Core funds

The fund invests in equities (shares of companies), so there is a higher risk of the fund’s value being volatile (i.e. going up and down) than with a fund which invests in most other asset types, particularly in the short term.

Investment returns on fixed interest securities, such as corporate and government bonds, are particularly sensitive to trends in interest rate movements and inflation. Their values are likely to fall when interest rates rise. Such falls may be more pronounced in a low, or negative interest rate environment and longer dated fixed interest securities will fall by more than short dated fixed interest securities.

The fund invests in fixed interest securities. The financial strength of a company or government issuing the security determines their ability to make some or all of the payments due. If this financial strength weakens, the chances of them not making payments increases and this will reduce the fund’s value.

The fund invests in higher yielding bonds (known as ‘sub-investment grade’ bonds). Compared to lower yielding bonds (known as ‘investment grade’ bonds) there is a greater risk that the fund will not receive back, either on time or at all, some or all of the amount invested or interest that is due to be paid.

The fund may hold assets in currencies that are not denominated in sterling. If the value of these currencies falls compared to sterling this may cause the fund’s value to go down. Some funds may employ currency hedging as a means of protecting the fund’s value against currency movements. In extreme market conditions, the hedge may not be perfect, and the fund may be exposed to currency changes.

The fund may undertake derivative transactions as part of efficient portfolio management (“EPM”) or reduction in investment risk in line with the Historic FCA Permitted Links rules.

The fund may undertake derivative transactions in line with the FCA Conduct of Business rules (COBS 21). The fund may invest in other collective investment schemes, which use derivatives for investment purposes as opposed to solely for efficient portfolio management or reduction in investment risk.

The fund may hold Over the Counter (“OTC”) derivative contracts with banks or other financial institutions. If these organisations experience financial difficulty, they may be unable to pay back the sums that they owe under the OTC derivative contracts. If this happens, the value of the investment will fall.

This fund invests in equities issued by smaller companies. These investments tend to be riskier than investments in larger companies because they may be harder to buy and sell and their price may be more volatile - particularly in the short term.

This fund invests in relatively few individual holdings. This means that a fall in the value of an individual holding can have a more significant impact on the overall performance of the fund.

The fund invests in emerging markets where there may be limited information available publicly to investors. In general, emerging market issuers are not subject to accounting, auditing and financial standards and requirements similar to those required of developed market issuers. Also, local laws may prevent the repatriation of capital or profit from those countries into the UK. In addition, the stock markets and currencies of emerging markets can be volatile, due to the fact that the political and economic systems in these countries are still developing. In such cases delays in settlement may cause the fund to have exposure to a third-party broker or counterparty. This may result in a greater risk that the value of the fund might go down. The investments in these markets might also be bought and sold infrequently therefore resulting in large changes in their prices.

The fund invests in companies from a particular market sector (such as financial companies or oil companies) which means that there is a higher level of risk because the fund’s investments are not diversified across a variety of market sectors. As a result, the value of an investment in this fund may go up and down more often and by larger amounts than funds that invest in a wider range of market sectors, particularly in the short term.

The fund invests in commercial property.  Property can be difficult to buy or sell.  This could mean that:

• Cash remains uninvested and/or
• Property may have to be sold for less than expected.

If a significant number of withdrawals from the fund is requested by investors, the fund manager may be forced to sell properties quickly.  This could mean that properties are sold for less than expected which would reduce the value of your investment in the fund.

In exceptional circumstances:

• it may not be possible to sell properties quickly and/or
• it may be difficult for independent valuers to assess the market value of the properties held by the funds

In such circumstances the Company can defer the payment of amounts due on the surrender of Units or suspend dealing in the fund where this is in the interest of all investors in the fund.  If dealing is suspended at a time when you want to Surrender Units in the fund, it could become necessary for the Company to delay acting on your instructions. This would lead to a delay in dealing with your request to surrender Units in the fund

If the size of the fund falls significantly, the fund may have to hold fewer properties. This may lead to an increase in its risk as the fund performance will be based on the performance of a small number of properties and therefore the poor performance of one of them will have a larger impact on the fund than if the fund was holding a large number of properties.

Rental growth is not guaranteed, and unpaid rent could affect the performance of your investment in the fund.

The fund may undertake development of properties where the full benefit of any increases in the value of the property or the income earned from it are not received until completion. While any development is taking place, the fund is at risk from delays in receiving the benefit of any improvements, and additional costs. Developments may not achieve the predicted increase in the value of the property or rent.

The value of property is generally a matter of valuer’s professional opinion rather than fact.

The fund invests in money market products, with banks and other financial institutions.  There is a risk of investing in money market products, if the financial institutions which hold the deposits suffer financial difficulties or become insolvent, they may not pay back some or all of the amount invested with them.  This could mean that the fund might not get back the full amount deposited and its value will fall.  Some money market investments may be illiquid. The value of money market securities may fall due to changes in interest rates - including periods of negative interest rates, inflation, creditworthiness, wider credit events or extensions to the anticipated term of investments. If this happens the value of your fund may fall.

