Ahmed Fahour, Executive Director and CEO, Australia said, “NAB’s wealth management business, MLC, is performing well in a very difficult environment and customers should have comfort that their investments are both safe and being managed prudently.”

Additionally, Steve Tucker, CEO of MLC, said, “MLC has been a successful Australian business for more than 120 years. Our customers should have confidence that their investments are well diversified and are being carefully managed in these turbulent times.”

MLC operates under a model that keeps all client investment assets in trust and separate from MLC. Specifically:

• MLC MasterKey uses a Custodian – NAB Custodian Services (NCS), a division of National Australia Bank Limited – to hold all investment assets on behalf of clients
• The Custodian must hold all investment assets in trust. This means your investment assets are separated from the Custodian’s own funds and assets so that in the unlikely event the Custodian becomes insolvent, your investment assets will not be available to the Custodian’s creditors.

Custodians have strict duties and responsibilities:

• The Custodian must comply with legislative requirements and its Australian Financial Service Licence (AFSL) issued by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
• The Custodian must comply with Cross Industry Circular 1 issued by the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority (APRA).
• NCS and MLC MasterKey are required to hold insurance covering professional indemnity and fraud by company officers.
• MLC MasterKey regularly monitors the performance of NCS across operational and financial checkpoints to ensure it is meeting its compliance requirements and its obligations under the custody agreements with MLC.

For further information regarding MLC MasterKey and the safety of your money, speak to your financial adviser or contact the MLC MasterKey Customer Service Centre on 132 652.