After staying away from unlisted equity or bond investment funds for a long time, insurers turned around a few years ago. They now offer financial products in their contracts that invest in this universe not very accessible to the average saver, often opaque and risky. The share (or bond) of an unlisted company cannot be traded simply, because the information is not always available. Also, it often takes a long time to buy it and, most importantly, sell it.
Why then have the door opened to this type of investment, traditionally reserved for informed investors? Insurers were first of all motivated by a change in regulations which allowed them to integrate such supports among their units of account and, above all, to no longer have to bear the liquidity of these products, precisely known so as not to affect them, on their own. to bring. Investors who wish to acquire them must generally sign an addendum to their life insurance contract specifying that they agree not to be able to sell these funds at all times. In the event of exit or death, they also authorize the insurer to deliver the units of these funds rather than their hard cash value.
Very profitable
Why then invest in unlisted life insurance? Because it is very profitable, answer the professionals. “ Average yield is over 10% per year “, affirms for example Christophe Deldycke, president of Turenne Groupe, a company which manages more than one billion euros in private equity. Another reason: life insurance makes these funds accessible, while directly it would be necessary to invest, in some cases, at least 100,000 euros to be able to access them. Private equity also allows savers to know precisely where their money is invested, most often in regional SMEs which raise funds to finance their growth and development. At a time when savers want to give meaning to their investments, this is a point that matters!
Before putting your savings into it, it is better to be sure that you do not need to recover them over the next five years, and even double it if possible.
However, this is not an investment to be put in everyone’s hands, because like good wine, it needs time. “ It takes at least five years for the funds to which the capital is entrusted to optimize their investments “, says Deldycke. Before putting your savings into it, it is therefore better to be sure that you do not need to recover them during these famous five years, and even double it if possible. It is indeed necessary to be patient to hope to obtain the double-digit profitability that professionals suggest. While the profitability to be expected from a fund that invests in the unlisted universe is interesting, liquidity remains the weak point of these supports. Some insurers are dealing with it. This is the case with Generali, which undertakes to ensure this liquidity at all times. “ In the worst case, explains Hugues Aubry, in charge of the savings market and wealth management and member of the Executive Committee of Generali France, we will recover the funds sold by our clients in our own assets ; which does not pose any problem, because we are also developing our investments in the unlisted. “
Despite this, it is not possible to invest in these media as in the other compartments. The regulations indeed impose a ceiling for the unlisted: it cannot weigh more than 10% of the savings constituted when the capital is less than 100,000 euros, and 50% above 100,000 euros. A percentage which seems largely sufficient within the framework of a good diversification, essential to reduce the risks and to optimize the performances in the long term.
Private debts
While most contracts playing the unlisted card have chosen equity funds to represent investments, this is not the case for all. MACSF, a mutual insurance company specializing in the medical and health sector, has just integrated a fund of unlisted private debts (bonds) into its contract. “ In order to maximize the return, once repaid by the companies, the loans are automatically reinvested in the fund, along with the interest paid in the form of coupons. This system aims to achieve an average performance more than twice the annual return of the fund in euros. “, says Roger Caniard, CFO of the MACSF group. The share of this unit of account is capped at 30% of the capital constituted by each holder of the contract.
The unlisted bond fund, managed by Tikehau, aims to facilitate the financing of medium-sized companies, both in France and in Europe, “Which have significant growth potential”, indicates the mutual. “ This investment, benefiting from a fully integrated responsible approach, responds to the growing demand from individual investors to give meaning to their savings while benefiting from a regular revaluation. “, specifies Stéphane Dessirier, CEO of MACSF. This is a major innovation, because this type of investment was until now reserved only for institutional and professional investors.
It is generally the contracts sold on the Internet or in the context of wealth management that offer the widest range. Despite everything, it does not exceed a handful of funds. A glance at the recent performance of these products is essential before launching, because while good returns can be expected, they are far from guaranteed.