Fund Merger affecting Matthews Asia - Asia Dividend Fund
We have been informed by the directors of Matthews Asia Funds (“Matthews Asia”) that it will be closing its Asia Dividend Fund. We feature the Matthews Asia - Asia Dividend Fund, in two currency variants, in our defined fund ranges.
BACKGROUND
As part of a review of its fund range, Matthews Asia has decided to merge its Asia Dividend Fund (the “Affected Fund”) into its Emerging Markets Equity Fund (the “Proposed Receiving Fund”) on 24 January 2025. In anticipation of the merger, Matthews Asia will stop accepting investment into the Affected Fund with effect from 10 January 2025 (the “Subscription Suspension Date”).
ACTION RL360 WILL BE TAKING IN REGARD TO MERGER
The Proposed Receiving Fund is not available in our Savings and Investments fund range or Protection fund range. Therefore we will instead switch plan owner holdings into an alternative receiving fund, on 9 January 2025 (the “Switch Date”). Please see below for details on the alternative receiving funds we have selected;
For LifePlan, Oracle, Paragon, Quantum and Regular Savings Plan (including Malaysia variants), and Kudos plans:
Unit holdings in the Affected Fund will be automatically switched into the Guinness Asian Equity Income fund, the share class of which will be the same currency as the current Affected Fund holdings, on the Switch Date.
The Alternative Receiving Fund has been selected as it is similar to the Affected Fund. Please refer to the Appendix in the sample letter opposite for comparative information between the Affected Fund and the Alternative Receiving Fund.
| AFFECTED FUND: Name and ISIN | ALTERNATIVE RECEIVING FUND: Name and ISIN |
|---|---|
| Matthews Asia Dividend "A" (GBP) ACC -LU0594556309 | Guinness Asian Equity Income C Acc GBP - IE00BVYPNP33 |
| Matthews Asia Dividend "A" (USD) ACC -LU0491817952 | Guinness Asian Equity Income C Acc USD - IE00BVYPNQ40 |
For Protected Lifestyle plans:
As we do not feature the Guinness Asian Equity Income in the Protected Lifestyle fund range, we will instead switch plan owner holdings into an alternative fund in the range, the abrdn Liquidity (Lux) GBP A2 Acc fund, on the Switch Date.
The Alternative Receiving Fund is a money market fund and has a different risk reward profile to the Affected Fund, which is an Asia-Pacific Equity fund. As the Alternative Receiving Fund has a lower risk/return profile than the Affected Fund, it is expected that returns over the long-term will be lower than the Affected Fund. Please refer to the Appendix in the sample letter opposite for comparative information between the Affected Fund and the Alternative Receiving Fund.
| AFFECTED FUND: Name and ISIN | ALTERNATIVE RECEIVING FUND: Name and ISIN |
|---|---|
| Matthews Asia Dividend "A" (USD) ACC -LU0491817952 | abrdn Liquidity (Lux) USD A2 Acc - LU0049014870 |
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We have now closed the Affected Fund, in both currency variants, to new business and switches in with immediate effect. Existing investors can remain invested until the date we switch them. Any holdings in the Affected Fund will be automatically switched, and any regular premium allocation redirected (if applicable), into the applicable Alternative Receiving Fund for their product.
Notification of the closure has been sent to affected clients, or their appointed investment adviser, primarily by email, with letters sent by post where we do not hold a valid email, and to those who prefer to receive letters by post. Servicing agents have also been notified.
If plan owners/investment advisers are happy with the above changes, they do not need to take any action and the changes will happen automatically within impacted plans. However, should they wish to switch to a different fund in the range, they can do so . If they would like this to happen before the Switch Date, we must receive their instructions by 5.00pm UK time on 8 January 2025. Switches can be submitted by completing and returning a Fund switch instruction form or, if registered for online switching, conducting a switch online fast and efficiently.
For more information on Matthews Asia funds visit: https://global.matthewsasia.com/