Following the suspension of trading in the Aegon Janus Henderson UK Property (AOR) fund in March 2022, we’ve had notification from the underlying fund manager (Janus Henderson Investors) that the underlying fund is closing on 16 June 2022.
What this means for investors
When this happens, cash proceeds will be received from the underlying fund manager. We’ll use these proceeds to invest in the underlying Legal & General UK Property fund, at which point any investments held in the Aegon Janus Henderson UK Property (AOR) fund will unsuspend.
However, due to the nature of property investment, a small percentage of cash proceeds will be returned at a later date. As a result of this, we’re implementing some temporary changes from 16 June 2022:
- The Aegon Janus Henderson UK Property (AOR) fund name will change to the Scottish Equitable Legal & General UK Property ex Janus Henderson (ARC) fund.
- The fund will invest predominantly in the underlying Legal & General UK Property fund. From then, investors will be able to buy, sell, switch or transfer into or out of the fund.
- The Fund Charge* will reduce from 0.84% to 0.63% to reflect investment in the underlying Legal & General UK Property fund.
When the final cash proceeds have been received from Janus Henderson Investors, we’ll formally close the renamed Scottish Equitable Legal & General UK Property ex Janus Henderson (ARC) fund. When this happens, we’ll switch investors into the Scottish Equitable Legal & General UK Property (ARC) fund. We’ll write to impacted investors when this happens.
*This is on top of any product or adviser charge and includes a fixed management fee, plus expenses that vary with the day-to-day costs of running the fund.
Payments
Any payments intended to buy units while the fund was suspended were placed in investors cash facility of the relevant product. Any money remaining in the cash facility will remain there until investors give us a clear instruction to invest it, if they wish to do so.
From 16 June 2022, all contributions, including regular payments, single payments, switches and transfers, which are intended to buy units in the Aegon Janus Henderson UK Property (AOR) fund will continue into the renamed Scottish Equitable Legal & General UK Property ex Janus Henderson (ARC) fund in line with the original investment instructions given. This will continue unless we’re given an alternative instruction.
Withdrawals
If investors placed a withdrawal request after the fund suspended trading and that request hasn’t changed, once the event has gone through and the units are held under the renamed Scottish Equitable Legal & General UK Property ex Janus Henderson (ARC) fund, the withdrawal request will then take place.
If investors had an instruction in place for regular or ad-hoc withdrawals, only hold this fund and there is no cash in the cash facility to cover withdrawals, then this will resume after 16 June 2022. This will continue unless we’re given an alternative instruction.
Rebalances
From 16 June 2022, any rebalances that are triggered on accounts will update to include the renamed Scottish Equitable Legal & General UK Property ex Janus Henderson (ARC) fund in the calculation, and units will be bought or sold to bring the portfolio in line with the model portfolio or investment strategy.
More about the Scottish Equitable Legal & General UK Property (ARC) fund
We’ve selected this fund as we believe it to be the most broadly comparable fund available within our fund range, in terms of what the fund invests in and what it aims to do.
The fund aims to achieve a combination of income and capital growth by investing mainly in a diverse portfolio of UK commercial properties. Derivatives may also be used for the purposes of efficient portfolio management (EPM).
For more information on the underlying fund, you can view the fund factsheet via the ‘Fund prices and performance’ page of our website by selecting ‘Aegon Retirement Choices (ARC)’.
There’s no guarantee the fund will meet its objectives. The value of an investment can fall as well as rise and is not guaranteed. Investors could get back less than they’ve paid in.
What current investors need to do
If existing investors are happy for these changes to take place, then they don’t need to do anything.
However, if investors prefer, they can redirect any future investment from the renamed Scottish Equitable Legal & General UK Property ex Janus Henderson (ARC) fund from 16 June 2022, free of any switch charge, into an alternative fund or funds of their choice. If investors wish to do this they should complete an alteration of fund choice form and return it to us as soon as possible.
If you would like more information, please speak to a financial adviser. If you don’t have a financial adviser, you can visit moneyhelper.org.uk/choosing-a-financial-adviser to find the right one for you.