Press Release 2016

UOB Malaysia launches UOB Wealth Navigator to meet investor demand
for long-term risk-adjusted returns

New integrated wealth solution focuses on building, optimising and protecting customers' wealth amid market uncertainties

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2 November 2016 - United Overseas Bank (Malaysia) Bhd (UOB Malaysia) has launched the UOB Wealth Navigator, an integrated wealth management solution for prudent investors who seek steady long-term returns to achieve their financial goals.

Based on a survey on the investment habits of affluent investors in Malaysia1, one in every two respondents said they are focused on generating steady returns over a longer investment horizon. The poll also revealed that in times of heightened market volatility and uncertainty, investors turn cautious with 65 per cent of respondents saying they prefer to adopt a disciplined investment strategy.

Recognising this trend, UOB Malaysia has introduced a solution which uses the basic investing principles of time, diversification and compounding returns to help investors achieve optimal yields over a longer period while preserving their wealth.

Mr Ronnie Lim, Country Head of Personal Financial Services and Head of Private Banking, UOB Malaysia said that while it is impossible to predict the future direction of financial markets, investors can build and protect their wealth by regularly investing for the long-term into a diversified portfolio. Through regular portfolio rebalancing and optimisation, market risks can also be managed better.

"With the rising cost of living and declining returns on cash products, a portfolio management strategy that is skewed heavily towards cash may not be ideal for investors looking for better yields. Investors need to shift their mindset from saving to include both saving and investing. Today's low-yield environment means investors who hold too much cash may see their savings diminish in value over the long term," Mr Lim said.

Addressing the demand for wealth preservation
According to the survey results, Malaysian investors are concerned about the decline in value of their personal wealth amid current market volatility. Among them, 24 per cent cited the economic downturn as a potential threat to the value of their personal wealth while 17 per cent said currency volatility was their chief concern.

The UOB Wealth Navigator addresses investors' need for wealth preservation using two distinct tools - the Wealth Builder and Portfolio Optimiser. These are portfolio diversification and optimisation strategies designed to mitigate risk and to achieve optimal asset allocation.

The Wealth Builder comprises both domestic and global investment funds that have been hand-picked by the Bank's investment specialists to help investors identify their financial goals and build a comprehensive investment plan. Using a flexible asset-allocation approach, the fund managers are able to move investments among different asset classes and geographies quickly. This will help investors mitigate better the risks arising from volatile market conditions.

The Portfolio Optimiser, a tool applied to achieve optimal asset allocation within the portfolio, identifies and corrects the drifts in investors' asset allocation targets, ensuring the alignment with their overall risk appetite and investment objective.

"The UOB Wealth Navigator not only offers investors opportunities for higher returns, more importantly, it helps them to preserve and to protect their wealth in times of market uncertainty," said Mr Lim.

For more information about the UOB Wealth Navigator, investors can approach UOB Malaysia's relationship managers across its 45 branches nationwide or visit www.uob.com.my for more information.

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¹ Conducted by UOB Malaysia in May 2015, the UOB Wealth Management Survey 2015's objective was to understand the investment behaviour and asset allocation preferences among affluent Malaysians. A total of 102 customers from UOB Malaysia's Privilege Banking and Wealth Banking segments participated in the survey.