ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan: Good or Bad? A Detailed ULIP Review

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Can the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan secure your financial future with a plan that offers both wealth creation and protection?

Can the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan afford protection and growth regarding your family’s future?

Is the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan a potential investment option?

To determine if this plan is suitable for wealth accumulation, we need to examine its features, advantages, disadvantages, costs involved, and expected returns through an IRR (Internal Rate of Return) analysis.

This comprehensive review will provide you with all the necessary information about the plan.

What is the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan?

ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan is a unit-linked non-participating individual life insurance plan (ULIP). ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan gives you risk coverage for the duration of the policy and the freedom to select from 18 fund options and 5 investment strategies, giving you total control over your savings

What are the features of the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan?

Choice of Sum Assured Multiple – 7X and 10X
Life Cover throughout the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan Policy Term ensures that your family is financially secure even in your absence
Flexibility to choose from a wide range of Policy Terms and Premium Payment Terms
Choice of 5 investment strategies and 18 funds to suit your varied investment needs
Wealth Boosters and Loyalty Additions are added periodically during the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan Policy Term to enhance your Fund Value.
Return of Mortality and Premium Allocation Charges at maturity to boost your Fund Value
Systematic Withdrawal Facility to enable regular withdrawals from your Fund Value during the policy term to cater to your recurring monetary needs

Who is eligible for the ABSI Platinum Gain Plan?

	Minimum	Maximum
Entry Age	30 days	65 years
Age at maturity	18 years	85 years
Premium	₹ 2,00,000	No Limit
Sum Assured	₹ 14,00,000	No Limit
Premium Payment Term (PPT)	Limited Pay: 5 to 12 years Regular Pay: 10 to 20 years
Minimum Policy Term	For Regular Pay & 5 to 9 Pay: 10 years For 10 Pay: 11 Years For 11 Pay: 12 Years For 12 Pay: 13 Years
Maximum Policy Term	20 years
Premium Payment Mode	Annual, Semi-Annual, Quarterly, Monthly

What are the benefits available in the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan?

1.) Death Benefit

In case of Death of the Life Insured anytime during the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan Policy Term, the nominee will get the higher of:

Fund Value as on date of intimation of death; or
Sum Assured (reduced by partial withdrawals made during the two years immediately preceding the date of death of the Life Insured, if any); or
105% of the Total Annualized Premiums received till the date of death of the Life Insured (reduced by all partial withdrawals, if any made during the two-year period immediately preceding the death of the Life Insured, if any).

2.) Maturity Benefit

On survival of Life Insured up to the end of the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan Policy Term, he shall get the Fund Value in a lump sum or as a structured payout using the Settlement Option.

Additionally, all the Premium Allocation charges and Mortality charges collected, excluding GST, over the entire Policy Term will be returned, provided all due premiums under the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan policy have been paid.

3.) Loyalty Additions and Wealth boosters

Loyalty Additions are benefits added in the form of additional units to the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan policy. Wealth boosters are added by allocating additional units to your Fund starting from the end of the 10^th policy year and every 5 years thereafter.

Investment Strategies and Fund Options in ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan

Under ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan, you can choose to invest your premiums in one of the five investment options.

i.) Systematic Transfer Option

Your premium shall be first allocated to the Liquid Plus fund option and thereafter monthly 1/12th or weekly 1/48th of the allocated amount shall be transferred to a segregated fund(s) of your choice.

The percentage allocated to chosen fund(s) is in increments of 1%, ranging from 5% to 100%. The total allocation across all funds must be 100%. This option is available only if you have opted for a policy taken with annual mode as their Premium Payment mode

You can choose up to a maximum of four segregated funds out of;

Income Advantage
Enhancer
Maximiser
Super 20
Capped Nifty Index
Multiplier
Value & Momentum
Creator
MNC
ESG Fund
Small Cap Fund

ii.) Return Optimiser Investment Option

Basic premiums are invested in the Maximiser fund and it will be tracked every day for any gains. The gain from the Maximiser fund reaches 10% or more of the net invested amount, the amount equal to the appreciation will be transferred to the Income Advantage fund.

Thus, the gains are protected from future market volatility.

iii.) Self-Managed Option

The ABSLI Wealth Smart Plus Plan policyholder has the full freedom to control & switch from one segregated fund to another among 18 segregated funds.

The only requirement is that the percentage allocated to any fund be in increments of 1%, ranging from 5% to 100%. The total allocation across all funds must be 100%.

