FAMI mutual funds up 22% in 2013

MANILA, Philippines - The First Metro Asset Management Inc. (FAMI) has reported a 22.4-percent increase in assets under management (AUMs) from P11.6 billion in January 2013 to P14.2 billion end December.

FAMI is an asset manager and subsidiary of the First Metro Investment Corp. (FMIC), which in turn, is a member of the Metrobank Group of Companies.

It manages seven mutual funds, which invests in a variety of investible funds including stock market or equities, fixed income or bond market, and US dollar-denominated bond market.

Of the seven mutual funds, five fall under the generic family of First Metro Save and Learn mutual funds (SAL). These are: equity fund, fixed income fund, balanced fund, dollar bond fund, and global opportunity fund.

One Wealthy Nation (OWN) Fund Inc., the sixth fund, is a balanced mutual fund that invests in dividend yielding stocks and good quality bonds allowing investors to earn from both capital growth and potential dividend income. 

The new fund is available to the public at a minimum investment of P5,000 and additional investment of P1000.

OWN members may avail of more convenient account opening processes as well as regular alerts on the fund’s performance. 

The seventh fund is the First Metro Philippine Equity Exchange Traded Fund Inc. (FMETF).

It is the country’s first ever exchange traded fund (ETF) or a mutual fund that is listed at the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) and transactions (placements or redemptions) are done at the trading board like other listed companies.

Investments in the SAL equity fund reached P7.24 billion while the SAL fixed income fund amounted to P3.39 billion.

The SAL balanced fund is worth P2.45 billion, the SAL dollar bond fund stood at P212 million, and the SAL global opportunity fund at P143 million.

The FMETF had valuations of P744 million while the OWN Fund at P24 million.

Mutual funds are useful in attaining many long-term financial goals. Standard investment goals are education, home repairs, protection, retirement and emergency fund.

For protection, individuals investing with a long-term duration view may look at life insurance and health maintenance organizations (HMOs).

For retirement, equity funds and investing directly in the stock market would be a good option as long as the duration outlook is long-term.

Investing for education, balanced funds for the medium term duration.

Bonds or fixed income funds and time deposits are best for home repair as it requires a high level of liquidity in the near term. Emergency funds, which is highly a liquidity issue, is best placed in the money market and savings deposits.