Demonstrating value through enhanced reporting

Your year-end report is designed to clearly answer two important questions that most investors ask:

• How are my investments doing?
• What are they costing me?

What are ‘fees paid by others?’

Some of the fees that we receive to assist you with managing your investments come directly from you, like a transaction fee or administration fee. Those fees are shown in the “Fees You Paid” section of the year-end account report.

Some of the fees we receive for serving you come from the products you purchase or from those to whom we have referred you for a specialized service. These fees are shown in the “Fees Paid By Others In Connection With Your Account” section of the report.

In all cases, CIBC receives the money and it is available to support our advisors in the work they do for you. In some cases, some or all of the fee may be paid by CIBC directly to an advisor. In other cases, it may affect an advisor’s compensation but not be paid directly to them. Regardless of how the money flows, our advisors and representatives are focused on meeting your needs and helping your achieve your goals. These fees make that possible. 

Do these fees match what I would have seen on my fee schedule?

There are no new fees being introduced with the year-end account report. What you are seeing is the total amount that we received for managing your account, presented in more detail.

What performance information is reported in the year-end account report?

You will see the absolute change in the value of cash and securities over the previous 12 months. There will also be the total percentage returns for 1-, 3-, 5- and 10-year periods as they become available and the return since the date the account was opened.

The percentage returns are calculated using a money-weighted rate-of-return, also known as the individual rate-of-return.

What is the money-weighted or individual rate of return?

The individual rate of return shows the rate of growth of your account and how your money is doing overall. In addition to the performance of the investments in the account, it factors in the size and timing of your deposits and withdrawals. You can use it to check your progress toward an established goal.

How does the timing of my transactions affect my rate of return?

It’s always better to “buy low” and “sell high.” That’s our goal and we’re sure it’s yours, too. However, it’s unwise to try to time the market. Making regular, frequent contributions is the best way to grow value and achieve your long-term goals.

How can I use my individual rate of return?

The best way to use the individual rate of return is to compare it to the target rate of return for an account. Because it includes the impact of your deposits and withdrawals, it is an excellent measure of where you are in relation to your goals, but it isn’t meant for comparing to benchmarks or generic market returns.

How do I know if my individual rate of return is any good?

A rate of return is neither good nor bad. The individual rate of return considers the performance of the investments in your account and your choices to deposit or withdraw funds. As such, it reflects such things as your risk tolerance, the performance of the market, your time horizon and the timing of your investment decisions. It is a good measure of your progress toward your goal for the account, and can be used to assess whether you may need to make any adjustments.