S.no	Fund Name	Risk Profile	Asset Allocation
			Debt	Money market	Equities
1	Liquid plus	Very low	20-100%	0-80%	–
2	Income Advantage	Very low	60-100%	0-40%	–
3	Assure	Very low	20-100%	0-80%	–
4	Protector	Low	90-100%	0-40%	0-10%
5	Builder	Low	80-100%	0-40%	10-20%
6	Enhancer	Medium	25-80%	0-40%	20-35%
7	Creator	Medium	50-70%	0-40%	30-50%
8	Asset Allocator	High	10-80%	0-40%	10-80%
9	Magnifier	High	10-50%	0-40%	50-90%
10	Maximiser	High	0-20%	0-20%	80-100%
11	Multiplier	High	0-20%	0-20%	80-100%
12	Super 20	High	0-20%	0-20%	80-100%
13	Pure equity	High	0-20%	0-20%	80-100%
14	Value & Momentum	High	0-20%	0-20%	80-100%
15	Capped Nifty index	High	0-10%	0-10%	90-100%
16	MNC	High	0-20%	0-20%	80-100%
17	ESG Fund	High	0-20%	0-20%	80-100%
18	Small-cap Fund	High	0-20%	0-20%	80-100%
			Govt Sec	Money market	Equities
	Linked discontinued policy fund	Very low	60-100%	0-40%	–

iv.) Smart Investment option

Your portfolio will be structured as per your maturity date and risk profile (Conservative, Moderate, Aggressive). Your Annualized Premium (net of premium allocation charge) is allocated between the two funds – Maximiser (equity fund) and Income Advantage (debt fund) in a predetermined proportion.

Over time the allocation is managed such that it will automatically switch from riskier assets to safer assets progressively as your ABSLI Wealth Smart Plus Plan approaches maturity.

The proportion invested in Maximiser (equity fund) and Income Advantage (debt fund) will be according to the schedule given below:

Outstanding Term to Maturity	Aggressive		Moderate		Conservative
	Maximiser	Income Advantage	Maximiser	Income Advantage	Maximiser	Income Advantage
16 to 20	80%	20%	60%	40%	40%	60%
8 to 15	65%	35%	50%	50%	30%	70%
4 to 7	50%	50%	25%	75%	15%	85%
0 to 3	20%	80%	10%	90%	5%	95%

Your portfolio will be structured as per your age and risk profile – you need to decide on your risk profile – Conservative, Moderate or Aggressive. The funds will be shifted from riskier assets to safer assets progressively with your age.

v.) Life Cycle Investment Option

Your Annualized Premium (net of premium allocation charge) is allocated between the two funds, Maximiser (Equity Fund) and Income Advantage (Debt Fund) in a predetermined proportion based on the selected risk profile and your age when the premium is invested.

The percentage allocation to Maximiser according to age and risk profile is as given below:

Age Group	Aggressive	Moderate	Conservative
1 to 30	90%	70%	50%
31 to 40	80%	60%	50%
41 to 50	70%	50%	30%
51 to 60	55%	35%	15%
61 to 70	40%	20%	0%
71 +	25%	5%	0%

What are the charges under the ABSLI Fortune Platinum Gain Plan?

A. Premium Allocation Charge

A Premium Allocation Charge is levied on the Annualized Premium.

Policy Year / Mode of Premium Payment	% of the Annualized premium received
Policy Year / Mode of Premium Payment	Yearly	Other than yearly
1	11.50%	10.50%
2	10.00%	9.00%
3	6.00%	3.50%
4 to min (PPT,10)	4.00%	3.50%
11+	NIL	NIL

B. Fund Management Charge

1.00% p.a. for Liquid Plus, Income Advantage, Assure, Protector and Builder

1.25% p.a. for Enhancer, Creator, Capped Nifty Index, Asset Allocation

1.35% p.a. for MNC, Magnifier, Maximiser, Multiplier, Super 20, Pure Equity, ESG Fund and Small Cap Fund and Value & Momentum

0.50% p.a. for Linked Discontinued Policy Fund

C. Policy Administration Charge

NIL

D. Mortality charge

It is based on the sum at risk and is deducted at the start of each month by the proportionate cancellation of units from each fund under the ABSLI Wealth Smart Plus Plan policy at the time. The charge per 1000 of Sum at Risk will depend on the gender and attained age of the Life Insured.

Attained Age	Age 25	Age 35	Age 45	Age 55	Age 65
Male	0.74	0.96	2.06	6.01	12.75
Female	0.75	0.83	1.58	4.44	10.26

E. Miscellaneous Charge

NIL

F. Surrender Charges

The charge on discontinuance or surrender of the policy will be based on the year of discontinuance/surrender, the premium amount and the fund value.

