Get a Slice of Unit Pricing with Verve Money
by Verve
Places to go, things to invest in? Here’s the TL;DR version…
- Verve Money is an example of a ‘managed fund’, and if you’re invested with us, you have a choice of three ethical portfolios.
- This style of investing is a way to have your money collectively invested by professionals (us!) in lots of different things, and in line with a set of values (think: ethically screened shares, bonds, cash, property, etc.)
- You can think of a managed fund like a pizza, where we choose the ingredients, do the baking, and keep trying to grow the pizza for everyone. You, as the investor, can own slices of it.
- The way we keep track of how many slices everyone has is through ‘units’ — where each unit represents how many slices of the fund you own.
- Unit prices are calculated regularly and can fluctuate for various reasons. Here’s where to go to find ours.
- Even though the unit price (and your overall portfolio value) might change, it’s important to keep your unique investing goals in mind and focus on long-term trends, rather than what’s happening on a particular day.
Responsible investing with Verve Money
As someone looking to build long-term wealth and financial freedom, there are lots of different ways to go about it. There are exchange-traded funds or ‘ETFs.’ You can invest directly in the stock market through a trading platform. You can invest through a broker. You can invest in property, cash or bonds, and several others.
Each of them carries its own risks and its own rewards, and the best choice for you depends on your goals, how long you have to invest, and how much risk you want to take on.
Verve Money is an example of an ethical ‘managed fund’. This style of investing is an accessible and easy way to have your money collectively invested by professionals (us!). And that money is invested across lots of different things or ‘assets’, in line with a set of values (think: ethical screens for gender equality, climate solutions, etc.).
Our investment experts carefully curate what we invest in and weed out the nasties, so you can be confident your money is invested in the good stuff.
So, when your money is collectively invested in an ethical managed fund like Verve Money, how do we keep track of what’s yours? It’s through a nifty thing called ‘unit pricing’, and it’s about time someone made it as easy to digest as your favourite deep dish pizza (pineapple optional). Grab your napkins, let’s dig in.
What is a unit price (and what’s it got to do with pizza)?
Maybe you’ve stumbled upon the term ‘unit pricing’ on the Verve Money website, or seen it on your end of year tax statement, but what does it actually mean? Now, we promised pizza, and we won’t let you down.
Understanding unit pricing is easier if you think of a managed fund like a pizza. If Verve Money is a pizza, then our investment managers are like the chefs. They choose the highest quality ingredients. They do the rolling, the baking, and the constant checking on its progress. Their job is to make the pizza as delicious as possible and keep it growing for everyone.
Our chefs, or investment managers, then cut the ‘za (a.k.a the fund) up into individual slices or ‘units’ for sale and put a price on them. That is what the unit price represents: how much it costs for a slice of the pizza fund.
Now, you are the hungry caterpillar who is ready to buy or ‘invest’ in a slice (or two or three). Not only do you have three different ethical pizzas portfolios to choose from, but you also get to decide how many slices you want to buy — depending on how hungry you are and what your appetite is like. Because who can stop at one slice? Not us.
What is a ‘unit’? As an investor in a managed fund like Verve Money, you own what’s called ‘units’ in one or more of our three ethical portfolios. How much money you have invested overall (i.e. your net deposit) is decided by the value of those units and how many of them you have.
What we love about unit pricing
Unit pricing plays a critical role in managing Verve Money’s portfolios, because it is a key way to ensure that investors are treated fairly and equally.
By reflecting the true value of the fund, unit pricing helps to determine the returns. That means investors like you know exactly how your investments are performing.
Not only that, but it also ensures that all investors are paying the right price for their unit (or their slice of the pizza), and it allows investors to buy and sell without impacting the value of the underlying assets (or how much the whole pizza is worth).
Do unit prices stay the same?
In the same way that the cost of an *actual* slice of pizza — with its different toppings and flavours — can change, so too can the unit price.
To better understand why it might fluctuate, it can be helpful to have a bit of context on how the unit price is calculated.
Calculating the unit price (a.k.a the cost of a slice of pizza), is done by taking the total cost of your investment and dividing it by how many units (or slices) you’re getting. For example, if one slice is $5, then:
- You spend $5 and get one slice = $5 per unit
- You spend $10 and get two slices = still $5 per unit (even though you’ve spent twice as much)
Of course, as fun as pizza analogies are, shall we break it down with a real example using one of Verve Money’s three investment options? We thought so.
An example that is (sadly) not pizza
When you invest in a fund like ours, you are essentially taking ownership of a certain number of units. And as the value of the overall fund goes up and down, so will the value of the units you own.
So, let’s say the total value of our Verve Money’s Balanced investment option is $10M. And then let’s say that there are 10M units issued to investors like you. The unit price would be $1.00 ($10,000,000 ÷ 10,000,000 = $1.00).
