TORONTO, July 28, 2020 Manulife Investment Management today announced proposed changes to its mutual fund and closed-end fund platforms, subject to applicable regulatory and securityholder approvals. These changes will help streamline our platforms of actively managed investments and further our commitment to offering diverse, strong-performing products to help Canadian investors achieve their goals.
Securityholder vote on proposed fund merger
Termination of certain mutual funds
Termination of certain closed-end funds
Changes to Manulife Value Balanced Fund and Manulife Value Balanced Class
Closing the series of certain funds to new purchases
Securityholder vote on proposed fund merger
Manulife Investment Management is proposing to merge the following funds on or about October 23, 2020. The proposed merger is designed to streamline Manulife’s platform for advisors and investors. Both funds are currently sub-advised by Manulife Investment Management (U.S) LLC.
Terminating Fund
Continuing Fund
Manulife Floating Rate Income Fund
Manulife U.S. Unconstrained Bond Fund
Subject to the approval and implementation of the merger the default management fee for Series I of the Continuing Fund will be reduced from 0.75% to 0.72% on the date of the merger.
The proposed merger will be executed on a taxable basis and will require regulatory approval, as well as the approval of the securityholders of the Terminating Fund. The Independent Review Committee of the Funds has reviewed the proposed merger and concluded that it achieves a fair and reasonable result for the Funds.
Securityholders of the Terminating Fund will receive a Notice of Meeting and Management Information Circular for this proposal, in accordance with applicable securities laws. The required securityholder approvals will be sought at a special meeting to be held virtually on or about October 1, 2020 for securityholders of record as of August 21, 2020.
Termination of certain mutual funds
Effective on or about October 19, 2020, Manulife Investment Management will terminate the following funds and distribute the proceeds to securityholders of record on that date. The proposed terminations include:
Manulife Canadian Dividend Growth Class
Manulife Growth Opportunities Class
Manulife Short Term Yield Class
The Goals-Based Investing Program will be discontinued including its underlying funds: Manulife Diversified Alpha Portfolio, Manulife Quantitative Fixed Income Fund 2022, Manulife Quantitative Fixed Income Fund 2027, Manulife Quantitative Fixed Income Fund 2032, Manulife Quantitative Fixed Income Fund 2037, Manulife Quantitative Fixed Income Fund 2042, Manulife Income Fund 2022, Manulife Income Fund 2027, Manulife Income Fund 2032, Manulife Income Fund 2037, Manulife Income Fund 2042, Manulife Income Fund 2047, Manulife Income Fund 2052, Manulife Income Fund 2057, Manulife Income Fund 2062, Manulife Income Fund 2067
Prospectus qualified securities of the funds are no longer available for new purchases effective as of 4 p.m. ET on July 28, 2020. This includes purchases through regular investment plans. Impacted investors are encouraged to contact their advisor to discuss the financial and tax implications of these fund changes and to discuss options, including how to switch their assets to another Manulife mutual fund that best meets their individual investment needs and circumstances prior to the termination date.
Termination of certain closed-end funds
Effective on or about September 30, 2020, Manulife Investment Management intends to terminate the following closed-end funds (the “Closed-End Funds”) and to distribute the termination proceeds to unitholders on or about October 7, 2020. The proposed terminations include:
Manulife Floating Rate Senior Loan Fund
Manulife U.S. Regional Bank Trust
Holders of class A units (TSX: MBK.UN) and class U units of Manulife U.S. Regional Bank Trust and holders of class A units (TSX: MFR.UN) and class U units of Manulife Floating Rate Senior Loan Fund will not be required to take any action in connection with the proposed termination of the Closed-End Funds. In connection with the proposed termination:
The Manager will request that the class A units of each Closed-End Fund be de-listed from the Toronto Stock Exchange at the close of business on or about September 30, 2020.
