Royal is no more

The Royal Funds have passed into history. Or at least their family name has. All the funds in the group now bear the RBC designation, which previously had been used to identify the company’s recently-created load funds, designed for financial advisors.

Investors will now have to ask which fund series they are buying before finalizing a purchase. There are three classes from which to choose.

“A”series. These are the bank’s traditional no-load funds. They’re the ones you will be offered if you buy through your local branch. Minimum initial investment is $1,000 in a non-registered plan or $500 in an RRSP.

Advisor series. The funds in this group are sold by brokers and financial planners on an optional front or back-end load basis. Most require a minimum initial investment of $1,000 in both registered and non-registered plans, but the impressive RBC Advisor Canadian Bond Fund has a $10,000 minimum.

“F” series. This series carries no load charges and is designed to be used by financial advisors in fee-based accounts. The MERs will be much lower than funds in the “A” series or Advisor series, because these fun pay no trailer fees to dealers. Instead, your advisor receives an annual fee based on the total assets in your account. Minimum investment requirements are the same as for the “A” series funds.

Adapted from an article that originally appeared in Mutual Funds Update, a monthly electronic newsletter of common sense mutual fund advice edited by Gordon Pape. For subscription information, go to http://www.buildingwealth.ca/bookstore/productdetail.cfm?product_id=80