Closure of P47 Ninety One GS Global Energy Fund

01 Sep 2021

We have received notification from Ninety One Global Strategy Fund (the “Company”) of their decision to merge the underlying fund of P47 Ninety One GS Global Energy into the Ninety One Global Strategy Fund – Global Environment Fund (the “Receiving Fund”) with effect from 8 October 2021 as the Company believe this to be in the best interests of investors due to a steady decline in assets of the underlying fund of P47 Ninety One GS Global Energy. Dealings in the underlying fund of P47 Ninety One GS Global Energy will cease to be accepted after 5 October 2021 (the “Closure Date”).

Consequently, the fund named above (the “Closing Fund”) will be closing and will be removed from the FPIL mirror fund range from 8 October 2021 (the “Closure Date”). No new single or regular contributions will be permitted into the Closing Fund, whether from new or existing investors. From the date of this letter, only continuing regular contributions will be permitted into the Closing Fund until the Closure Date. These ongoing contributions into the Closing Fund may not be increased from their current level.

When an FPIL fund is closed we select another fund from our internal fund range (the “Default Fund”) to act as an alternative investment for the resulting proceeds being switched out of the Closing Fund and for any future contributions that may be directed into the Closing Fund.

FPIL has taken the decision to not follow the merger and instead we have selected P69 BlackRock Sustainable Energy (USD) to act as the Default Fund for this closure, due to the Default Fund showing a higher level of similarity to the Closing Fund.

Affected policyholders can choose to switch their current holdings in the Closing Fund and/or redirect their premiums or contributions into a different fund in the FPIL range from the Default Fund if they wish to do so. Policyholders can do this at any time but if they wish to override the transfer or redirection to the Default Fund that we have selected, they must provide us with alternative instructions by 3pm UK time on 1 October 2021.

Details of the Closing Fund and the Default Fund are set out in the table overleaf.

	Closing Fund	Default Fund
Fund name	Ninety One GS Global Energy	BlackRock Sustainable Energy
Fund code	P47	P69
Currency	USD	USD
Investment objective of the underlying fund	The Sub-Fund aims to achieve capital growth by investing in the equity instruments of internationally quoted companies throughout the world involved in the exploration, production or distribution of oil, gas and other energy sources. In addition, investments may also be made in companies which service the energy industry. The Sub-Fund may invest up to 5% of its net asset value in onshore securities issued in Mainland China (for example, China A Shares and B Shares). The Sub-Fund may use derivatives for the purposes of hedging and/or efficient portfolio management. The Sub-Fund is actively managed. This means the Investment Manager is free to select investments with the aim of achieving the Sub-Fund’s objectives. The Sub-Fund uses the MSCI AC World Energy + Global Environment ex Select GICS 10-40 (Net Return) Index for performance comparison and risk management. The Sub-Fund does not seek to replicate the composite index. It will generally hold assets that are components of the composite index, but not in the same proportions, and it is allowed to hold assets which are not components of the composite index. The Sub-Fund will therefore generally look different from the composite index, and the Investment Manager will monitor performance differences. The Sub-Fund currently do not intend to enter into any securities lending transactions. The prior approval of the SFC will be sought and at least one month’s prior notice would be given to shareholders should there be a change in such intention.	To maximize total return by investing globally at least 70% of the underlying fund’s total assets in the equity securities of sustainable energy companies. Sustainable energy companies are those which are engaged in alternative energy and energy technologies including: renewable energy technology; renewable energy developers; alternative fuels; energy efficiency; enabling energy and infrastructure. The underlying fund will not invest in companies that are classified in the following sectors (as defined by Global Industry Classification Standard): coal and consumables; oil and gas exploration and production; and integrated oil and gas. The assessment of the level of engagement in each activity or sector may be based on percentage of revenue, a defined total revenue threshold, or any connection to a restricted activity regardless of the amount of revenue received. The companies are rated by the Investment Adviser based on their ability to manage the risks and opportunities associated with alternative energy and energy technologies and their environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) risk and opportunity credentials, such as their leadership and governance framework, which is considered essential for sustainable growth, their ability to strategically manage longer-term issues surrounding ESG and the potential impact this may have on a company’s financials. The underlying fund adopts a “best in class” approach to sustainable investing. This means that the underlying fund selects the best issuers (from an ESG perspective based on the Investment Adviser’s evaluation with respect to the above-mentioned ESG factors) for each relevant sector of activities (without excluding any sector of activities) and the weighted average ESG rating of the underlying fund will be higher than the ESG rating of the MSCI All Countries World Index (MSCI ACWI) after eliminating at least 20% of the least well-rated securities from MSCI ACWI*. More than 90% of the issuers of securities the underlying fund invests in are ESG rated or have been analysed for ESG purposes. The Investment Adviser believes that the underlying fund’s investment policy is broadly consistent with SDG7 and SDG13 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), though the SDGs do not form part of the investment selection criterion or objective of the underlying fund.
Ongoing Charges Figure (OCF) of the underlying fund	1.94% The ongoing charges figure are based on the expenses over a 12-month period from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2020.	1.97%* The ongoing charges figure is based on the costs and expenses of that class with reference to the annual report of the underlying fund for the year 31 August 2020
Risk profile (determined by Friends Provident International for reference only)	5	5

* Policyholders should note that the OCF for the underlying fund of the Default Fund is higher than the OCF for the underlying fund of P47 Ninety One GS Global Energy.

** The risk/reward profile is determined by Friends Provident International from information provided by the underlying fund houses and is based on the following characteristics of the underlying fund:

volatility;
asset type; and
geographical region.

Whilst appropriate due diligence has been carried out on the Default Fund we do not accept any liability for the future performance of this, or any other FPIL fund.

A letter will shortly be despatched to all affected policyholders, but should you have any questions, please contact International Funds & Investments.