THE Employees Provident Fund (EPF) is expected to distribute a 2025 dividend of around 5.8 to 6.3 percent for Conventional Savings and 5.5 to 6.0 percent for Shariah Savings.
Global Asia Consulting Senior Consultant, Samirul Ariff Othman, said the expectation was in line with the strong investment income performance in the first nine months, but was still subject to the retirement fund's profit realisation discipline and long-term reserve requirements.
He said the expected rate was also reasonable based on the nine-month performance and the EPF's governance approach which emphasises the sustainability of the fund.
"Based on the nine-month performance and the EPF's own realisation discipline and reserves, the expectation for the 2025 dividend is around 5.8 to 6.3 percent for Conventional Savings and around 5.5 to 6.0 percent for Shariah Savings," he told Berita Harian.
Samirul said an important reality that contributors need to understand is that not all market gains can be distributed as dividends, especially those that have not yet been realised.
"The EPF insists that 'mark-to-market' gains, including those driven by foreign exchange and which have not been realised, cannot be distributed as dividends," he said.
He said that although the global market performance showed a good recovery, the actual dividend figure depends on the amount of profits that are actually realised and the need to keep some of the income as reserves.
"This factor directly limits the dividend 'ceiling', even though investment income appears high on paper," he said.
Commenting on the difference in expectations between Conventional Savings and Shariah, he said that Shariah rates are typically slightly lower due to the reality of a more limited investment structure.
"A Shariah portfolio lacks conventional bonds, lacks flexibility in terms of certain risk protections and is more sensitive to equity cycles," he said. – February 4, 2026
INFO: EPF dividend rate 2020-2024
2020
• Conventional Savings: 5.20 percent
• Shariah Savings: 4.90 percent
2021
• Conventional Savings: 6.10 percent
• Shariah Savings: 5.65 percent
2022
• Conventional Savings: 5.35 percenthundred
• Shariah Savings: 4.75 percent
2023
• Conventional Savings: 5.50 percent
• Shariah Savings: 5.40 percent
2024
• Conventional Savings: 6.30 percent
• Shariah Savings: 6.30 percent
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