Investing with your pension

Investing in a lifecycle

Investing always involves risk. We are very careful about risk when investing your pension capital. We do this by using lifecycles, among other things.

Reducing risk before your Dutch state pension age

Investing in lifecycles means that we slowly reduce the investment risk as your retirement date gets closer. This is because there is less and less time to make up for any investment setbacks. We gradually invest more and more of your pension capital in our Pension Stabilizer. These consist of ‘risk-averse investments’. These are low-risk investments.

Two types of protection

We have put together the Pension Stabilizer to protect your pension in two ways:

• The investment risk is very low. The more of your pension capital we invest in this way, the lower the risk of a sharp drop in your built-up pension. But there is also less chance that it will grow significantly. This means your pension will probably grow less in the years prior to your retirement date.
• The Pension Stabilizer reduce the risk of a low market interest rate. On your retirement date, you will use your pension capital to buy a benefit. The amount of your benefit will depend on the market interest rate at that time and other factors. Are interest rates low? Then you will need more capital to purchase the same pension. The Pension Stabilizer reduce this risk. This is because these investments increase in value if interest rates fall. The opposite is also true: if interest rates increase, then the investment value will fall. However, you will also need less capital to buy the same pension.

Please note: Even with the Pension Stabilizer you run some risk with your pension money.

Agreements in your pension scheme on investing

Your employer has made a number of choices for your pension scheme. The following agreements are laid down in your pension scheme:

• the type of investment we use to invest your pension capital
• the number of choices you can make yourself

The type of investment

Your employer has chosen a default type of investment. This is our approach to investment and how we spread the risks. There are two types of investment:

• Index (Dutch only)
• Performance-driven (Dutch only)

Your employer determines the type of investment that applies by default for your pension scheme. You will find this default in tier 2 of Pension 1-2-3, under ‘What choices do you have?’ If you do not have Pension 1-2-3, you can always find this in your pension regulations.

You can always choose another type of investment. The current type of investment in which we invest for you can be found at mijn.nn Financial Future. Click on mijn.nn at the top right of this screen to log in, and then click on the name of your pension plan to go to Financial Future. You can find your current investment style by clicking on ‘Investments for my pension’ at the top under ‘Go to’.

If you would like to know more about how we invest for you, click above on the type of investment of your pension scheme.

The choices you can make

Your employer has also decided how much freedom of choice you yourself have. There are two possibilities:

• Limited investment freedom: you can choose which investment type we invest in on your behalf and how much risk you want us to take. You can also choose how far you want to reduce this risk as your retirement date approaches. For the investment risk and risk reduction, you can choose from several lifecycles.
• Extended investment freedom: you have the same choices as in ‘limited investment freedom’. In addition, you can also choose your investment funds yourself (‘Self-investment)’).

You can see which investment choices you have in tier 2 of Pension 1-2-3 (or your pension regulations). You can also find this in mijn.nn Financial Future (go to the ‘Adjust’ tab on this page). With the Pensioen Continu Plan you always have extended investment freedom. Read more about these choices under ‘Choices’.

Your investment choices one by one

You can make some choices for your investments yourself. Depending on the arrangements with your employer, you can choose:

• the type of investment
• how much risk we should run when investing your pension capital
• the extent to which you wish to reduce the risk as your retirement date approaches.

Choice 1: type of investment

The type of investment is the way in which we invest for you. You can choose between two types of investment:

• Index type of investment: we invest in index funds of reputable providers. An index fund is an investment fund whose objective is to achieve a return that is approximately equal to that of a particular index (such as the AEX index or the MSCI World Index). In addition, we use an insurance solution that limits risks for you (the Pension Stabilizer). Read more about the Index type of investment (Dutch only).
• Performance-driven type of investment: we invest in funds with which NN Investment Partners expects to outperform a certain index (such as the AEX index or the MSCI World Index). This is known as ‘active investing’. This index is the benchmark against which the results of active investment funds are compared. In addition, we use an insurance solution that limits risks for you (the Pension Stabilizer). Read more about the Performance-driven type of investment (Dutch only).

Choice 2: investment risk

You determine yourself the risk that is a better fit for you. For this, you first need to determine your risk profile using our online risk profiler. Doing so lets you know how much risk you can incur with your pension. And how much risk you wish to incur. But you can opt to deviate from this risk profile and to invest with lower or higher risk exposure. You can change your choice at any time up to your retirement date.