Now let’s say we have a bloody bumper month, and the value of the assets within the fund increases by 10% after fees and taxes. The total value of the fund will increase by 10% to $11M. But the number of units hasn’t changed. So, the new unit price is $11,000,000 ÷ 10,000,000 = $1.10.
Or, let’s say that something happens and the share market takes a bit of a dip (totally normal), and it causes the fund’s assets to decrease by 5%. The total value of the fund is now $9.5M, but still the number of units hasn’t changed. So, the new unit price is $9,500,000 ÷ 10,000,000 = $0.95.
How to calculate the unit price? A fund’s unit price is reached by adding up the total value of each investment option, minus any fees, taxes or other expenses (a.k.a net asset value), and then dividing it by the number of units available. It is calculated every business day and can go up and down based on a variety of factors.
How often are unit prices calculated and when should I check it?
Most managed funds, including Verve Money, typically calculate their unit price every business day, so you’re likely to see fluctuations in pricing pretty regularly.
But just because the unit price is generally calculated every day, doesn’t mean you should check your balance every day. Instead, it’s more important to look for trends over time than to make rash decisions based on one day, one week, or one month’s data.
“When it comes to investing, patience is key. The longer your money is invested, the more potential it has to grow and earn compound interest, which you can reinvest and generate even more.” — Christina Hobbs, Verve Money CEO
While past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance — investing in a managed fund is largely about taking a long-term approach and making consistent progress towards your goals.
How often should I check the unit price? Just because a fund’s unit price is generally calculated every day, doesn’t mean you should check your balance every day. Short-term market fluctuations are normal, and do not necessarily reflect the long-term potential or health of an investment. Building wealth over time is about setting long-term goals and looking for trends over time.
How do fluctuations affect my total investment?
As you can imagine, just as the unit prices can move up or down on any given day, so too can the value of your portfolio. It might seem a little scary to know that it’s changing all the time — but even just a little knowledge can give you greater confidence and peace of mind to ride the ebbs and flows of the market like a pro.
If you’re curious about what impact fluctuations in the unit price can have on your overall investment — using the previous example we can see that an increase in the unit price, means a boost in your portfolio value, and vice versa:
- 1000 units x $1.00 unit price = $1,000 invested
- 1000 units x $1.10 unit price = $1,100 invested
- 1000 units x $0.95 unit price = $950 invested
To see the number of units you hold or the current unit price, you can always login to the Verve Money app or find the information on our ‘Pricing’ page, including historical pricing since the fund started. Just remember, before you do, that there are a few really important things to bear in mind. Let’s recap.
Three bite-sized takeaways on unit pricing
By now, you’re probably absolutely starving — for pizza, a slice of investing, or another over-cooked analogy — so here are the three things we want you to remember:
- As an investor in Verve Money, you are part of an ethical managed fund where the ‘slices’ you own are called ‘units’. How many you have depends on how hungry you are and how big your appetite is. This style of investing is an accessible and easy way to have your money collectively invested by professionals.
- The price of a slice fluctuates based on various factors, and that’s completely normal. Likewise, the overall value of your investment goes up and down over time depending on the current unit price and how many units you own.
- Just because the unit price is generally calculated every business day, doesn’t mean you should check it everyday (you can leave it to the experts for that). Investing in an ethical managed fund is about setting long-term goals, making consistent deposits and making sure things trend in the right direction, rather than making rash decisions based on dips here and there.
Want another slice?
We know that understanding the ins and outs of investing can be a lot sometimes, even when you try to slice it up with pizza. What we also know is that you are capable, conscientious, and ready to create a better world with your money. And our investment managers have 30 years of investing experience, so you don’t need to sweat it.
Get started with a diversified and sustainable investment portfolio today: sign up to Verve Money and download our fun new app from the App Store or Google Play.
This article is published by Verve Money Pty Ltd (ABN 71 653 669 366, AFS Representative No. 001294184), a Corporate Authorised Representative of True Oak Investments Ltd (ABN 81 002 558 956; AFSL 238184), as the Manager of Verve Money. A friendly reminder that all the financial information contained in this article is general in nature and does not take into account your personal financial objectives, situation or needs. It’s important to do your own research and consider getting in touch with a professional adviser to access specific information tailored to your unique situation.
You should read the Product Disclosure Statement, Investment Guide, Target Market Determination and Financial Services Guide before making a decision to acquire, hold, or continue to hold, an interest in the Verve Money Fund. Visit www.vervemoney.com.au/documents to view these documents.
Interests in the Verve Money Fund (ARSN 662 622 899) are issued by Melbourne Securities Corporation Limited (ACN 160 326 545, AFSL 428289). When considering financial returns, return of capital is not guaranteed and past performance is not indicative of future performance.
