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Nikko Cordial Securities and Manulife Japan introduce “ManuHundred GW”, a new type of variable individual annuity product featuring 100% guarantee on annuity Tokyo - Nikko Cordial Securities Inc. (Representative Director & President Junichi Ariyama) and Manulife Life Insurance Co. (President & CEO Trevor Matthews) have agreed to a sales partnership for life insurance products, and will start to sell a newly developed variable annuity “ManuHundred GW” at Nikko Cordial’s sales offices nationwide effective April 1. “ManuHundred GW” is a new type of variable annuity, developed through the integration of the know-how of both Nikko Cordial Securities, a pioneer in the sales of investment trusts and variable annuities, and a company with excellent performance in the Japanese market, and Manulife, which has expertise gained from its long history and vast experience in the development and sales of variable annuities in foreign markets. The main feature of “ManuHundred GW” is that it allows customers to build up assets by investing in professionally managed diversified asset portfolios with the limited risk of falling below par, since the amount of annuity funds is guaranteed to be at least the basic insurance amount (single premium amount), regardless of the actual investment performance for investment periods of at least 20 years. On the occasion of the commencement of “ManuHundred GW” sales, Nikko Cordial Securities Senior Executive Officer Mikio Kitabayashi spoke as follows: “Manulife Life Insurance Company has provided us with this groundbreaking variable annuity product that will meet the wealth management needs of today’s customers. We have achieved cumulative sales of over 200 billion yen since we started handling variable annuities in December 2000. As a pioneer in the sale of variable annuities in Japan, we will take advantage of providing this product to advance to the next grand stage.” Manulife Life Insurance Co. President & CEO Trevor Matthews commented on the product as follows: “I am very pleased to be able to offer this groundbreaking new product “ManuHundred GW” to the Japanese public. The ability to offer this product is based on our wealth of experience and expertise with variable annuity products in foreign markets, and the realization of this partnership with such a strong company like Nikko Cordial Securities. I am certain that this is a superb product that will answer the true needs of the Japanese public.” The following are the main features of “ManuHundred GW”: 100% of Annuity Funds Guaranteed “ManuHundred GW” features 5 special accounts that customers can choose from according to their preferred style of investing and tolerance for risk. While these special accounts will invest in Japanese and foreign stocks and bonds, aiming to achieve higher performance, for investment periods of at least 20 years, the amount of annuity funds is guaranteed to be at least the basic insurance amount, regardless of the actual investment performance. (For investment periods between 10 years and 20 years, 80% of the basic insurance amount is guaranteed.) 5 Professionally-Supported Special Accounts for Clients to Select From The underwriting insurance company, investment company, and management advisory company are Manulife Life Insurance Co., Nikko Asset Management Inc., and GWCG, respectively. These three companies will combine their expertise to manage the special accounts. The primary target of investments for these 5 special accounts will be “Global Wrap Balance.” “Global Wrap Balance” invests diversely in 7 types of assets including both Japanese and foreign issues, providing clients with professional international diversified investments. “Global Wrap Balance” aims for high returns while holding down investment risk. (Premiums are invested in the “Global Wrap Balance” mother fund consisting of Japanese stocks (2 sets), foreign stocks (3 sets), Japanese bonds (1 set), and foreign bonds (1 set).) Also, investment advisors will be employed to provide advice for each of the 7 types of assets in “Global Wrap Balance.” The Global Wrap Consulting Group (GWCG) will strictly monitor the performance of investments of these investment advisors. Individuals will be able to conduct switching between the 5 special accounts free of charge up to 12 times per year, allowing them to flexibly meet to their changing needs. Conversion to a Fixed Annuity is Possible 5 years after purchasing the policy, the policyholder can convert part of or the entire policy into a fixed annuity. This is in response to policyholders’ desire to fix the amount of annuity payment(s) they will receive in the future based on the investment performance at a certain point in time. (With