You have five options:

• more cautious +: you can or want to incur the least amount of risk possible that your pension investments fall in value while you are accruing pension. You accept that your investments will therefore rise less in value when investment results are good.
• more cautious: you can or want to incur less risk that your pension investments fall in value while you are accruing pension. You accept that your investments will therefore rise less in value when investment results are good.
• balanced: you are seeking a balance between the chance of your pension investments rising in value and the risk of them falling in value. You want a good likelihood that your investments will rise in value while you are accruing pension. But you cannot or do not want to incur much risk that the value of your investments will fall short of expectations if investments perform poorly.
• more ambitious: you would like a greater opportunity to benefit from a rise in value of your pension investments while you are accruing pension. And you can and want to incur more risk that they will fall in value. You are confident that future returns on investments will be good. And you accept that the value of your investments can be lower than expected if your investments perform poorly.
• more ambitious +: You want an opportunity to benefit from the highest possible value of your pension investments while you are accruing pension. And you can and want to incur considerably more risk that your investments can also fall substantially in value. You are confident that future returns on investments will be good. And you accept that the value of your investments can be substantially lower than expected if your investments perform poorly.

Specific lifecycles are linked to each risk profile.

Choice 3: reducing risk as your retirement date gets closer

We reduce investment risk gradually as your retirement date gets closer, regardless of whether your risk profile is more ambitious, balanced or more cautious. See the tab ‘Lifecycles’ to learn more.

We start reducing risk ten to twenty years prior to your retirement date, depending on the type of investment and your lifecycle. We will notify you before we start the risk-reduction process.

Reducing the risk to a greater or lesser extent

By default, we gradually reduce the higher- and lower-risk investments to a fixed pension benefit. We then invest almost all of your money in the Pension Stabilizer just before your retirement date. These investments are risk-averse: they have a lower risk.

However, you can also choose to have your investment risk reduced to a lesser extent. Suppose you want a variable pension benefit from your retirement date, with 30% being invested. We then reduce the higher- and lower-risk investments to fit this benefit on the retirement age or your AOW age. Once you reach this age, we invest almost 70% in the Pension Stabilizer. By investing with greater risk for a longer period, your pension capital can grow more. However, the investment results may also fall short, meaning your pension capital may be lower than expected.

The risk profiler helps you determine which risk-reduction suits you. The risk reduction is a part of your risk profile. You have the following options for risk-reduction till your Dutch state pension (AOW) age:

More cautious +	More cautious	Balanced	More ambitious	More ambitious +	⇐ accrual benefit ⇓
Reduce risk to a fixed benefit	Reduce risk to a fixed benefit	Reduce risk to a fixed benefit	Reduce risk to a fixed benefit	Reduce risk to a fixed benefit	Fixed
	Reduce risk to a variable benefit with 15% invested	Reduce risk to a variable benefit with 15% invested	Reduce risk to a variable benefit with 15% invested	Reduce risk to a variable benefit with 15% invested	Variable: defensive
		Reduce risk to a variable benefit with 30% invested	Reduce risk to a variable benefit with 30% invested	Reduce risk to a variable benefit with 30% invested	Variable: neutral
			Reduce risk to a variable benefit with 45% invested	Reduce risk to a variable benefit with 45% invested	Variable: offensive
				Reduce risk to a variable benefit with 60% invested	Variable: very offensive

Fixed or variable pension benefit

You will have another choice to make on your retirement date:

• Variable pension benefit: we will continu to invest part of your pension capital after your retirement date. The amount of your benefit will depend on how your investments perform. In other words, your benefit can rise and fall. We call this variable pension benefit. With the variable pension benefit of Nationale-Nederlanden, you can choose whether you want to continue to invest 15%, 30% 45% or 60% of your pension capital. The remainder of your benefit is a fixed amount. Please note : you can only choose a variable benefit at your retirement date if it matches your risk profile at that time.
• Fixed pension benefit: we will no longer invest your pension capital after your retirement date. You will know the exact amount of your benefit for its entire duration. We call this a fixed pension benefit. With the fixed pension benefit of Nationale-Nederlanden, you will know exactly what you can expect. You can always choose a fixed benefit at your retirement date.

See more information about our pension benefit: Persoonlijke Pensioenuitkering (Dutch only).
You can also opt to buy your benefit from another pension insurance company on your retirement date.

Give some thought to the following now

It would be wise to start thinking now about investing after your retirement date. You can then choose the risk reduction rate that is right for your situation. You will not make your final decision on continued investment until your retirement date.

• If you think you will want a fixed pension benefit, you can have the higher- and lower-risk investments reduced (almost) completely on your Dutch state pension (‘AOW’) age. We then invest almost all your pension money in risk-averse investments.
• If you are likely to want a variable benefit later and you would like to have, for example, 30% of your pension capital invested at the start of your benefit? Then you can have the higher-risk investments in the Balanced, More Ambitious and More Ambitious+ lifecycles reduced to fit a variable benefit with 30% being invested. However, you will run the risk of poor investment results just prior to your retirement date. What if you continue to invest after your retirement date as you intended? Then you may be able to make up for all or part of the poor investment results.
  Please note: if you nevertheless decide on a fixed benefit, then you will run two risks:
  • You can no longer make up for any losses just prior to your retirement date after you retire, because you will no longer be investing.
  • We will sell all of your risky investments at once on your retirement date. If the prices of these investments are low at that point, then your pension may be lower than expected.

