The New Zealand Superannuation Fund (NZS) is searching for a new head of NZ direct investments following the resignation of incumbent, Michael Gleissner, last week. Gleissner, who joined NZS two years ago, “is leaving to focus on family commitments and consulting activities”, a spokesperson for the almost $30 billion fund said. Until a replacement is… [Read More…]
Nikko retail FUM up 150% as AMP sheds market share
Nikko Asset Management NZ experienced the largest proportional growth in retail funds during the 12 months to March 31 this year, according to Australian actuarial and research house, Plan for Life. The Plan for Life figures, released last week, show Nikko grew its retail funds under management (FUM) by almost 152 per cent over the… [Read More…]
Morningstar loses Coop, Wan Lum but recruits five
Michael Coop, longstanding senior consultant at Ibbotson Associates and its predecessor Intech, who was most recently head of multi-asset strategies, has returned to the UK to take up a job with an insurance company. Kevin Wan Lum, who was head of Australian equities, has also left to go to Vic Super. But five new faces… [Read More…]
Ex Russell NZ consulting head sets up shop
Former Russell Investments head of consulting, Daniel Mussett, has launched a new business targeting wholesale investors. Mussett, who resigned from Russell last year, said his recently-formed ALSA Consulting already has three clients signed up, including two government agencies and a not-for-profit trust. “And I am currently in negotiations with a few other investors,” he said…. [Read More…]
Investors favour equities (but want them dressed like bonds)
Despite a multi-year bull run and sky-high valuations, equities will become the go-to asset class for most investors over the next few years, according to a new report. The study, produced by UK-based researcher Create in association with Principal Global Investors (PGI), found over 70 per cent of the 705 international fund managers, pension funds… [Read More…]
Most Fintech start-ups target banks… as buyers
In an interesting deviation from conventional thinking, there appear to be more fintech start-ups targeting incumbent financial institutions as buyers of their inventions than there are those who want to become genuine disruptors in the marketplace, according to a senior research analyst with Martin Currie Australia. Matt Davison, the financial analyst at Martin Currie in… [Read More…]
Report calls for ethical-by-default KiwiSaver model
A new academic paper has urged the government to set KiwiSaver default funds to ethical investment standards. In ‘Making responsible investment the new standard in KiwiSaver’, author and University of Auckland philosophy senior lecturer, Matheson Russell, argues the default settings should reflect broad New Zealand preferences for socially-responsible investing (SRI). The paper says while there… [Read More…]
Harbour Views: a heat map of Aussie property market
Harbour Asset Management portfolio manager and director, Shane Solly, was in Australia recently to gauge the ‘temperature’ of the Aussie residential property market… it was hot in spots The parallels between the Sydney and Auckland housing markets are striking. Headlines suggest conditions are ‘hot’. Average Sydney house prices are up by more than 20… [Read More…]
Researcher puts Milford fund under review…
Research house Morningstar has highlighted potential sell-down driven liquidity concerns in its decision to place the Milford Trans-Tasman Fund ‘under review’. The Morningstar downgrade – which essentially urges investors to hold off on further contributions rather than to redeem funds – was issued in the wake of the sudden exit of portfolio manager, Mark Warminger,… [Read More…]
… as ODD recommendations sink in
Milford Asset Management has employed two specialists to a central dealing desk through which all Milford trades are now channeled. In November last year Milford hired Mark Riggall as senior dealer. Sean Harrison joined Riggall in a junior position on Milford’s newly-established central dealing desk this April. The compliance hires were prompted by the Financial… [Read More…]