New Ireland Retirement Fund (IRIS) 2040

The Retirement 2040 Fund (3) invests across a wide mix of asset classes, including equities, bonds, property, cash, alternatives, commodities and infrastructure. Its equity exposure spans regions such as North America, the eurozone, Europe, Japan, the UK, emerging markets, the Pacific Basin and Ireland. This broad diversification is designed to help the fund balance growth and protection as retirement approaches.

The Retirement 2040 Fund (3) follows a lifecycle, or glide path, approach. It gradually switches money from a higher-risk investment strategy in the earlier years to a medium/low-risk strategy as retirement nears. In simple terms, that means it is designed to take less market risk over time rather than staying in the same asset mix throughout.

The Retirement 2040 Fund (3) is aimed primarily at pension investors who expect to take a retirement lump sum and invest in an Approved Retirement Fund, or ARF, at retirement. It is part of the IRIS lifestyle investment strategy, which is built around an expected retirement year. The fund is therefore most relevant to investors planning for a 2040 retirement date.

The Retirement 2040 Fund (3) carries normal market risk, which means its value can rise and fall over time, even over the long term. It also has sustainability risks, meaning environmental, social or governance issues may affect some of the investments it holds. Securities lending may also be used in some underlying holdings to try to earn extra return, but this can increase risk because the assets are temporarily used by another party.

The Retirement 2040 Fund (3) is designed specifically around a target retirement year of 2040 rather than being a static multi-asset fund. Its IRIS framework is intended to grow and safeguard pension savings by adjusting the risk level over time. The fund is managed by State Street Investment Management and Legal and General Investment Management (LGIM), combining two specialist investment managers.