Responsible investment (RI) strategies based on wholesale sector exclusions are “lazy” lose-lose approaches that could leave managers in breach of their fiduciary duties, according to Simon O’Grady, Kiwi Wealth chief investment officer. O’Grady said surgically removing entire sectors – such as oil companies – from portfolios could damage long-term performance while removing the ability of… [Read More…]
Investment News
NZX review to put market on watch
All NZ licensed financial entities should take note of the regulator’s action against the NZX last week, according to Garth Stanish, Financial Markets Authority (FMA) capital markets director. Stanish said the FMA move, which saw the NZX agree last week to hire a new senior surveillance specialist, showed the regulator was serious about enforcing licensee… [Read More…]
Market risks become more obvious – SSGA
It may still be a ‘risk-on’ investment environment but only just. Next year and the year after are looking “softer”, according to State Street Global Advisors’ active quant managers. The risks which emerged at the end of last year are now more obvious. Olivia Engel, SSGA’s Boston-based global CIO for active quantitative equities, and Kevin… [Read More…]
FSC finds KiwiSaver tipping point, robo enthusiasm
KiwiSaver has usurped property as the lynchpin retirement asset for younger New Zealanders, according to a new Financial Services Council (FSC) study. The FSC report published last week – the third in a series – found just under 70 per cent of those aged between 18-34 expect to have KiwiSaver assets at retirement while just… [Read More…]
How to capitalise on cybersecurity threats
Cybersecurity breeches may well represent the biggest threat to both corporate and national interests, but investors can also capitalise on the problem. It’s the age-old adage: where there’s muck there’s money. According to a paper by Robeco, ‘Cybersecurity – Turning Threats into Investment Opportunities’, the spending on cybersecurity by companies, governments and individuals has been… [Read More…]
Regulators pencil in dates for bank reality checks
The country’s financial regulators are scheduling on-site visits with banks and insurance companies to check the paperwork matches reality, the Reserve Bank of NZ (RBNZ) said last week. In a statement issued last Friday, RBNZ governor, Adrian Orr, said NZ banks were first in line for face-time with the regulators who would ensure the “validity”… [Read More…]
RBNZ ponders how the kiwi could go crypto
Adopting an official crypto-kiwi would have significant effects on both sides of the financial system ledger, a just-published Reserve Bank of NZ (RBNZ) paper has found. The RBNZ think-piece, authored by senior economic analyst Amber Wadsworth, concludes moving to a central bank-controlled digital or crypto-currency (two slightly different concepts) would have far-reaching consequences across all… [Read More…]
NZ firm to market UK portfolio compliance tool in Australasia
Auckland-based investment compliance firm, MyFiduciary, has secured the exclusive Australasian distribution rights for UK-built wealth management software, JHC Neon. Launched in 2015 by UK fintech firm, JHC Systems, the Neon ‘digital wealth management dashboard’ offered a cloud-based, platform-agnostic oversight of investment portfolios, according to MyFiduciary director, Aaron Drew. Drew said the JHC Neon tool provided… [Read More…]
Willis Towers Watson on the ropes: can it bounce back?
Willis Towers Watson is having a rough trot. The firm has lost two big super fund clients within the last eight months and is about to lose a third. It has recently made four people redundant – three in Sydney and one in Melbourne. The bigger question is, though: ‘what is the future for asset… [Read More…]
Trailers for sale or rent: listed property goes on the road again
Listed real estate has returned to pre-GFC levels of correlation with the wider share market, according to James Maydew, who heads the asset class for AMP Capital. On a visit to NZ last week, the Sydney-based AMP Capital head of global listed real estate said the easing of crisis-level monetary policies has seen asset class… [Read More…]