NZ shares led returns again in the September quarter but still lag global and Australian equities by far for the 12-month period according the latest Melville Jessup Weaver (MJW) investment survey. While most asset classes – bar emerging market equities and bonds – turned in positive results for the quarter, the S&P/NZX 50 was up… [Read More…]
Investment News
State Street goes down country; UBS asset arm hires new Australasia head; Milford adds NZ analyst; Calastone recruits trio for digital drive
After a lengthy search, State Street has appointed a country head for Australia as part of a progressive restructure designed to move away from a business unit focus to a more holistic approach. Tim Helyar has been recruited from J.P. Morgan, where he has spent the past 18 years, most recently as head of fund… [Read More…]
Global-first sets NZ finance industry on climate-reporting trip
Climate-related reporting requirements are about to hit the road for fund managers and 200 other entities after supporting legislation passed into law last week. Opposed only by the Act Party, the passage of the Financial Sector (Climate-related Disclosures and Other Matters) Amendment Bill through its third reading last Thursday followed the first tranche of draft… [Read More…]
PRI award for NZ Super’s hate speech campaign
The New Zealand Superannuation Fund has taken out the PRI ‘Stewardship Initiative of the Year’ award for its campaign against Facebook, Alphabet and Twitter to monitor and delete hate speech. The award, handed down on October 20 at the organisation’s annual conference produced from London, followed the action taken by the NZ$59.8 billion, as of… [Read More…]
Big asset managers sitting on US$120tn stockpile, cushioned with cash and alts
Cash and alternative portfolios of top global fund managers grew at the fastest rate in 2020, the latest Thinking Ahead Group (TAG) annual market report reveals. Released last week, the TAG survey of the 500 largest asset managers in the world found overall exposure to alternatives and cash increased by 19.8 per cent and 18.4… [Read More…]
Why the future of disruption is ‘weightless’
The new players in any market are smaller, faster, and (sometimes) better. But that doesn’t mean they can’t be dragged back down to the earth. Disruption is hard to take. It’s not for no reason that Luddites smashed up textile machinery; (history has not been as kind to them as it perhaps could have, given… [Read More…]
Frontier plugs into NZ with shock $1bn advisory win
A long-established Australian asset consultancy firm has gone live in the NZ market for the first time in a surprise agreement with the Tauranga Energy Consumer Trust (TECT). The recently wired deal will see Frontier replace Fidato Advisory as investment adviser to the more than $1 billion regional energy trust. Frontier emerged out of the… [Read More…]
Free money: Nikko releases give-away fund to aid anti-modern slavery movement
Inspired by a 20-year-old memory, Nikko Asset Management NZ chief, George Carter, has steered the launch of a new fund that makes investors nothing but gives everything to fight modern slavery. Officially live this week, the Nikko Freedom Fund has been designed as a cash-like holding pen with all returns and fees donated to the… [Read More…]
UBS wins $5bn NZ Super passive mandate as fund hits high…
The NZ Superannuation Fund (NZS) has hired three new external manager this year with UBS picking up an almost $5 billion passive equities mandate. According to the NZS annual report released last week, UBS will manage two of the fund’s passive global shares strategies including a new “customised MSCI large cap equity index” and a… [Read More…]
…GSF record year eats into long-term underperformance
Despite turning in a record after-fees performance of almost 30 per cent during the 12 months to June 30, the Government Superannuation Fund (GSF) remains slightly behind its longer-term benchmarks, according to the latest annual report. The GSF finished the year up 28.9 per cent after fees compared to its dual benchmark targets of 23.9… [Read More…]