POLAND - Aegon's Polish pension fund is once again among the funds to lose the most money in the so-called transfer session, even though its performance beat the market in August.

The Dutch insurer's subsidiary had hoped to stem the loss of clients - following its takeover of the Skarbiec-Emerytura pension fund earlier this year - at the end of the two-months transition period in which clients can change funds without additional cost. (See earlier IPE article: Aegon seeks regrowth at end of merger transition)

However, the latest figures compiled by research bureau analizy showed Aegon is the fund which saw its assets under managemendecline most in August, namely by 4.5% and Skarbiec lost 3%.

The analysts stressed both funds performed above the market average of -0.47% but a "significant" number of clients still left these two funds and took their assets with them.

"The last transfer session outcome resulted from the activity of external sales forces cooperating with our fund in the past but who are, however, now working for our competitors," explained Jaroslaw Kubiak, CEO of AEGON PTE.

He added some salespeople made a free-of-charge switching offer for clients in order to convince them to move asset elsewhere.

Aegon noted most of those leaving Aegon and Skarbiec went to Skarbiec, Warta and Nordea funds which have generated lower investment performance than Aegon over the last three years.

"That means the transfers were not based on logical analysis of funds but solely on salesmen activity," Aegon claimed.

Overall, managers of all 15 Polish funds lost PLN709m (€205.4m) in August but assets grew by 0.4% to almost PLN140bn thanks to one of the highest transfers from the state social authority ZUS which is collecting pension fund contributions on behalf of the funds.

The only fund to manage a positive rate of return in August was the smallest in the market, OFE Polsat with a 0.18% return.

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