Allocating assets to only one or a small number of the investment options (other than the Target Date ‘Lifecycle’ or Target Risk ‘Lifestyle’ options) should not be considered a balanced investment program. In particular, allocating assets to a small number of options concentrated in particular business or market sectors will subject your account to increased risk and volatility. Examples of business or market sectors where this risk may be particularly high include: a) technology-related businesses, including Internet-related businesses, b) small-cap securities and c) foreign securities. John Hancock does not provide advice regarding appropriate investment allocations.
Market/Market Volatility The market value of the portfolio’s securities may fall rapidly or unpredictably because of changing economic, political, or market conditions, which may reduce the value of the portfolio.
Loss of Money Because the investment’s market value may fluctuate up and down, an investor may lose money, including part of the principal, when he or she buys or sells the investment.
Not FDIC Insured The investment is not a deposit or obligation of, or guaranteed or endorsed by, any bank and is not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Reserve Board, or any other U.S. governmental agency.
Issuer A stake in any individual security is subject to the risk that the issuer of that security performs poorly, resulting in a decline in the security’s value. Issuer-related declines may be caused by poor management decisions, competitive pressures, technological breakthroughs, reliance on suppliers, labor problems or shortages, corporate restructurings, fraudulent disclosures, or other factors. Additionally, certain issuers may be more sensitive to adverse issuer, political, regulatory, market, or economic developments.
Active Management The investment is actively managed and subject to the risk that the advisor’s usage of investment techniques and risk analyses to make investment decisions fails to perform as expected, which may cause the portfolio to lose value or underperform investments with similar objectives and strategies or the market in general.
Foreign Securities Investments in foreign securities may be subject to increased volatility as the value of these securities can change more rapidly and extremely than can the value of U.S. securities. Foreign securities are subject to increased issuer risk because foreign issuers may not experience the same degree of regulation as U.S. issuers do and are held to different reporting, accounting, and auditing standards. In addition, foreign securities are subject to increased costs because there are generally higher commission rates on transactions, transfer taxes, higher custodial costs, and the potential for foreign tax charges on dividend and interest payments. Many foreign markets are relatively small, and securities issued in less-developed countries face the risks of nationalization, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, and adverse changes in investment or exchange control regulations, including suspension of the ability to transfer currency from a country. Economic, political, social, or diplomatic developments can also negatively impact performance.
Growth Investing Growth securities may be subject to increased volatility as the value of these securities is highly sensitive to market fluctuations and future earnings expectations. These securities typically trade at higher multiples of current earnings than do other securities and may lose value if it appears their earnings expectations may not be met.
Long-Term Outlook and Projections The investment is intended to be held for a substantial period of time, and investors should tolerate fluctuations in their investment's value.
Merger and Replacement Transition Risk for Sub-Account. It is possible that the Fund will be replaced with or merged into another investment option offered under your plan's group annuity contract. In the case of fund mergers and replacements, the affected funds that are being merged or replaced may implement the redemption of your interest by payment in cash or by distributing assets in kind. In either case, the redemption of your interest by the affected fund, as well as the investment of the redemption proceeds by the ''new'' fund, may result in transaction costs to the funds because the affected funds may find it necessary to sell securities and the ''new'' funds will find it necessary to invest the redemption proceeds. Also, the redemption and reinvestment processes, including any transition period that may be involved in completing such mergers and replacements, could be subject to market gains or losses, including those from currency exchange rates. The transaction costs and potential market gains or losses could have an impact on the value of your investment in the affected fund and in the ''new'' fund, and such market gains or losses could also have an impact on the value of any existing investment that you or other investors may have in the ''new'' fund. Although there can be no assurances that all risks can be eliminated, the portfolio manager(s) of the affected funds will use their best efforts to manage and minimize such risks and costs.
Risk of Increase in Expenses for Sub-Account. Your actual costs of investing in the fund may be higher than the expenses shown in "Annual fund operating expenses" for a variety of reasons. For example, expense ratios may be higher than those shown if a fee limitation is changed or terminated or if average net assets decrease. Net assets are more likely to decrease and fund expense ratios are more likely to increase when markets are volatile.
