485BPOS: Guardian Separate Account N sets VIP fund reorganization
A 485BPOS from Guardian Separate Account N announces that more than 20 Guardian VIP funds will be folded into SA portfolios on or about December 4, 2026.
The news: The Guardian Insurance & Annuity Company filed a 485BPOS on October 9, 2026 for The Guardian Separate Account N, adding a prospectus supplement dated that day. The filing is Post-Effective Amendment No. 11 to the account’s Form N-6 registration statement. It announces that on or about December 4, 2026, subject to shareholder approval, more than 20 “Target Funds” in the separate account’s investment options will be reorganized into corresponding “Acquiring Funds.”
Why it matters: Although filed as a 485BPOS, this one concerns insurance-dedicated funds rather than ETFs. The 24 Target Funds are Guardian VIP funds, including the All Cap Core, Integrated Research, Equity Income, Mid Cap Relative Value and Short Duration Bond VIP funds. The Acquiring Funds are SA-series portfolios advised by SunAmerica Asset Management, LLC, with sub-advisers named in the supplement that include Franklin Advisers, J.P. Morgan Investment Management, Massachusetts Financial Services, BlackRock Investment Management, Brandywine Global and FIAM. The supplement applies to a range of variable life policies and variable annuity contracts issued by Guardian.
By the numbers:
- Reorganization date: on or about December 4, 2026
- Estimated expenses of new Acquiring Funds: 0.48% (SA Franklin Core Fixed Income, Class 1), 0.73% (Class 3), 0.87% (SA Franklin Large Cap Disciplined Growth) and 0.96% (SA Franklin Mid Cap Core)
- Current expenses of established Acquiring Funds range from 0.55% (SA JPMorgan Ultra-Short Bond, Class 1) to 1.25% (SA Franklin Small Company Value)
The big picture: The supplement says the reorganization will be done at the relative net asset values of the funds, so contract value immediately before and after is the same. Guardian states there will be no tax consequences and no cost to contract owners, and that fees and charges under the policies will not increase. Units in the subaccounts will change, and the number of units an owner holds will differ because unit values differ. Several of the Acquiring Funds are new, with no operating history, and their expenses are pro forma estimates.
What’s next: For 30 days before and after the reorganization date, Guardian will not use its reserved rights to add transfer restrictions, apart from market timing limits. Owners who do not give new instructions will have dollar-cost averaging, automatic rebalancing, premium allocation and alert settings moved to the Acquiring Funds at the close of business on the reorganization date. The reorganization remains subject to shareholder approval.
Prepared with AI assistance from public sources and reviewed under our editorial policy. Not investment advice.