Aviva does not entirely have an investment plan per se, but provides consumers with an investment platform for you to choose your own set of funds to invest in. This aims to remove much of the fees you will incur through a traditional investment plan if you’re savvy enough to pick your investments.
The 2 investment platforms provided by Aviva are the DollarDEX and Aviva Navigator.
DollarDEX
Aviva’s DollarDex is a do-it-yourself investment platform for more savvy investors. As compared to other investment platforms or investment plans, there are absolutely no fees involved.
The way they make money is through splitting the management fee for the funds you’ve invested in – which is unavoidable anyway since you need to pay fund managers no matter what platform or plan you use.
The DollarDex boasts over 900 funds for you to choose from and has 5 types of portfolios that you can opt for based on your risk appetite. The portfolios are Conservative, Moderate, Balanced, Growth, and Aggressive portfolios.
You can start investing from S$1,000 or opt for a regular savings plan (RSP) with as low as S$100 a month. The RSP uses your bank account to invest in your selected funds every month through dollar-cost averaging.
Apart from cash investments, you can also use your CPF account to make these investments. However, before you can start investing through DollarDex, you will need to pass an assessment first. This is to ensure that you know what you’ll be doing without a financial advisor’s help.
Features:
- DIY investment platform with no financial advisor needed
- No fees involved
- Over 900 funds to choose from
- Choose from a Conservating, Moderate, Balanced, Growth, and Aggressive portfolio
- Ability to pay via cash or CPF monies
- Invest a S$1000 lump sum or through monthly investments from S$100 only
- Assessment needed before usage
Source: https://www.aviva.com.sg/en/investment/dollardex/
Aviva Navigator
The Aviva Navigator is an investment platform where you can effectively select, invest, and manage your unit trust portfolio. As compared to the DollarDex, Aviva’s Navigator is meant for those who are less savvy in picking your investments.
Through investment advice from a financial advisor, you get to decide on your portfolio’s risk tolerance, time horizon, and financial goals. Your financial advisor will then help you make these fund investments through Aviva’s Navigator.
The Aviva Navigator boasts over 1,000 unit trusts from a range of partners, the ability for you to view your complete portfolio at a glance through MyAviva, and make any changes to your portfolio any time.
There are 2 types of accounts you can choose from – Wrap Account or Non-Wrap Account.
The Wrap account provides you with free unlimited switching of your unit trusts with an upfront fee and ongoing advisor charge. The Non-Wrap account does not have any ongoing advisor charge, but any transactions you perform through Navigator will have fees imposed.
The Aviva Navigator allows you to either put a lump sum or regular investments through cash, SRS, CPF OA, or CPF SA. For lump sum investments, there is a minimum initial investment of S$1,000. The regular investment has a minimum of S$200 monthly, quarterly, half-yearly, or yearly. Below are the fees that you might incur:
| Fees | ||||
| Source of Funds | Account Type | Upfront Fee | Switch Fee | Ongoing Advisor Charge |
| Cash / SRS | Wrap | 0-5% | Free | Up to 1.8% per annum |
| Non-wrap | 0-5% | 0-5% | Free | |
| CPF – OA/SA | Wrap | Free | Free | Up to 0.25% per annum |
| Non-wrap | Free | Free | Free | |
There are also platform fees as high as 0.2% per annum, decreasing depending on your source of funds and the amount invested. If you’re looking to make withdrawals, there is a minimum of S$1,000.
Features:
- Select, invest, and manage your funds with or without the advice of a financial advisor
- Choose from over 1,000 funds
- Lump sum, monthly, quarterly, half-yearly, or yearly investments
- Invest with cash, SRS, CPF OA, or CPF SA
- Depending on your account type and amount invested, there could potentially be 0% fees
- Flexibility to make fund switches when you want it
Source: https://www.aviva.com.sg/en/investment/navigator/
Conclusion
The mentioned products are just summaries of each platform, and there are terms and conditions applied for each of their features.
Unlike many other investment plans available in the market, Aviva’s DollarDEX and Navigator are great platforms for you to invest in unit trusts. They provide a wide range of funds to choose from and have relatively lower fees. However, do make sure that you understand what you’re doing or you will risk losing your capital.
Although it may look highly attractive, not every plan is suited for you, and not every plan is as attractive as it seems. Thus, it is always advisable for you to conduct your thorough research before deciding to purchase any financial plans for yourself.
If you’re still unsure of what you should be getting for yourself, always engage a trusted financial advisor. This makes sure that your different needs and wants are taken into consideration and plans are recommended based on your unique scenario.
