Unit trusts

With a unit trust, your money is invested along with many other investors’. Depending on the unit trust, your money could be invested in various asset types, from stocks, bonds to currency trading and more.

There are 3 main types of unit trust funds. Depending on your investment goals and risk appetite, you will find some are more suitable than others.

• Equity funds aim to invest in stock exchanges all over the world. But they can also be grouped into global, regional, national or industry-linked funds. Because international economic and political situations are varied, the potential return and risks associated with equity funds are generally higher than money market or bond funds.
  
• Bond funds invest in bonds with different maturities and yields. The return of a bond fund is relatively stable in comparison to equity funds. Examples of stable bond funds are those that invest in government bonds and corporate bonds.
  
• Money market funds focus on investing in short-term money market instruments such as treasury bills, NCDs, time deposits and RPs. Money market instruments tend to have short maturities and can generate a steady stream of income. They are a relatively low-risk investment.
  

Unit trusts allow you to either invest a lump sum or set up a monthly investment plan.

• Lump sum investment let's you choose a unit trust and invest a set amount into it. Generally, there is a minimum limit to invest in a unit trust, which varies by fund.
  
• Monthly investment plan let's you invest a fixed amount each month into unit trusts of your choose. We'll execute your investment order each month automatically.

1. Investing on funds approved by the Financial Supervisory Commission (“FSC”) does not assure no risk. Past fund performance does not guarantee the minimum investment income; except for performing their duties of the care of good administrators, fund houses will not be responsible for gain/loss of the funds or guarantee fund performance. Before subscribing to the funds, investors should have read and fully understood the fund prospectus and the investor information summary provided by the Bank; they are also available at Market Observation Post System (https://mops.twse.com.tw/mops/web/index) or Fund Clear (https://www.fundclear.com.tw/) or fund houses' official websites.
   
2. The fees (including distribution fee) to be borne by investors or funds has been disclosed in the prospectus or the investor information summary. Investors can also obtain information about the fees at the websites above.
   
3. For the performance of a regular savings plan in a fund, investors will have different investment performance as a result of different times of market entry, and past performance is not a guarantee of future performance. NAV of funds may be affected due to market situations or price variation of the underlying. Investors shall fully understand the risks and features of the funds before subscribing to the funds.
   
4. Funds are not covered by the Deposit Insurance Act, the Insurance Stabilization Fund, or other relevant protection mechanisms. Investing in the Fund carries investment risks. Investors should be aware of the risks associated with investment and assume their own responsibility for any losses. The maximum possible loss is the entire trust principal.
   
5. Risk factors that should be considered in fund transactions include, but are not limited to: (1) Risks that may arise from the investment targets and investment regions: market risks (political, economic, social changes, exchange rates, interest rates, stock prices, indices, or price fluctuations of underlying assets), liquidity risks, credit risks, changes in industry business cycles, securities-related commodity trading, laws, and currency risks. (2) Due to the aforementioned risks, large-scale repurchases by beneficiaries, or the fund's suspension of repurchase price calculation, there may be a delay in the payment of the repurchase price.
   
6. Investments in funds investing in high yield bonds shall not account for an overly high percentage of investment portfolio. As high yield bonds' credit rating do not reach the investment grade or has not been rated, and they are extremely sensitive to fluctuations in interest rates, the fund may suffer losses as a result of a rise in interest rates, decrease in market liquidity or default by bond issuers in paying the principal or interest or bankruptcy of bond issuers. The fund is not suitable for investors who cannot bear relevant risks. High yield bond fund dividends may be paid out of the fund‘s principal. High yield bond fund may invest in privately placed US Rule 144A bonds (up to 30% of the domestic fund’s total assets and no limit for offshore funds) which may give rise to risks of insufficient liquidity, insufficient disclosure of financial information and high volatility arising from lack of price transparency.
   
7. Dividend distribution of some funds may be paid out of the fund's income or principal. Any portion involving payment from the principal may result in a reduction in the original investment amount. Some funds have not deducted the relevant expenses payable before dividend distribution. The components in relation to distribution of fund dividends are disclosed in the prospectus and the fund house websites. A distribution yield of the fund does not represent a rate of return of the fund, and the past distribution yield does not represent the future distribution yield; the net asset value of the fund may fluctuate due to causes in the market. The economic trend forecast referred to herein does not inevitably represent the fund's performance.
   
