The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
Financial inclusion is slowly gaining ground as more banks offer investment products for retail investors.
Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company (Metrobank) Executive Vice President and Trust Officer of the Trust Banking Group said their unit investment trust funds (UITFs), which are pooled investments, had attracted investors who wanted higher yields on their money outside of the usual deposit products.
One of these UITFs is the peso-denominated Metro Aspire, which has attracted about 4,700 account holders who have invested an average of Php 17,000 since it was offered in the last quarter of 2015.
Minimum investment for this product is Php 5,000 and investors can add at least Php 1,000 monthly. Minimum holding period is three years.
Funds placed in this product are invested in bonds and shares of companies listed with the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE). The funds are managed by Metrobank.
Tuplano said most of the investors in this product were first time investors who were existing Metrobank depositors and those who were enrolled in payroll accounts with the bank.
She explained that this product supported the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) financial inclusion program, which is targeted to increase the number of people within the reach of the formal banking system.
“This is a way of providing them the chance to invest in products that normally only big investors can afford,” she said.
A dollar-denominated UITF is also available for those who want to invest in companies listed overseas and have higher risk profile.
Funds placed in the Metro World Equity Feeder Fund (MWEFF) are managed by Luxembourg-based asset management firm Investec and are placed in shares of global companies like Google, Citibank and US-based gaming and entertainment company Activision Blizzard.
Tuplano said these companies had growth stories that investors could rely on to provide better yields for their money.
Metrobank is also set to launch another UITF to be called the Asian Investment Grade Bond Fund, which will be invested in bonds of investment grade countries in Asia.
Tuplano said all these UITFs were targeted to allow more people the chance to grow their money by having shares in either local or overseas listed companies.