KUALA LUMPUR – The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) says its investments have proven their resilience so far, despite the unique challenges faced by the market during the economic slowdown exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The retirement fund said that, guided by its Strategic Asset Allocation (SAA), it will continue to diversify its investments across domestic and global markets, with cash flow considerations a high priority.
“Fundamentally, EPF is a long-term investor and every investment decision made will continue to take into account its responsibility to sustain members’ funds even in unprecedented situations like this pandemic,” it said in a statement today in relation to i-Sinar’s impact on its financial health.
EPF said at present, guided by i-Sinar’s existing structure, all of its actions will ensure there is no impact to the domestic market.
On how i-Sinar withdrawal would affect members’ future retirement, the EPF said while it understands the need for members to withdraw from their savings to survive these difficult times, it hopes members can plan ahead on how much is needed so that they can fulfil today’s needs while minimising the impact on their future retirement.
The fund also said it encourages members to seek its Retirement Advisory Services officers for assistance in financial planning.
On the replenishment method for i-Sinar, EPF said for members under i-Sinar, all future contributions will be channeled to Account 1 until the amount taken out is replenished.
Once the amount taken out is replenished, contributions will revert to the original ratio of 70:30 in Account 1 and Account 2, it said.
The EPF also assured that action will be taken against non-cooperative employers to ensure that members’ i-Sinar application process is smooth. – Bernama, December 5, 2020.