Inference from the charges – From the charges, we can infer that while the plan does not impose as many fees as other ULIPs, the charges it does have are quite high for market-linked products. These fees are deducted from your premium, and only the net amount is used for investment.

In contrast, other market-related investments typically involve minimal charges, allowing the entire amount to be invested directly. These high charges can significantly impact your returns.

Grace period, Discontinuance and Revival of the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan

Grace Period

You will be given a Grace Period of 30 days (15 days in case the premium paying mode is monthly) to make the payment of due instalment premium(s).

Policy Discontinuance

Discontinuance during the first five policy years: the Fund Value after deducting the applicable discontinuance /surrender charges shall be credited to the Linked Discontinued Policy Fund and the risk cover, if any, shall cease immediately.

The proceeds in the Linked Discontinued Policy Fund shall be paid to you at the end of the revival period or lock-in period whichever is later.

Discontinuance after the first five policy years: your ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan policy shall be converted into a reduced paid-up policy with the Reduced paid-up Sum Assured i.e. original Sum Assured multiplied by the total number of Annualized Premiums paid to the original number of Annualized Premiums payable as per the terms and conditions of the policy.

Revival

You can revive the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan policy within the revival period of three years.

Free Look period of ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan

You will have the right to return your ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan Policy within 30 days from the date of receipt of the Policy, in case you disagree with the terms and conditions of your Policy.

Surrendering ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan

Surrendering during the first five policy years: you will have an option to surrender the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan policy anytime but, the proceeds in the Linked Discontinued Policy Fund shall be payable at the end of the lock-in period or date of surrender whichever is later.

Surrendering after the first five policy years: you will have an option to surrender the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan policy anytime and the Fund Value shall be payable upon receipt of such request of surrender.

What are the advantages of the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan?

There is no limit on the number of switches (Self-managed/Systematic Transfer Investment Option) that can be made in a policy year, and all switches are free of charge.
After the first policy year, you can change from one investment option to another.
Under the Self-Managed option, you can choose to redirect future premiums.
After completing the first five policy years, you have the option to decrease the premium by up to 50% of the original amount.
Option to reduce or increase the Premium Payment Term provided the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan policy is in force for full Sum Assured
Unlimited partial withdrawals from the fund value are allowed at any time after five complete policy years, provided the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan policyholder is at least 18 years old.
For the maturity benefit, you may opt for a Settlement Option, where the company will continue to manage the funds and make periodic payments for up to 5 years

What are the disadvantages of the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan?

Policy loans are not permitted under this ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan.
There is no liquidity available during the first policy years.
The sum assured is inadequate.

Research methodology of ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan

The potential returns calculation of ABSLI Platinum Gain is an important aspect of gauging the plan. The ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan may seem attractive as it provides an opportunity to invest in the market, even without any technical know-how.

However, the calculation of the Internal Rate of Return (IRR) helps to decide the suitability of the plan. Let us work out a case study given in the policy brochure.

Benefit Illustration – IRR Analysis of ABSLI Platinum Gain

A 35-year-old male buys an ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan with a Sum Assured of ₹ 20 Lakhs. The policy term is 20 years and the premium paying term is 10 years. The annualised premium is ₹ 2 Lakh.

Sum Assured	₹ 20,00,000
Policy Term	20 years
Premium Paying Term	10 years
Annualised Premium	₹ 2,00,000

If he pays the premium regularly, he is eligible for the fund value at the end of the policy term. The illustrations show two assumed rates of future investment returns: 8% p.a. and 4% p.a. These rates are not guaranteed and do not represent the upper or lower limits of potential returns.

		At 4% p.a.		At 8% p.a.
Age	Year	Annualised premium / Maturity benefit	Death benefit	Annualised premium / Maturity benefit	Death benefit
35	1	-2,00,000	20,00,000	-2,00,000	20,00,000
36	2	-2,00,000	20,00,000	-2,00,000	20,00,000
37	3	-2,00,000	20,00,000	-2,00,000	20,00,000
38	4	-2,00,000	20,00,000	-2,00,000	20,00,000
39	5	-2,00,000	20,00,000	-2,00,000	20,00,000
40	6	-2,00,000	20,00,000	-2,00,000	20,00,000
41	7	-2,00,000	20,00,000	-2,00,000	20,00,000
42	8	-2,00,000	20,00,000	-2,00,000	20,00,000
43	9	-2,00,000	20,00,000	-2,00,000	20,00,000
44	10	-2,00,000	20,00,000	-2,00,000	20,00,000
45	11	0	20,00,000	0	20,00,000
46	12	0	20,00,000	0	20,00,000
47	13	0	20,00,000	0	20,00,000
48	14	0	20,00,000	0	20,00,000
49	15	0	20,00,000	0	20,00,000
50	16	0	20,00,000	0	20,00,000
51	17	0	20,00,000	0	20,00,000
52	18	0	20,00,000	0	20,00,000
53	19	0	20,00,000	0	20,00,000
54	20	0	20,00,000	0	20,00,000
55		30,63,861	20,00,000	55,05,816	20,00,000

	IRR	2.77%		6.63%

The fund value in the 4% scenario is ₹ 30.63 Lakhs with an IRR of 2.77%. In the 8% scenario, the fund value is ₹ 55.05 Lakhs with an IRR of 6.83% as per the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan maturity calculator.

