https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2017-...investing-video

In Malaysia unit trust funds are being sold as if they are the final answer to your retirement plans - at least that is the impression that I am getting from unit trust consultants who are paid handsomely as commissions from the investments made by their clients. But are there other types of investments out there which are more passive, or perhaps even more active than unit trusts? 

Sure, passive-wise you can look into index-funds, these funds track a particular index; the index is invested in all the stocks that make up an index - like the S&P 500.

More active-wise, you can look into hedge-funds, but I will not talk about them too much since they are not too relevant for the average-joe reading this topic. They are aggressively managed, promises good returns, but comes with very high fees, which are paid regardless of their performances (but they get paid more as they generate higher returns for the investors). Avoid    or not, up to you.

The arguments against actively-managed investment (in this case, the aforementioned unit trust funds):

- high management fees (1 to 2.5% per annum) eating up the profits
- high agent fees also eating up your initial investments (between 5.5% to 6.5% for cash investments and 3% for EPF-withdrawal investments).
- majority of funds end up end up not beating the index in 1, 5, and even 10 years periods, as published in several studies, also quoted in the video (the high fees being quoted as a big part of the problem)

In Malaysia there is a limited number of ETFs or index funds that we can buy; you need to look overseas. You can perhaps start looking into Vanguard and other providers. I believe there are services that allow you to buy them while in Malaysia. 

Disclaimer: I'm not selling anything nor am I an investment agent, I have no material interests in any of these companies/organizations.

For straight forward cases, I do not charge, i get my commissions from the bank. Banks have 3 channels to distribute their loans - branch bankers, mobile bankers, and outsource brokers like myself. All these channels will have their pay, be it in the form of salary, commissions, or a combination of both.

Malaysians do NOT like to pay fees upfront, so the fees for "financial  planners" have to be absorbed into the loan/product itself - i.e insurances

On the second part of your questions, same. no fees are charged to you. But keep in mind that I am getting my commissions from the bank that you sign up for, and insurance companies that I am attached with. So indirectly you would be paying one way or another. Most agents don't like to talk about this; but smart consumers know that one way or another, they are still paying for the agents' or employee's work.
I can't say at all based on such a wide audience... it depends on your objective, investment horizon, capital, bumi/vs.non-bumi (yes it matters, bro      ), etc.

As it is though, I am not promoting any investment schemes - not a UT agent nor employed for any banks or fund houses.

As you put it, only the ignorant would actually think that anyone would be doing work for charity. I never tried to hide the fact that I am getting paid indirectly, as written above. Can you read? At this point though, I am not sure what is your intent - you can guess what I am making all you want.

Anyone who has a basic comprehension can read the policies and get a good idea of what the agents are making, it doesn't make you any special. Hint: it's on page 4, 5, or 6. Just look up the "insurance charge" or "wakallah fees" 

Again, only someone so naive would even begin to assume that anyone would even work for free, not in this line at least, and to have someone like you even mentioning about it says a lot about you eh?

you do have reading comprehension problems don't you?

1. I do not sell any investment products, ASB, UT, ETF, whatever you call it, I do not.

2. When I said I do not charge any fees, that was a reply to someone asking about mortgages, which is a liability and not an investment. He went out of topic because if you do not know about it yet, financing and investments are 2 different things

You wrote all that wall of text for nothing because you failed to read     

You are a waste of my time. Anyone with a good sense understands that I am not doing my job for free, and anyone without a pea brain knows that commissions/salary are the costs that companies incur to generate sales, and these costs are passed on to the consumer, one way or another

I've never had any issues with my customers, they know they are paying me one way or another, and I am one to tell them that I get paid in commissions - but you, you are just looking for an argument aren't you? Nothing better to do eh?

This topi is about active vs. passive funds, and I am not even selling them. Not sure why it is so difficult to get that through your head. Too small maybe