Archives for 2019

It’s all boringly good at the NZ Superannuation Fund (NZS): another year of bumper returns; another $1 billion taxpayer top-up; and, another glowing independent assessment report, this time courtesy of Willis Towers Watson (WTW). But after scraping back the thin veneer of investment outperformance, strong governance, operational excellence and best-in-show practices, WTW did reveal a… [Read More…]

Members have already begun trickling into the new ASB Positive Impact Fund following the ‘soft launch’ in July, according to the bank’s head of wealth, Adam Boyd. “We’re starting to see customers come in,” Boyd said, “which is a promising sign as we haven’t started promoting the funds yet.” As reported here, the ASB Positive… [Read More…]

All NZ investors could waive their retail protection rights under plans floated in the recent Capital Markets review. If adopted, the proposal – one of 42 in the EY-produced ‘Growing New Zealand’s Capital Markets 2029’ report – would allow anybody to claim wholesale investor status and step outside the Financial Markets Conduct Act (FMC) fence…. [Read More…]

The days of custodians being confined to the backoffice of big super funds and managers are long gone. Through new services, they have moved up the chain through the middle office and, now, the front office. They’ll be running the reception desk, too, soon. The latest development is from Northern Trust in the US which… [Read More…]

ANZ Investments has handed the Australian-based Maple-Brown Abbott (MBA) a newly-created global listed infrastructure mandate, seeding the portfolio with $250 million. The move brings the number of external managers on the ANZ roster to eight, all of which run offshore assets on behalf of the $32 billion plus bank investment arm. Global listed infrastructure is… [Read More…]

Despite its late arrival to the Asia Region Funds Passport (ARFP) party, NZ has made the inaugural application for export under the new cross-border regime. In a special briefing at the Financial Services Council (FSC) annual conference last week, Hugh Stevens, head of NZX funds management, said the firm had applied to offer the SuperLife… [Read More…]

The almost $90 million Whai Rawa scheme has switched to a socially responsible investment (SRI) model as part of a major revamp of the Ngāi Tahu-owned operation that includes a change of administrator and looming fund choice. Under the scheme upgrade due to kick off on September 26, Whai Rawa will shift its more than… [Read More…]

Nikko Asset Management has released a NZ version of the global group’s ‘disruptive’ technology fund operated by associated boutique firm, ARK Investment Management. As first mooted in 2017, Nikko NZ has turned an ARK product into a portfolio investment entity (PIE) fund offering access to global listed stocks with a “thematic exposure to disruptive innovation… [Read More…]

The new Australian owner of local research shop, FundSource, has made good on its promise to press on with a NZ awards event this year in spite of a tight turnaround time. Zenith Investment Partners last week confirmed the FundSource awards would kick on in 2019 at the same venue as last year – the… [Read More…]

The traditional employer-based superannuation market in NZ could be entering an accelerated period of decline as scheme sponsors succumb to ongoing regulatory burdens. Gavin Quigan, Financial Markets Authority (FMA) KiwiSaver and superannuation schemes manager, said the pace of change in the traditional employer sector appeared to be rising. Quigan told the Financial Services Council (FSC)… [Read More…]