About the Retirement Countdown Fund
The Retirement Countdown Fund (RCF) is designed and managed to protect the value of built-up pension savings. It invests in cash and other ‘liquid’ (easy to sell and turn into cash) assets that behave in a similar way to cash, such as money market funds, cash deposits and short-dated bonds. These investments are expected to hold their value well and produce returns in line with the RCF’s investment objective.
It forms part of the Journey Path, where pension savings gradually move to the RCF from the growth-focussed Diversified Growth Fund (DGF), starting 15 years before planned retirement age. At retirement age your pension savings will be split 80% in the RCF and 20% in the DGF and will stay like that unless you do something.
As long-term investors, we believe environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors play an essential part in producing positive investment returns in the long run. At 31 March 2023 the RCF’s percentage of responsible investments was 100%, in line with our commitment to responsible investment.
You can find out more about the Journey Path, the RCF’s objectives and our commitment to responsible investment in the Statement of Investment Principles.
Investment performance
The Bank of England continued to increase its base interest rate over the quarter. The interest rate increased to 4% in February, with a further increase in March. At 31 March 2023 the base interest rate was 4.25%. This benefited the RCF’s investments, giving it a strong start to 2023.
Over the quarter, the RCF delivered a return in line with its objective.
You can download the fund factsheet here.
See all of our historical Diversified Growth Fund factsheets.