Have you ever wondered why ASB,
Tabung Haji and SSPN are so popular among the Malays? Although they don’t
consistently provide an attractive return, these investments are still favoured
by the Malays and are seen as the investment of choice when they have money to
spare for investing. They are considered
safe because they are run by the government or guaranteed by the government.
Each investment vehicle has its own uniqueness and special traits that make it
appealing to the majority of Malays.
Let’s compare these investments based on a few criteria:
Dividend
This is the first thing we would
want to know - which is the most attractive in terms of dividend?
If we look back at the old
days, ASB was giving out 7% per year and SSPN about 6% and Tabung Haji about 5%. But since 2019 things
are not looking so good. In 2020 the ASB only gave 4.25% which is not very
attractive Tabung Haji’s
dividend for 2020 was
only 3.10% so it does not seem the place to get rich.
Indeed this Tabung is only for going
to Haji and to get in the queue for your Haji slot. Finally, the dividend for
SSPN was 4% in 2019 and 2020, so it’s looking as good as ASB.
Shariah Compliant
Tabung Haji is of course very
Shariah compliant. No complaints here. SSPN has also got a Shariah
certification. But ASB used to be considered haram in some states because they
invest in Maybank shares, that is ‘riba”.
However now most of the states
have changed their fatwa and it is considered ‘harus’, but it’s up to you if
you want to invest in ASB. They still invest about 21% of the fund in Maybank.
Tax Relief
You can get tax relief for one of
these investments, that is SSPN. You can get relief up to RM8000 but it does
not include any amount that you withdraw during the year. So if your tax rate
is 6% it means you could save RM480 from your tax bill.
Easy to Topup
ASB is easy to transact, in that you can do the transaction at the post office as well as banks. And you can invest or
topup online via Maybank2u.
You can topup your Tabung Haji using Jompay from Maybank and CIMB. Your employer may also help you deduct
from your salary.
SSPN can be opened and topup online or at their office or certain banks.
Easy to Withdraw
If you want to withdraw from
Tabung Haji you can go the the TH office. You can also withdraw from the ATM or
online banking at certain banks. The same applies for SSPN; you can withdraw at
their office, or at only two banks : Bank Islam and Bank Rakyat. This is
because you are saving for a certain purpose (Haji or education) so they dis-
courage you from taking out the money.
Zakat Payment
Tabung Haji will help you by paying the
zakat on your savings, so you don’t need to worry about it. The others do not
do this, so you need to calculate your minimum amount that you have held for a
year and then pay the zakat yourself.
Insurance
Again there is one investment that
provides you with insurance and that is SSPN. They will cover for TPD and death
(for the parent) up to the same amount that you invest. You can also choose to
buy extra insurance coverage but that doesn’t look very valuable in our
opinion.
Preserve Capital
Some investments have the risk
of going down as well as up, such as shares, gold and even property. However,
all these three investments described here are safe and there is no risk of
losing your capital. Although the dividends go up and down, at least your
capital is still intact and it is growing even though only 3% . It is better
than losing by investing your money in risky schemes.