In my previous article on the need to measure investment performance, I made reference to a television jingle that plays in one of the television stations in New York where, few seconds before the 10: 00 pm news, this question is asked, “it is 10:00 pm, do you know where your children are”.
I already explained the genesis and necessity for that question in that article. So, I am not going to do that again here. But suffice it to be asked: “it is Q2 2019, do you know how your pension funds performed?”.
Monitor your pension
Even if you do not regularly monitor your pension fund, and indeed, fund investment performances generally, you should try to monitor them at the end of Q1, (March 31), Q2, (June 30th), Q3 (September 30th) and Q4, (December 31st) of each year.
Q2 Pension fund report
Analysts at Quantitative Financial Analytics have measured the performance of Nigerian Pension funds based on available data and information at our disposal.
It is noteworthy to report that Nigerian Pension funds continue to impress investors with positive returns, although they have been coming in trickles. But then again, who says little drops of water does not make an ocean?!
In the month of June 2019, RSA pension funds, otherwise known as Fund 2, made an average return of 0.74%, with AIICO Pensions RSA making the highest monthly return of 1.7% while Sigma Pensions RSA generated the least monthly return of 0.47%. There was no information for First Guarantee pensions RSA and Crusader Pensions RSA, as a result of which they were excluded from this analysis.
The same pattern is noticeable among the Retiree fund (Fund 4) category where APT Pensions Retiree fund too the lead with 1.64% return for the month of June with ARM Pensions Retiree fund recording the least monthly return of 0.06%.
Detailed performance report
For half-year 2019, AIICO Pension Fund Management led the rest in both the RSA and Retiree fund categories. In the Retirement Savings Account or Fund 2 category, AIICO made a return of 6.59%, representing an annualized return of 13.18%.
Following closely is AXA Mansard Pension fund Management whose Axa Mansard Pensions RSA fund return 6.44% for the half year, translating to 12.88% on an annualized basis.
Third high performer is Pension Alliance Retirement Savings Account with a half-year return of 6.33% or an annualised return of 12.66%.
Since 2013 when analysts at Quantitative Financial Analytics began measuring Nigerian pension funds’ performance, this is the first time that the same funds are ranked in the same three positions in both the Retirement Savings Account and Retiree Fund categories.
[READ: This is the best Mutual Fund in Nigeria this year so far]
Here are the first 5 best performing pension funds in Nigeria for the first half of 2019:
Best Performing Fund
Name of Fund: AIICO Pensions RSA Pension Fund 2
YTD Performance %: 6.59%
YTD Gain per unit: N0.21
Second Best Performing Fund
Name of Fund: AXA Mansard Pensions RSA Pension Fund 2
YTD Performance %: 6.44%
YTD Gain per unit: N0.18
3rd Best Performing Fund
Name of Fund: Pension Alliance Pensions RSA fund 2
YTD Performance %: 6.33%
YTD Gain per unit: N0.23
4th Best Performing Fund
Name of Fund: OAK Pensions RSA Fund 2
YTD Performance %: 6.32%
YTD Gain per unit: N0.17
5th Best Performing Fund
Name of Fund: Fidelity Pensions RSA Fund 2
YTD Performance %: 5.76%
YTD Gain per unit: N0.16
Retiree Fund Performance
Retiree Pension funds, otherwise known as fund 4, continued to perform better than their RSA fund counterparts because of their greater exposure to fixed income securities and less exposure to risky instruments like equities. On an annualised basis, the Retiree Funds are making returns in the neighborhood of 15%, which is quite impressive given the rate of return from treasury bills and the currant rate of inflation. Below are the 5 best performing Retiree pension funds as at the end of Q2 2019
Best Performing Fund
Name of Fund: AIICO Pensions Retiree Fund 4
YTD Performance %: 7.46%
YTD Gain per unit: N0.23
Second Best Performing Fund
Name of Fund: AXA Mansard Pensions Retiree Fund 4
YTD Performance %: 7.39%
YTD Gain per unit: N0.20
3rd Best Performing Fund
Name of Fund: Pension Alliance Retiree Fund 4
YTD Performance %: 7.32%
YTD Gain per unit: N0.22
4th Best Performing Fund
Name of Fund: NPF Pensions Retiree Fund 4
YTD Performance %: 7.19%
YTD Gain per unit: N0.09
5th Best Performing Fund
Name of Fund: Investment One Pensions Retiree Fund 4
YTD Performance %: 7.1%
YTD Gain per unit: N0.15
For a complete list of Retiree fund performance, contact Quantitative Financial Analytics Ltd.
[READ: Nigerian mutual funds made an estimated N1.9 billion gain in 2018]
