PropertySep 1 2016

Canada Life lifts suspension on UK property fund

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Canada Life lifts suspension on UK property fund

Canada Life has reopened its UK property fund to daily dealing but will continue to apply a fair value adjustment.

The Canlife UK Property life and pension funds, which contain a small amount of retail money, have been reopened with immediate effect after the company suspended trading on 6 July after a surge of withdrawals following the UK’s decision to leave the EU.

Retail property funds run by Standard Life Investments, Aviva Investors, Columbia Threadneedle, M&G and Henderson all remain suspended.

The domestic property market has begun to show signs of stabilisation in recent weeks, but Canada Life said that valuations remain uncertain.

A fair value adjustment of -7 per cent will continue to apply to the portfolio, the firm added, though this will be reassessed on a weekly basis.

David Marchant, chief investment officer of Canada Life, said: “Real estate investment and occupational transaction activity has been subdued [since the suspension], and the market outlook remains unclear.

“Our external valuers continue to impose a caution to the accuracy of values in the lack of market transparency. However, we have been closely monitoring cash flows within the fund and, following the successful completion of two real estate sales during August, liquidity has been improved to a level which we expect can meet redemption requests and ongoing liquidity requirements.”