such conversions, there is no minimum guarantee on annuity funds regardless of the length of the investment period.) Improved Usability to Meet the Diverse Needs of Clients Offers a Variety of Annuity Payment Options and Ways to Meet Needs for Short-Term Funds “ManuHundred GW” offers clients 3 options for receiving annuity payments in order to meet their individual financial needs. These include a) fixed annuity (5, 10, 15 year options available), b) whole life annuity with guaranteed period of 10 or 15 years, and c) joint annuity. Also, policyholders are allowed to withdraw up to 10% of the cash value amount of their policy during a window period of one month each year (the period between the yearly policy anniversary date and the monthly policy anniversary date of the following month) once the policy has been in effect for one full year. This unique feature allows clients to meet their short-term financial needs while keeping their long-term investment. Manulife Japan, a member company of the Manulife Financial headquartered in Canada, holds a top-class “AA+” credit rating from one of the world’s most prestigious credit rating agencies, Standard and Poor’s Co. (as of February 2003). Manulife Financial is a leading Canadian-based financial services group operating in 15 countries and territories worldwide. Through its extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners, Manulife Financial offers clients a diverse range of financial protection products and wealth management services. Fund under management by Manulife Financial were JPY11,220 billion (Cdn$146.2 billion) as at December 31, 2002. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under '0945' on the SEHK. Manulife Financial can be found on the Internet at www.manulife.com. For More Information Nikko Cordial Group PR&IR Dept. Shimoyama TEL: 03-5644-4544 Manulife Life Insurance Co., PR Group Shimizu TEL: 0424-42-7076 1. “ManuHundred GW” Special Account Types & Composition ＊ The investment policies and main investment trust in which the special accounts primarily invest in are subject to future changes. ＊ The basic asset allocations noted above were designed from a long-term perspective (As of March 2003). Actual investment operations will be done based on these basic asset allocation figures while giving consideration to the mid-to-long term investment climate. 2. More Product Details Premium -Minimum of 2 Million Yen (increments of 1 Yen) （single-payment premium only） Age at Issue -0 to 80 Years Old （the age of the insured on the date the policy becomes effective） Investment Period -10 to 50 Years （period from the date the policy becomes effective until the date annuity payments begin. Differs depending on the age at issue of the insured. ） Age Annuity -Fixed Annuity（5, 10, 15 Yrs.） 10 - 90 Payments Begin -Whole Life Annuity w/Guarantee Period（10, 15 Yrs.） 50-90 (age at issue of insured -Joint Annuity (10, 15 Yrs.) 50-90 +investment period) Switching -Switching can be done free of charge up to 12 times per year （All switching after the 12th time in one year will be accompanied by a 2,500 yen deduction from the accumulated reserves of the account in which the funds were transferred from.） 3. “ManuHundred GW” Professional Support Underwriting Insurance Company（In charge of investment and management of special accounts.） Manulife Life Insurance Company Investment Company （Handles the investments for Global Wrap Balance, the main fund that the special accounts invest in.） Nikko Asset Management Investment Consulting Company （Provides advice to Nikko Asset Management regarding Global Wrap Balance investments.） Global Wrap Consulting Group（GWCG） ＊Global Wrap Consulting Group is a consulting company providing services including investment advisor evaluations and selections, as well as asset allocation advice. Since its inception in 1998, GWCG has provided a wide range of asset management-related services including the first investment trust wrap program in Japan. Investment Advisors (For each of the 7 types of assets comprising “Global Wrap Balance”, advice will be received by the following expert companies in each area.) Deutsche Asset Management （Japan Large Equity） Sparks Asset Management Investment Trust Company（Japan Small Equity） Wellington Management Company LLP（North American Equity） UBS Global Asset Management（European Advanced Nation Equity ） Schroder Investment Management (Japan) （Asia-Pacific Advanced Nation Equity） UBS Global Asset Management（Japan Bonds） Pacific Investment Management Company（Foreign Bonds） ＊These are the advisors as of March 2003. They are subject to change. (GWCG will strictly monitor investments and replace investment advisors if necessary.) |
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