These changes are solely name-related and have no impact on the overall management, investment objectives or investment management of the funds. The changes are reflected in the renewal of the simplified prospectus.

In a separate release, RBC Asset Management changes to four mutual funds.

Effective immediately, minimum initial investments and balances for non-registered holdings of the RBC Canadian T-Bill Fund, the RBC Canadian Money Market Fund and the RBC $U.S. Money Market Fund have been lowered to $500 from $2,500. Minimum additional investments in non-registered plans are also lowered to $25 per month from $100 per month.

“The lower minimums provide greater flexibility for investors and clients who require secure, liquid investment solutions,” said Paul Butler, vice president, products, RBC Asset Management. “The change is also helpful to clients who have a small amount of money and wish to start a savings plan.”

As well, the company announced that distributions on the RBC Bond Fund will change from monthly to quarterly. Any distribution income for the fund will be paid out monthly up to September 30. Following this date, distributions of income will be quarterly.

“In challenging capital markets, fixed income investment strategies require greater flexibility,” said Butler, “Distribution of income on a quarterly basis will allow the fund greater opportunity to maximize its total return”.