Separately from the termination proceeds, it is anticipated that each Closed-End Fund will also pay its regular monthly distribution pertaining to the month ending September 30, 2020, as follows:
Fund
TSX Symbol
Distribution Amount (per unit)
Record Date
Payment Date
Manulife U.S. Regional Bank Trust (Class A)
MBK.UN
$0.04160
September 30, 2020
October 7, 2020
Manulife U.S. Regional Bank Trust (Class U)
Not listed
US$0.04160
September 30, 2020
October 7, 2020
Manulife Floating Rate Senior Loan Fund (Class A)
MFR.UN
$0.05625
September 30, 2020
October 7, 2020
Manulife Floating Rate Senior Loan Fund (Class U)
Not listed
US$0.05625
September 30, 2020
October 7, 2020
In accordance with the respective declaration of trust of each Closed-End Fund, the Manager will distribute the assets of each Closed-End Fund for an amount equal to the pro-rata share of the assets of the applicable class of units remaining after the payment or accrual of all debts, expenses and liabilities and liquidation expenses of each Closed-End Fund. Payment of the final termination proceeds will be made on or about October 7, 2020 to the beneficial holders of such units through CDS Clearing and Depository Services Inc.
Changes to Manulife Value Balanced Fund and Manulife Value Balanced Class
Effective on or about August 4, 2020, the following individuals will be added as portfolio managers of the Manulife Value Balanced Fund and Manulife Value Balanced Class and will share joint responsibility with the currently named portfolio managers for the day-to-day investment decisions of the funds:
Daniel S. Janis, III, Senior Managing Director and Senior Portfolio Manager, Manulife Investment Management (US) LLC
Thomas C. Goggins, Senior Managing Director and Senior Portfolio Manager, Manulife Investment Management (US) LLC
Kisoo Park, Managing Director and Portfolio Manager, Manulife Investment Management (Hong Kong) Limited
Christopher Chapman, Managing Director and Portfolio Manager, Manulife Investment Management (Europe) Limited
In addition, the distribution policy for the Manulife Value Balanced Fund Advisor Series, Series D and Series F securities will be changed from quarterly income distributions, if any, to monthly distributions based on a target distribution rate or dollar amount per unit.
Closing to new purchases the low-load series of Manulife Private Investment Pools
Effective immediately, the low-load series of Manulife Private Investment Pools, Series L and LT, will be closed to new purchases.
About Manulife Investment Management Manulife Investment Management is the global wealth and asset management segment of Manulife Financial Corporation. We draw on more than 150 years of financial stewardship to partner with clients across our institutional, retail, and retirement businesses globally. Our specialist approach to money management includes the highly differentiated strategies of our fixed-income, specialized equity, multi-asset solutions, and private markets teams—along with access to specialized, unaffiliated asset managers from around the world through our multimanager model. Our personalized, data-driven approach to retirement is focused on delivering financial wellness in retirement plans of all sizes to help plan participants and members retire with dignity.
Headquartered in Toronto, we operate as Manulife Investment Management throughout the world, with the exception of the United States, where the retail and retirement businesses operate as John Hancock Investment Management and John Hancock, respectively; and in Asia and Canada, where the retirement business operates as Manulife. Manulife Investment Management had CAD$832 billion (US$586 billion) in assets under management and administration.*Not all offerings are available in all jurisdictions. For additional information, please visit our website at manulifeim.com.
* MFC financials in CAD. Global Wealth and Asset Management AUMA as of March 31, 2020, was $832 billion and includes $195 billion of assets managed on behalf of other segments and $139 billion of assets under administration.
About Manulife Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services group that helps people make their decisions easier and lives better. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we operate as Manulife across our offices in Canada, Asia, and Europe, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States. We provide financial advice, insurance, and wealth and asset management solutions for individuals, groups and institutions. At the end of 2019, we had more than 35,000 employees, over 98,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving almost 30 million customers. As of March 31, 2020, we had $1.2 trillion (US$0.8 trillion) in assets under management and administration, and in the previous 12 months we made $30.4 billion in payments to our customers. Our principal operations are in Asia, Canada and the United States where we have served customers for more than 155 years. We trade as ‘MFC’ on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges and under ‘945’ in Hong Kong.
