With $109 billion in assets under management and $12 billion in sales of segregated funds in 2014 alone,1 the segregated fund market is well established in Canada.

If you don’t currently talk to your clients about segregated fund products, maybe it’s time to take a closer look at what they have to offer. With increasing demand for guarantees – and growth – segregated fund products can play an important role in a client’s portfolio.

ABOUT SEGREGATED FUNDS

Segregated fund products provide the growth potential of market-based investments with the benefits of an insurance contract:

  • Guarantees: Segregated fund contracts guarantee 75% to 100% of premiums (reduced for withdrawals) when the contract matures, or on your client’s death. The value of the contract isn’t guaranteed at other times.
  • Named beneficiaries: Naming one or more beneficiaries removes the guesswork when the time comes to settle the estate and ensures clients’ assets are distributed according to their wishes.
  • Bypass probate and other fees: With named beneficiaries, proceeds can pass quickly and privately to beneficiaries without legal, estate administration, and probate fees.
  • Potential creditor protection: Assets within a segregated fund contract may be protected against seizure by creditors. This is a benefit for business owners and professionals wanting to protect personal assets from professional liability.
  • Assuris protection: Money invested in segregated fund contracts is protected (up to certain limits) by Assuris, an organization that protects Canadian policyholders in the event of insurance company insolvency. Visit www.assuris.ca for more information.

Some segregated fund products offer these additional features:

  • Income guarantee: This provides your clients with stable and predictable lifetime guaranteed income to help manage longevity risk (the risk of outliving your money).
  • Resets: Some available guarantees reset either annually or triennially and can be automatic or client initiated. These resets occur if economic conditions have been favourable, and lock in and protect growth.
98% of Canadians surveyed say it’s either very important (74%) or somewhat important (24%) to them that some of their retirement income is guaranteed for the rest of their lives.2

Clients who want the potential for growth3 and the guarantees and additional benefits of an insurance contract may want to consider segregated fund products with which they can:

  • choose flexible investment options,
  • save for the future with the added protection of guarantees,
  • protect themselves from outliving their money in retirement, and
  • maximize growth potential for their beneficiaries.

Consider sun life guaranteed investment funds (GIFS)

When you and your clients consider segregated funds products, it’s important to seek out a strong, reliable company to partner with. Sun Life Financial offers a new suite of segregated fund products, Sun Life GIFs, which can provide the benefits of protection, investment growth, flexibility and control for your client’s assets, as well as lifetime guaranteed income options.4

Get an overview of the new segregated fund line-up from Paul Fryer, Vice-President, Individual Business Management, Individual Insurance and Wealth, Sun Life Financial Canada, in Enhancing the segregated fund product shelf: Why now? Why Sun Life?,or go to the web pages below for more information:

Segregated fund products Advisor web page address
Sun Life GIFs – full suite sunlifegifs.ca/advisor
Sun GIF Solutions sungifsolutions.ca/advisor
Sun Lifetime Advantage GIF sunlifetimeadvantagegif.ca/advisor
Sun Protect GIF sunprotectgif.ca/advisor

Sun Life GIFs are part of Money for Life, Sun Life Financial’s customized approach to financial and retirement planning.5

Talk with your clients today about segregated funds and Sun Life GIFs. For more information and resources on Sun Life GIFs, visit www.sunlifegifs.ca/advisor.

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1 Investor Economics, Insurance Advisory Service, January 2015.

2 Sun Life Canadian Unretirement Index 2015.

3 Any amount that is allocated to a segregated fund is invested at the risk of the contract owner and may increase or decrease in value.

4 Sun Life GIFs are individual variable annuity contracts issued by Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada, a member of the Sun Life Financial group of companies.

5 Only advisors who hold CFP (Certified Financial Planner), CH.F.C (Chartered Financial Consultant), F.Pl. (Financial Planner in Quebec), or equivalent designations are certified as financial planners.