Ask Melanie | Why not put all your eggs in one basket?
Melanie Nutbeam, a certified financial planner based in Hong Kong, addresses common personal finance queries. Send your questions to melanie.nutbeam@hfs.com.hk
Regardless of the sum in your Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) accounts, it's worth considering consolidation.
The MPF Authority (MPFA) is on a mission to encourage people to do this. There are over two million scheme members and four million accounts. You, and all scheme members holding multiple accounts, will soon receive a letter from the MPFA recommending consolidation.
The MPFA believes consolidation will cut costs, benefiting all members in the long term.
However, as Billy Wong, chief executive of Sun Life Trustee, says: "Since almost all MPF fees are currently charged as a flat percentage of assets, it makes no difference in terms of cost at the moment to members who consolidate their accounts."
The argument for consolidation is that it might improve your chances of enhancing returns simply because it's easier to see the whole picture, to stay focused and make changes. Two accounts may just be manageable but receiving multiple statements and navigating through different websites to find relevant, let alone useful, information is mind-numbing.
Deciding which scheme to consolidate into is also challenging. There are 40 approved MPF schemes offered by about 19 approved MPF trustees from major banks and insurance companies.