SOURCE Manulife Investment Management
For further information: Media Contact: Brooke Tucker-Reid, Manulife, 647-528-9601, [email protected]
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was down more than 200 points in late-morning trading, weighed down by losses in the technology, base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets also fell.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 239.24 points at 22,749.04.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 312.36 points at 40,443.39. The S&P 500 index was down 80.94 points at 5,422.47, while the Nasdaq composite was down 380.17 points at 16,747.49.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.80 cents US compared with 74.00 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down US$1.07 at US$68.08 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.26 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$2.10 at US$2,541.00 an ounce and the December copper contract was down four cents at US$4.10 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in technology, financial and energy stocks, while U.S. stock markets also pushed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 171.41 points at 23,298.39.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 278.37 points at 41,369.79. The S&P 500 index was up 38.17 points at 5,630.35, while the Nasdaq composite was up 177.15 points at 17,733.18.
The Canadian dollar traded for 74.19 cents US compared with 74.23 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up US$1.75 at US$76.27 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.10 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$18.70 at US$2,556.50 an ounce and the December copper contract was down less than a penny at US$4.22 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 29, 2024.
The crypto market has recently experienced a significant downturn, mirroring broader risk asset sell-offs. Over the past week, Bitcoin’s price dropped by 24%, reaching $53,000, while Ethereum plummeted nearly a third to $2,340. Major altcoins also suffered, with Cardano down 27.7%, Solana 36.2%, Dogecoin 34.6%, XRP 23.1%, Shiba Inu 30.1%, and BNB 25.7%.
The severe downturn in the crypto market appears to be part of a broader flight to safety, triggered by disappointing economic data. A worse-than-expected unemployment report on Friday marked the beginning of a technical recession, as defined by the Sahm Rule. This rule identifies a recession when the three-month average unemployment rate rises by at least half a percentage point from its lowest point in the past year.
Friday’s figures met this threshold, signaling an abrupt economic downshift. Consequently, investors sought safer assets, leading to declines in major stock indices: the S&P 500 dropped 2%, the Nasdaq 2.5%, and the Dow 1.5%. This trend continued into Monday with further sell-offs overseas.
The crypto market’s rapid decline raises questions about its role as either a speculative asset or a hedge against inflation and recession. Despite hopes that crypto could act as a risk hedge, the recent crash suggests it remains a speculative investment.
Since the downturn, the crypto market has seen its largest three-day sell-off in nearly a year, losing over $500 billion in market value. According to CoinGlass data, this bloodbath wiped out more than $1 billion in leveraged positions within the last 24 hours, including $365 million in Bitcoin and $348 million in Ether.
Khushboo Khullar of Lightning Ventures, speaking to Bloomberg, argued that the crypto sell-off is part of a broader liquidity panic as traders rush to cover margin calls. Khullar views this as a temporary sell-off, presenting a potential buying opportunity.
Josh Gilbert, an eToro market analyst, supports Khullar’s perspective, suggesting that the expected Federal Reserve rate cuts could benefit crypto assets. “Crypto assets have sold off, but many investors will see an opportunity. We see Federal Reserve rate cuts, which are now likely to come sharper than expected, as hugely positive for crypto assets,” Gilbert told Coindesk.
Despite the recent volatility, crypto continues to make strides toward mainstream acceptance. Notably, Morgan Stanley will allow its advisors to offer Bitcoin ETFs starting Wednesday. This follows more than half a year after the introduction of the first Bitcoin ETF. The investment bank will enable over 15,000 of its financial advisors to sell BlackRock’s IBIT and Fidelity’s FBTC. This move is seen as a significant step toward the “mainstreamization” of crypto, given the lengthy regulatory and company processes in major investment banks.
The recent crypto market downturn highlights its volatility and the broader economic concerns affecting all risk assets. While some analysts see the current situation as a temporary sell-off and a buying opportunity, others caution against the speculative nature of crypto. As the market evolves, its role as a mainstream alternative asset continues to grow, marked by increasing institutional acceptance and new investment opportunities.
