EPF To Boost Members’ Retirement Adequacy With Enhanced Policies & Products, Including Improved i-Invest

Alex Cheong Pui Yin

24th January 2024 - 4 min read

The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) said that it has introduced some enhancements to its products and policies to help boost member’s income and retirement security. One of these efforts is the upgrade made to the i-Invest platform, enabling members to buy, sell, and switch private mandate portfolios more conveniently and transparently without having to go through an agent. This is in addition to existing unit trust funds that are also available on the platform.

In a statement, the EPF said that one notable enhancement made to the i-Invest platform (on both web and mobile app) for its private mandate offerings is the listing of each portfolio. Specifically, each private mandate portfolio that is sold under the EPF Members Investment Scheme (MIS) on i-Invest will now be individually named and displayed.

In comparison, private mandate portfolios were previously only grouped into three generic categories, namely full discretionary portfolios (FD), semi-discretionary portfolios (SD), and non-discretionary portfolios (ND). This decision is in hopes of offering further transparency to investors.

Aside from that, members will now also be able to access key information and documents for private mandate portfolios, including portfolio factsheets and investment management agreements. These will detail the terms and conditions that govern the relationship between members and the authorised fund management institutions (FMIs). Note, though, that this upgrade is only available for i-Invest web only.

A third enhancement – which is also applicable only to i-Invest web only – is the inclusion of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) tags. This will help to identify sustainable and responsible investment (SRI) products that are offered, making it easier for members to find these specific offerings.

To note, the EPF has been offering private mandates on its i-Invest platform for a while now. These products were introduced after the EPF launched the i-Invest platform back in 2019, and were included as part of the EPF’s revised list of funds approved under the MIS for 2023/2024 (the list was announced back in April 2023).

For further context, private mandates are investment instruments that are customised to meet an investor’s specific objectives, needs, and risk tolerance; they are typically managed professionally by authorised fund management institutions. This differs from unit trust funds, which cannot be customised according to your needs.

Aside from the upgrades made to the i-Invest platform, the EPF also implemented updates to its other policies and products as well. These include the official separation of the assets for the Simpanan Konvensional and Simpanan Shariah portfolios starting from 1 January 2024, with the aim of allowing each portfolio’s returns to be optimised in the long run. The plan for this move has been in the works since its announcement during the tabling of the revised Budget 2023 back in February 2023.

Aside from that, the EPF is also raising the maximum matching incentive limit for the i-Saraan voluntary contribution programme from RM300 to RM500 per year, capped at RM5,000 for life (the matching incentive itself is set at 15% of the member’s voluntary contribution). This update was proposed in the tabling of Budget 2024.

Finally, members enrolled in the i-Suri programme (housewives under the age of 55 and registered in the e-Kasih database) will enjoy a matching incentive of 50% on every RM1 voluntary contribution, subject to a maximum limit of RM300 per year and RM3,000 for life.

“These collective enhancements represent the EPF’s commitment to not only improving the adequacy of retirement savings and expanding coverage, but to providing cutting-edge tools that empower members to make informed decisions for them to achieve a better future,” said the EPF.

(Source: EPF)

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Alex Cheong Pui Yin

Previously covered recruitment-related stories and had a short stint as a copywriter for the property industry. She subsequently developed an interest in investment and robo-advisors.

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