A crediting rate of 10 percent totaling SBD$187.5 million will be added to all NPF contribution balances.
This was announced by Minister of Finance Snyder Rini during the Fund’s financial year ending yesterday at the NPF boardroom.
“Today (yesterday) I’m pleased to announce a crediting rate of 10 percent, a positive rate of six percent returns against an expected inflation rate of 4 percent,” Mr Rini announced.
He said, this rate is reasonable return to the member funds compared to what other investment opportunities are available locally and even offshore.
He said, he is aware that members are expecting a high crediting rate as was given in the previous two financial years but those rates were given at a period when the fund for the first time revalued its unlisted equity investments after so many years of investing.
He said, from then on such high values are no longer achievable.
In 2013 the crediting rate added to member contribution balance was 20 percent while last years it was 15 percent and now reduced to 10 percent.
This may raise questions among the members.
Vice Chairman of NPF Board Gideon Zoleveke Junior added that the credit rate had met their annual target of awarding back the members above the inflation rate of 2 percent.
“On this occasion, we know that the more than 100,000 members with credit balance worth of SBD$2.109 billion would always look forward to know how much interest would be added to their contribution balances.
“Our inflation rate is expected to settle at around 4 percent by end of June 2015 and this year’s crediting rate of 10 percent meets that target at 6 percent,” Mr Zoleveke Junior said.
He said this is the 39th annual crediting since 1976 and over the past years since 2006, members with the Fund has enjoyed a real crediting rate of more the 32 percent.
By CHARLES KADAMANA