The fund invests almost exclusively in fixed interest bonds from a single or small number of issuers, such as companies or governments.  If any of these issuers experience financial difficulty, they may be unable to pay back some or all of the interest, original investment or other payments that they owe.  If this happens, the value of the fund may fall.

The investment policy applied to this fund may mean that it cannot invest in some companies or in certain sectors. These restrictions mean that, should the sectors in which the fund cannot invest be the best performing ones the value of the fund will not increase as strongly as the value of funds which can invest in these sectors.

The fund manager may lend stock to other parties, and it is usual for the borrower to provide collateral. If the borrower fails to return the borrowed stock, the collateral may not be enough to cover the value of the stock, resulting in a reduction in the fund value.

The fund invests in inflation-linked bonds, which are particularly sensitive to changes in inflation rates. Their values are likely to fall when inflation rates fall.

The fund is designed to be used as part of a pre-retirement strategy by investors who are expected to purchase an annuity at retirement.

Exchange Traded Funds generally try to match the performance of a share index, such as the FTSE 100 index, or to track the price of commodities such as oil or gold. Exchange Traded Funds can use a number of different techniques to achieve their goals (including the use of derivatives) and as a consequence can be more complex than traditional funds. The value of this investment may go up and down more often and by larger amounts, particularly in the short term.

Investors may receive less income through drawdown than if they had bought an annuity. They will not benefit from the security of a guaranteed income for life that an annuity offers. The policyholder should ensure that the pension scheme member speaks with his/her adviser about the level of income needed, their potential sources of income and overall financial circumstances before deciding how to take retirement income from the fund.

L&G have made a commitment to address climate change by engaging directly with the largest companies in the world who hold the key to meeting the 2-degree Paris climate change target (COP 21). The companies will be assessed by L&G Asset Management's for robustness of their strategies, governance & transparency. Within this fund’s investment policy, companies that fail to meet L&G Asset Management's minimum standards in low carbon transition and corporate governance standards may be excluded from the fund.

The fund uses an investment strategy which is not benchmarked against a traditional market capitalisation index. Alternative indices may have features such as greater turnover and higher weighting to less liquid stocks than a traditional index. Consequently, the dealing costs associated with the turnover of securities within the fund may be high and impact the performance of the fund against the index.

The fund may invest in instruments providing exposure to the commodities market. Exposure is typically gained indirectly through investment in underlying funds which invests in financial derivative instruments referencing commodities indices and financial instruments linked to, or backed by the performance of, commodities. Investments in derivatives related to commodities can be highly volatile: market prices of commodities derivatives may fluctuate rapidly based on numerous factors, including changes in supply and demand, other trading considerations generally or in the relevant commodity, domestic and international political and economic events, natural events such as weather conditions, agricultural factors, diseases, or technological developments.

The fund should be utilised as part of a diversified investment strategy within a wider portfolio of funds. These funds are not designed to be solely invested in.

The fund will invest in the securities of companies principally engaged in the infrastructure industry and/or loans and debt securities which are related to infrastructure investments.

The fund will invest in the securities of companies principally engaged in the real estate industry and/or loans and debt securities which are related to real estate investments.

The fund will invest in assets which have exposure to private/unlisted equities or hold instruments that provide exposure to private debt. Compared to larger, publicly owned firms, small and medium sized privately owned companies generally have limited financial resources, limited access to capital and higher funding costs. These companies frequently have shorter operating histories, narrower product lines and smaller market shares than larger businesses, which render them more vulnerable to competitors’ actions and market conditions, as well as general economic downturns.

The fund is a Targeted Absolute Return Fund. This type of fund tries to increase the value of your investment over a period of time, in both rising and falling markets. There is no guarantee of returns. The fund’s value may go down as well as up. You may not get back the money you invested. Targeted Absolute Return Funds use a range of different types of investment strategies, some of which can be high risk, and may use derivatives. As a consequence, these funds can be more complex than traditional funds. It is possible that the value of these funds could go down when the market is rising or may not rise as quickly. Each Targeted Absolute Return Fund is designed to produce a specific outcome, so care should be taken when comparing them with other funds.

This fund invests in a PMC fund, which in turn invests in a unit linked life fund provided by an insurer outside of the L&G Group. This is achieved through a re-insurance agreement between PMC and the external insurer.

Legal and General Assurance Society Limited (LGAS) bears the credit risk of PMC becoming insolvent but does not take on the re-insurance credit risk associated with the insolvency of the external insurer. This means that if PMC becomes insolvent, LGAS will make good any shortfall in the value of your investments which it is unable to recover from PMC. However, if the external insurer becomes insolvent, the value of your investment held within this fund will be at risk.

In the event that the external insurer becomes insolvent, the value of your investment held in this fund will not be covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

This fund is able to delay paying out, which may mean that you have to wait to get your money. A delay may happen when market conditions mean it is difficult for the fund manager to cash in investments to pay out to investors.
For example, a fund with investments in commercial properties may find they may take time to sell. Whilst waiting to complete on the sale of properties, the fund manager may suspend making payments to investors who want to cash in. The fund can only delay paying out if it is in the interests of all investors.