The net value of Commercial Union Pension Fund assets yesterday passed the 30 billion Polish zloty (£5.3 billion) mark.
The net value of Commercial Union Pension Fund assets yesterday passed the 30 billion Polish zloty (Ł5.3 billion) mark. In doing so, the CU fund has not just confirmed its position as market leader in Poland, but is also climbing up the European pension fund rankings.
Since the beginning of pension reforms in 1999, CU Pension Fund has been the market leader in terms of both number of customers and asset value. In the first year alone, over 2,300,000 people signed up to CU Fund. The fund currently manages “second pillar” resources intended for future pensions for more than 2,600,000 customers. "We are not only the funds market leader in Poland, we are also showing up increasingly often on the European map for our industry. We are the sole Polish entity to qualify for inclusion in the top hundred largest pension funds in Europe that was recently published by the specialist journal Investment & Pensions Europe," points out Piotr Szczepiórkowski, general manager of CU Pension Fund management company.
The asset value is rising fast, and has gone past the following milestones:
- 1 billion zloty in February 2000
- 5 billion zloty in October 2001
- 10 billion zloty in May 2003
- 20 billion zloty in June 2005.
Commercial Union is continuing its strategy based on giving priority to customers choosing a pension fund for the first time. In October 2006 the Commercial Union fund was once again chosen by the greatest number of new customers – nearly 7,000, which is about 24% of all such contracts concluded in the market. The main role in distribution is played by insurance agents operating within the CU sales network. CU is simultaneously making available new internet services that help to gain access to the fund (recently in conjunction with mBank, Poland’s leading internet bank), and also the Online account service that enables customers to track the state and history of their pension account.
Commercial Union Pension Fund is putting into effect a long-term investment strategy aimed at obtaining the best possible rate of return with a limited investment risk. The portfolio is dominated by Treasury bills and bonds (ca 60%) and equities (30-35%). CU Pension has also been making investments in corporate debt securities and foreign assets. "In investing both in equities and in debt securities, we are following the principle of fundamental analysis. In the case of equities, the main investment criterion is the capacity of the company to generate long-term profits, the attractiveness of the industry for investment, and the continuity and effectiveness of the company’s management in relation to the issuer’s market valuation. As regards due fulfilment of its obligations to its customers, the fund exercises voting rights on the equities it holds in individual companies, in line with our corporate governance standards," says Michał Szymański, management board member and investment director at CU Pension Fund management company.
-ends-
Information:
Bohdan Bialorucki
Telephone: +48 22 557 43 41
E-mail: bohdan_bialorucki@cu.com.pl
For further information, see www.cu.com.pl
Notes to editors:
Commercial Union Poland Group is part of the international Aviva group – the world’s fifth largest insurance group, and the largest in the United Kingdom by revenues. Aviva Group operates in 25 countries. It occupies a strong position in the European Union, including United Kingdom, Ireland, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy and Poland. It also has major operations in the USA, Canada, Australia and Asia. Worldwide, Aviva group services about 35 million customers and manages assets valued at over Ł330 billion. For additional information, see the website http://www.aviva.com