Axa Wealth has added Axa’s Lifetime Distribution fund to its retirement range.
The fund, available only through Axa Wealth for the next five months, is a cautiously managed portfolio that offers a monthly income.
Key features
■ Investors can choose to take a monthly income or have it reinvested
■ Fund will target a lower volatility
■ Largely invested in large cap UK companies and UK government index-linked gilts
■ The index-linked gilts held within the portfolio are managed on a ‘buy and maintain’ basis to reduce trading costs and keep overall portfolio charges low.
Richard Marwood, lead fund manager of Axa Lifetime Distribution fund, said: “Broadly speaking we invest in quality, stable assets, while maintaining a diversified central asset mix that is consistent over time.
“As part of the overall package of retirement options, this meets many of the investors’ requirements without feeling ‘locked in’ as you might with an annuity.”
Adviser Verdict
David Trenner, technical director of Intelligent Pensions, said: “The old SunLife Distribution fund was a market leader in the mid 1990s, but arguably got too big. The firm I was with at the time moved about £4m out of it in 1996, 1997-ish.
“This Lifetime Distribution fund follows the approach of some providers in thinking that drawdown out of a managed fund works, but it does not in many cases.”
