Institutional fund managers and large asset owners are slowly warming to global climate-reporting standards in the face of considerable technical difficulties, according to a new report. The just-published Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) 2022 status report excludes asset managers and owners from the formal review this year but notes a growing uptake of… [Read More…]
Investment News
Index giant opens up build-your-own benchmark service
MSCI has blurred the already fuzzy border between passive and active investing with the launch of a new DIY indexing option for the big end of town last week. The new MSCI Institutional Client-Designed Indexes (iCDI) will enable large investors to adjust benchmarks on the go to bespoke metrics instead of conforming to standardised settings…. [Read More…]
FAP figures weight to Class 2 advice firms
Multi-adviser businesses will outweigh sole-practitioners by about two-to-one once the full regulatory regime comes into play next year based on early financial advice provider (FAP) data. According to figures included in new Financial Markets Authority (FMA) consultation documents, the regulator counted 750 full Class 2 FAP licences either approved or in-train as at October 1… [Read More…]
Kiwi fintech pioneer wins top UK crypto-regulation job
Former Financial Markets Authority (FMA) fintech lead, Binu Paul, has resurfaced as head of a newly formed digital asset division of the UK regulatory counterpart. Paul, who left the FMA late last month, was selected to head the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) digital assets unit following a global search by the UK regulator as it… [Read More…]
Game of schemes: why KiwiSaver is not monopoly money
KiwiSaver remains a bank-dominated universe but competition in the market warmed up again over the last financial year, the latest Melville Jessup Weaver (MJW) annual review of the sector has found. According to the MJW study, KiwiSaver choice levels continued to climb during the 12 months to March 31 this year as per the Herfindahl-Hirschman… [Read More…]
GSF climbs back above benchmark in upside-down year
The Government Superannuation Fund (GSF) has booked a -3.7 per cent loss for the 12 months to June 30 in a topsy-turvy year that saw the Annuitas-managed investments outperform by more than 7 per cent. According to the just-published GSF annual report, the now $4.9 billion fund finished the 12-month period 7.1 per cent ahead… [Read More…]
NZ keeps B for retirement savings as DC income issues mount
NZ has held steady in the latest Mercer global pension system review, ranking 15th out of the 44 countries covered in the 2022 report released last week. However, NZ remains a B-grade country in the Mercer retirement savings analysis despite recording a slight uptick in the overall index score. “The New Zealand index value increased… [Read More…]
Two-in, three-out for NZX board; First Sentier boosts ESG; MaxCap NZ gets new head
The NZX has slated a board refresh with three members, including chair, James Miller, set to exit within the next few months as two new directors arrive. In a move signaled this February, Miller will depart in April 2023 to be replaced as chair by former First NZ Capital head of investment banking, Rob Hamilton…. [Read More…]
Summers’ sober view on nukes, Cathie Wood and the ‘somewhere people’
For evidence of how mad the world has become – and the ability of money managers to mostly ignore that madness in favour of jumping on the latest bear rally – look no further than former US Treasury secretary Larry Summers’ closing remarks to Citi’s Investment Conference last week. “I do not see much evidence… [Read More…]
Return to value: NZ consultant urges caution as guard changes
Value managers may return to the runway in NZ as the style comes back into fashion following a decade of uncoolness, according to boutique consultancy firm, Makao Investments. In a note published last week, Makao said NZ investors had seen little choice in value funds over the previous five to 10 years as growth stocks… [Read More…]