FirstChoice platform upgrade
Thursday, 13 November 2008 11:20am
Colonial First State is supercharging its FirstChoice platform with the addition of a government guaranteed cash deposit product, four Realindex RAFI funds and an enhanced range of insurance service.
The platform's new FirstRate Saver includes no ongoing fees, account keeping or transaction costs, except in the FirstChoice Pension option which still requires a 4 per cent contribution fee.
The cash deposit product deposits money with the Commonwealth Bank, which means it can take advantage of government's guarantee on bank deposits. Investors and financial planners can view cash deposits using the portfolio management tool FirstNet.
As a result of Colonial First State's alliance with Research Affiliates LLC, four Realindex RAFI funds were added to the FirstChoice platform. Funds include the Realindex RAFI Australian Share, Australian Small Companies, Global Shares Hedged, and Global Shares funds.
These funds use an index strategy that reflects a company's economic footprint using size measurements instead of simply using market price. This strategy eliminates the problem of traditional index funds that overweight overvalued stocks.
In addition to the Realindex RAFI funds, the FirstChoice Emerging Markets multi manager option was also added to the platform.
The CommInsure insurance product's application form is now simpler and shorter, which means it can be approved faster for clients who answer ‘no' to the first 12 questions at the beginning of the short form personal statement.
The firm also reduced waiting periods for Total and Permanent Disablement from six to three months.
Michael Hobbs