8. For emerging market bond funds/equity funds, other than the aforementioned risks, the repayment abilities of bond issuers and bond credit ratings may be affected as a result of emerging countries’ economy and political condition or systematic changes. The volatility risk of investment portfolio is higher than that in mature market.
   
9. The law states that offshore funds investing in the securities markets of the mainland China are only permitted to invest in listed securities and bonds in inter-bank markets, and the total investment amount shall not exceed 20% of the fund’s net asset value (an offshore fund may be permitted to invest up to 40% of the fund NAV if it is approved by the FSC in accordance with the Offshore Fund Incentive Plan). Therefore, offshore funds investing in the securities markets of the mainland China do not 100% invest in the mainland China market. The domestic funds investing in the securities markets of the mainland China may invest in stock, depository receipts or bonds and are not subject to investment amount limitation; however, such funds are required to comply with the trust agreement, the prospectus and the relevant laws and regulations and the QFII amount restriction. Thus such funds may not 100% invest in the mainland China markets. Investors should also note the changes of the Chinese market government policies, laws, accounting and taxation systems, economy and market, which may lead to investment risks.
   
10. For back-end load funds, the fund houses will charge contingent deferred sales fees according to the length of the fund holding period of the investor. Such fee will be deducted from the redemption payment. Investors should read the relevant information in the prospectus before subscribing to the funds.
    
11. In broad terms “ESG and sustainable investing” products include investment approaches or instruments which consider environmental, social, governance and/or other sustainability factors to varying degrees.  Certain instruments we classify as sustainable may be in the process of changing to deliver sustainability outcomes. There is no guarantee that ESG and Sustainable investing products will produce returns similar to those which don’t consider these factors. ESG and Sustainable investing products may diverge from traditional market benchmarks.  In addition, there is no standard definition of, or measurement criteria for, ESG and Sustainable investing or the impact of ESG and Sustainable investing products. ESG and Sustainable investing and related impact measurement criteria are (a) highly subjective and (b) may vary significantly across and within sectors. HSBC may rely on measurement criteria devised and reported by third party providers or issuers.  HSBC does not always conduct its own specific due diligence in relation to measurement criteria. There is no guarantee: (a) that the nature of the ESG / sustainability impact or measurement criteria of an investment will be aligned with any particular investor’s sustainability goals; or (b) that the stated level or target level of ESG / sustainability impact will be achieved. ESG and Sustainable investing is an evolving area and new regulations are being developed which will affect how investments can be categorized or labelled. An investment which is considered to fulfil sustainable criteria today may not meet those criteria at some point in the future. When we classify an investment product or service against our ESG and Sustainable Investing (SI) categories described in this document: ESG Enhanced, Thematic or Impact, this does not mean that all individual underlying holdings in the investment product or portfolio will meet the relevant SI criteria. As such, an SI classification does not mean that all underlying holdings in a fund or discretionary portfolio meet the relevant sustainable investment criteria.  Similarly, where an equity or fixed income investment is classified under an ESG Enhanced, Thematic or Impact category this does not mean that the underlying issuer’s activities are fully sustainable. Not all investments, portfolios or services are classifiable under our SI categories. This may be because there is insufficient information available or because a particular investment product does not meet HSBC’s SI classifications criteria.
    
12. For funds investing in securities related to the global real estate market or real estate investments (REITs), there may be volatility risks in prices as a result of decline of property value, tax or transaction risks, disasters or expropriation, rent decrease or interest rate change.
    
13. If an investor's transactions are identified by the fund management company to be short-term trading, the fund management company or The Company may refuse to process the conversion or subscription application and may require payment of a certain percentage of redemption fees or other related fees. The applied fee is according to the rules set respective fund management company.
    
14. The fund information provided on the website is for investor reference only and does not constitute an offer or investment advice. Investors should refer to the respective fund company's announcements for relevant information. Before making an investment, investors should consider other information and exercise their own judgment. The Company, its affiliated companies, or any of its directors or employees do not guarantee the accuracy of the above information and assume no legal responsibility. 

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