The returns in the 8% scenario appear slightly higher than those of other ULIPs available in the market. However, they are still low compared to other market-linked products, where returns substantially surpass the inflation rate.

Additionally, the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan lacks transparency in its investments and imposes high charges, making it an unappealing option.

ABSLI Platinum Gain Plus Vs. Other Investments

One of the major disadvantages of ULIP products like the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan is their lack of transparency regarding where the capital is invested and how much of it is used for commissions and expenses.

Additionally, the life cover provided under the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan is inadequate. To ensure appropriate life coverage and effective wealth accumulation, it is beneficial to separate these two aspects and compare the returns.

ABSLI Platinum Gain Plus Vs. Pure-term + ELSS

Let’s use the same metrics as in the previous illustration. For life cover, a pure-term life insurance policy with a sum assured of ₹20 Lakhs costs an annual premium of ₹16,600, with a policy term of 20 years and a premium payment term of 10 years.

Instead of paying ₹2 Lakhs annually, opting for a pure-term policy saves ₹1,83,400 annually, which can then be invested based on your risk tolerance.

Pure Term Life Insurance Policy
Sum Assured	₹ 20,00,000
Policy Term	20 years
Premium Paying Term	10 years
Annualised Premium	₹ 16,600
Investment	₹ 1,83,400

High-risk investors can choose equity-related instruments, while risk-averse investors can opt for debt instruments. For comparison, we will use an equity-linked savings scheme (ELSS) fund.

		Term insurance + ELSS
Age	Year	Term Insurance premium + ELSS	Death benefit
35	1	-2,00,000	20,00,000
36	2	-2,00,000	20,00,000
37	3	-2,00,000	20,00,000
38	4	-2,00,000	20,00,000
39	5	-2,00,000	20,00,000
40	6	-2,00,000	20,00,000
41	7	-2,00,000	20,00,000
42	8	-2,00,000	20,00,000
43	9	-2,00,000	20,00,000
44	10	-2,00,000	20,00,000
45	11	0	20,00,000
46	12	0	20,00,000
47	13	0	20,00,000
48	14	0	20,00,000
49	15	0	20,00,000
50	16	0	20,00,000
51	17	0	20,00,000
52	18	0	20,00,000
53	19	0	20,00,000
54	20	0	20,00,000
55		1,00,40,935	20,00,000

	IRR	10.67%

The maturity proceeds of ELSS are subject to capital gains tax, and the pre-tax value is ₹1.11 Crores with a post-tax value of ₹1 Crore. The IRR for the ELSS investment, combined with a pure-term life insurance policy, is 10.67% (post-tax return).

ELSS Tax Calculation
Maturity value after 20 years	1,11,95,498
Purchase price	18,34,000
Long-Term Capital Gains	93,61,498
Exemption limit	1,25,000
Taxable LTCG	92,36,498
Tax paid on LTCG	11,54,562
Maturity value after tax	1,00,40,935

The accumulated corpus is double the amount of the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan’s 8% scenario, and the IRR surpasses the inflation rate. This investment strategy offers better risk-adjusted returns and transparency in investments, factors that are lacking in the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan.

Final Verdict on ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan

The ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan provides life coverage until the end of the policy term and the invested fund value at maturity. Long-term investments are typically expected to offer high returns that lead to wealth accumulation.

However, despite its long-term nature, the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan fails to generate returns that outpace inflation, primarily due to its high charges and also it has high agent commission.

Consequently, the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan is not conducive to wealth accumulation and may leave you short when your financial goals are due. The combination of an inadequate sum assured and low returns makes this plan an unattractive investment option.

There are more effective alternatives for equity investments that offer superior, inflation-beating returns and are cost-effective. For life coverage, it is advisable to separate insurance from investment. Opting for a pure-term life insurance policy is the best way to protect your family.

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ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan: Good or Bad? A Detailed ULIP Review

Table of Contents:

What is the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan?

What are the features of the ABSLI Platinum Gain Plan?

Who is eligible for the ABSI Platinum Gain Plan?