Adjusting your investments in a lifecycle

You can make and submit different choices regarding your investments. In that case, we will adjust your investments as quickly as possible for you. The way you submit adjustments depends on whether you want to submit choices for a Persoonlijk Pensioen Plan or a Pensioen Continu Plan. Read more about this below. You can read how to submit your choices if you opt to choose your investment funds yourself under ‘Self-investment’.

Adjusting investments for your Persoonlijk Pensioen Plan

Before you can submit your investment choices, we first help you to set your risk profile. This way, you can see which investment risk and risk reduction suit you. You can easily set your risk profile with our online risk profiler.

You can find the risk profiler at mijn.nn Financial Future. Click on mijn.nn in this screen at the top right to log in. If you have not yet created an account or you have forgotten your login details, we will help you on that screen. If you are logged in, click on the name of your pension scheme to go to Financial Future. You can find the risk profiler by clicking on ‘Investment choices’ at the top under ‘Go to’.

If you do not have access to mijn.nn Financial Future for your Persoonlijk Pensioen Plan, you can set your risk profile using the form ‘Risicoprofielbepaler – Index & Prestatiegericht’ (Dutch only) at the bottom of this page.

Submit your choice immediately

When you have determined your risk profile, you can choose whether you want to invest according to this profile. As long as you are not yet retired, you do not have to invest according to your risk profile. You can also make a different choice, for example investing with more or less risk, or with a higher or lower risk reduction rate.

You can change your investment choice at any time prior to your retirement date. However, you must always complete the risk profiler first, or you must have done so recently. The same applies if you choose your investment funds yourself. Read more about this under ‘Self-investment’.

If you do not have access to mijn.nn Financial Future for your Persoonlijk Pensioen Plan, you can submit your investment choices using the form ‘Keuzeformulier beleggen in een lifecycle - Index & Prestatiegericht’ (Dutch only) at the bottom of this page.

Understanding your options first

Would you like to see what a specific choice might mean for your pension? You can perform calculations with your pension details in mijn.nn Financial Future. This will give you more insight into your options. If you then decide to submit your choice, you will first have to complete the risk profiler. This will show you whether your choice suits your wishes and possibilities.

Adjusting investments for your Pensioen Continu Plan

Before you can submit your investment choices, we first help you to set your risk profile. This way, you can see which investment risk and risk reduction suit you. Immediately after, you can submit your choices.

Setting your risk profile

You can set your risk profile with the form ‘Risicoprofielbepaler – Index & Prestatiegericht’ (Dutch only) that is available for download at the bottom of this page.

As long as you are not yet retired, you do not have to invest according to the risk profiler. You can also make a different choice, for example investing with more or less risk, or with a higher or lower risk reduction rate.

Submitting your investment choices

You can submit your choice for you investments using the ‘Keuzeformulier beleggen in een lifecycle – Index & Prestatiegericht’ (Dutch only) that is available for download at the bottom of this page. Send this form in with your risk profile form.

You can change your investment choice at any time prior to your retirement date. However, you must always complete the risk profiler first, or you must have done so recently. The same applies if you choose your investment funds yourself. Read more about this under ‘Self-investment’.

If you make no choice

If you do not set your risk profile, we will invest in the standard lifecycle associated with your pension scheme. We will reduce higher- and lower-risk investments almost entirely in the years before your retirement date. This is consistent with a fixed benefit from your retirement date.

You may have set your risk profile and made your own investment choices in the past and you may not have adjusted them since. If so, we will invest according to those choices until you submit new investment choices. If something has changed in your personal circumstances or if you think that this way of investing no longer suits you for some reason, we recommend that you set your risk profile again.

Downloads

• Keuzeformulier beleggen in een lifecycle Index-Prestatiegericht (0,1 mb)
• Risicoprofielbepaler Index-Prestatiegericht (1,7 mb)

Choosing investment funds yourself

Your current or former employer may give you the option of choosing investment funds yourself. If you choose this option, you will not invest in a lifecycle. We call this ‘Self-investment’. See tier 2 of Pension 1-2-3 to learn whether this option is open to you.

Personal responsibility for your investments

If you opt to choose your investment funds yourself, then you are personally responsible for your investments. It is up to you to decide on the level of risk that is right for you. We will not automatically reduce your investment risk as your retirement date gets closer. It is important that you understand investing if you opt for Self-investment. You will then be better able to assess the risks. And you can reduce your risk as your retirement date gets closer, which would be wise indeed.

More information about Self-investment

If you want to know more about choosing your own investment funds or if you want to submit a new fund choice, you will find all the information you need on the Choosing your own investment funds page.

Cost of changing your investments

Are we investing for you in a lifecycle? And do you want us to invest your capital in a different lifecycle? Then we will change your investments free of charge.

Do you select investment funds yourself? And do you want us to invest your capital in different funds? Then you may be charged costs if we change your investments. See the information on your type of investment for more details on the costs involved. You will find links to the types of investment in the menu at the top right of this page.