# Closing an investment account

## Before you close an Investment Account

Closing an Investment Account is permanent and cannot be undone. Before proceeding, consider:

- **Do you still need the account?** If your goals have changed, you can rename the account or adjust your investment strategy instead.
- **Do you have holdings to sell?** Any investments must be sold and transferred to your Cash account before closing.
- **Are there automation rules?** Rules linked to this account will be deleted permanently.

Unlike Savings pots, Investment accounts hold fund units that must be sold before the account can be closed. This process takes a few days to complete.

## Step 1: Sell all your holdings

Before closing your Investment Account, you need to sell all your holdings and transfer the proceeds to your Cash account.

1. Navigate to your **Investment Account** from the home screen
2. Tap **Transfer out**
3. Enter the full amount for each holding you want to sell
4. Tap **Review transfer**
5. Review the transfer details showing your holdings being sold
6. Tap **Transfer** to confirm

Your sell orders are now placed with the fund managers. Settlement typically takes 2-3 business days.

> **Important**: You must sell all holdings in the account. If you have multiple funds, enter the full value for each one. Any remaining holdings will prevent you from closing the account.

## Step 2: Wait for settlement

After placing your sell orders, you need to wait for the transactions to settle before closing the account.

- **Settlement time**: 2-3 business days
- **Pending transactions**: You'll see pending transactions in your account during this time
- **Balance updates**: Your Cash account balance increases once settlement completes

You can track the status of your sell orders in your transaction history. Once all transactions show as completed and your Investment Account balance is zero, you can proceed to close the account.

## Step 3: Contact support to close the account

Once your Investment Account balance is zero and all transactions have settled, contact Fynbos support to close the account.

1. Navigate to *Settings*
2. Tap **Contact support**
3. Request to close your empty Investment Account

Our support team will verify your account is empty and process the closure. You'll receive confirmation once complete.

> **Note**: Account closures are handled by support to ensure all transactions have settled properly and no pending activity remains.

## What happens to your money

When you close an Investment Account, your money follows this path:

1. **Holdings sold**: Your fund units are sold at the current market price
2. **Proceeds to Cash**: The sale proceeds transfer to your Cash account after settlement
3. **Account closed**: Once empty, the Investment Account is deleted

You don't lose any money during this process. Your full balance, including any gains or losses, is preserved and moved to Cash. From there, you can withdraw to your bank or transfer to another account.

## Automation rules are removed

If you have automation rules that distribute money to this Investment Account, those rules are deleted when you close the account.

- **Percentage rules** directing a portion of deposits to this account are removed
- **Amount rules** sending a fixed amount to this account are removed

You'll see a warning on the confirmation screen if any automation rules are linked to the account.

After closing the account, review your automation rules to ensure your deposits are still distributed as you expect.

## Timeline for closing an account

Closing an Investment Account is not instant. Here's what to expect:

| Step | Time required |
| --- | --- |
| Sell all holdings | Immediate (order placed) |
| Wait for settlement | 2-3 business days |
| Close the account | Immediate |
| **Total** | **2-3 business days minimum** |

Plan ahead if you need to close your account by a specific date. The settlement process cannot be expedited.