IOOF, a 160-year old diverse financial firm built up in recent years largely through takeovers, has had its ups and downs. An increasingly mooted potential merger with 120-year-old Perpetual Trustees, which has had a more conservative growth trajectory, makes a lot of sense. But first, to that ‘scandal’. Dominic McCormick, a researcher and portfolio manager… [Read More…]
Archives for 2016
KiwiSaver scheme on fast-track to $70m
Start-up benchmarkian KiwiSaver scheme, Simplicity, has cracked through the $50 million mark more than six months ahead of budget. Andrew Lance, Simplicity chief operating officer, said the scheme, officially launched in July this year, hit $50 million late in November and was on track to reach close to $70 million before Christmas. Lance said Simplicity… [Read More…]
Funds slowly gain traction in $6bn iwi market
NZ fund managers have gained a tenuous toehold in the approximately $6 billion iwi investment market, according to Phil Barry, director of Wellington-based consultancy firm, TDB Advisory. Barry said just-published TDB Advisory research into iwi assets found only two groups – the North Island east coast Tūhoe and Ngāti Porou – had significant allocations to… [Read More…]
Stewart-backed super scheme granted QROPS status
Newly-minted superannuation scheme, Garrison Bridge, has passed its final regulatory hurdle after joining the list of NZ-based qualifying registered overseas pension schemes (QROPS). Garrison Bridge – a joint venture between the Ralph Stewart-headed Lifetime Asset Management and Christchurch advisory firm First Capital Financial Services – earned its QROPS status early in December, the company said… [Read More…]
Towers outtrump Trump as infrastructure driver
US President-elect Donald Trump’s pledge to ramp up infrastructure spending would have little spin-off benefits for investors in the sector, according to Peter Meany, First State Investments (FSI) head of listed infrastructure. Meany, in NZ recently presenting to local clients, said while the Trump promise might appear to be a “nice thematic” for infrastructure investors… [Read More…]
Shareclarity opens book on 2016
Award-winning fintech firm, Shareclarity, has released its inaugural Yearbook showcasing analytical data on more than 180 Australasian listed companies. Daniel Kieser, Shareclarity managing director, said the free 2016 Yearbook, which includes financial and valuation metrics for 185 listed firms, “demonstrates the breadth and depth of what we do”. According to the Shareclarity Yearbook, the firm… [Read More…]
FTSE emerges with gooder indexes
Global index provider FTSE Russell has spiced up its suite of sustainability-themed benchmarks with two new offerings. In a release last week, the London Stock Exchange (LSE) owned entity says its FTSE4Good index range would number 14 after adding the new Emerging Markets and Emerging Latin America indices to the pile. Concurrently, the LSE benchmark… [Read More…]
State Street study points to new field in motivational work
The funds management industry has known for a long time that human foibles – behavioural biases – can make or break an investment strategy. Now, however, State Street has put together a body of research which goes way beyond behavioral finance in the study of the human element to investments. After about 18 months of… [Read More…]
Plans and schemes come to light in upload-o-mania
In a burst of last-minute uploading providers dumped documents for almost 300 schemes onto the Disclose website in the days prior to the December 1 supply deadline. Disclose currently lists documents for 466 retail schemes covered by the Financial Markets Conduct Act (FMC) compared to just 167 in the week prior to the compliance cut-off… [Read More…]
Booster recruits from Aegis for northern exposure
Long-time Aegis BDM, Debbie Miller will join Booster next year as Auckland relationship manager. David Beattie, co-CEO of the Wellington-headquartered firm formerly known as Grosvenor, said Miller would help service Booster’s advisory clients in the northern region. “We’ve been looking to fill the role for a few months,” Beattie said. “We realised as a national… [Read More…]