Navigator – A modern, flexible and cost-effective investment platform

What is Navigator?
Navigator is an investment platform provided by Aviva, a leading insurance and investment company here in Singapore.Navigator provides access to an extensive range of funds from which a client can choose to invest their cash, with the assistance of a licensed Financial Adviser (who will advise on which funds are suitable, based on the client’s priorities and investment profile).

What funds are available within Navigator?
“Extensive” is a fair description! At the time of writing, over 900 funds are available across equity, fixed income, mixed asset, commodity, money market and property asset classes, and across nine currency denominations. Of these, a subset is approved for investment of excess Central Provident Fund (CPF) or Supplementary Retirement Scheme (SRS) cash.

Two Types of Client
So, who might want to make use of Navigator? There are broadly two types of potential client, based on the source of cash to be invested:

1) Singaporean Citizens or Permanent Residents

The Singapore CPF is contributed to by working citizens and PRs who build up savings in their Ordinary, Special and Medisave accounts.

Of these accounts, it is possible to invest any excess funds above the minimum required cash balances of the Ordinary and Special accounts (above S$20k and S$40k respectively), using the Navigator platform.Supplementary to CPF, Singapore Citizens or Permanent Residents can make voluntary payments into a SRS, and this money can also be invested.

2) Any Singapore resident with excess cash languishing in a bank account.

Interest rates in Singapore savings accounts are low. They have been for some time, and can reasonably be expected to continue to be low. A client, with some appetite for risk and a 5+ year timeframe, can consider Navigator as an option to invest in appropriate funds, with a view to beat the current return their cash is bringing them by sitting in a bank account.

Conclusion
If you have a lump of cash in a bank account, SRS, or excess CPF cash in your Ordinary or Special accounts (additional to the minimum S$20k and S$40k balances), you may want to consider the Navigator platform as a Financial Adviser assisted method of seeking better returns through an appropriate investment strategy.

Written by Michael Davidson
This article aims to provide information, it does not constitute financial advice, nor should it be relied upon as such. You should speak to a financial advisor regarding your circumstances before making a financial commitment. Global Financial Consultants Pte Ltd is a Licensed Financial Advisor and is regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. MAS License number FA100035-3