Investment News

In an unusual and opportunistic tax-effective investment, a group of fund managers has launched the ‘Armytage Global Disruptor Fund’, which is sitting on about $145 million in tax losses. They are seeking to raise about $500 million from new investors for the closed-end fund by mid-December. The tax losses, which arise from a former failed… [Read More…]

The Code Committee Working Group (CWG) has launched into focus group mode as a precursor to rewriting the rules for the soon-to-be expanding NZ regulated financial advice market. Angus Dale-Jones, CWG chair, said the steering committee had already had some “informal discussions” with a number of interested parties but would assemble and meet with a… [Read More…]

A pair of Christchurch-based fee-based financial advisory firms have merged to create a new entity with national ambitions. In a deal inked last month the long-established Bradley Nuttall group and fellow Christchurch business iQ² Private Wealth united under the Cambridge Partners banner. Jacob Wolt, Bradley Nuttall founding partner, said the combined business would have up… [Read More…]

NZ funds could still be cheaper despite sharing top-of-the-class results for costs in Morningstar’s latest global industry report, according to Greg Bunkall, head of Asia-Pacific portfolio acquisition for the research house. The Auckland-based Bunkall said there “should always be downward pressure on fees” with plenty of room for NZ managers to lower costs for investors…. [Read More…]

As signaled last month, AMP Capital Australia has reformed its domestic shares team with seven members, including current head of fundamental equities, Michael Price, to leave the business. The Sydney-based manager lured Genevieve Murray from rival Macquarie Group to head the revamped Australian equities team. Murray, previously Macquarie Capital head of research, is also co-portfolio… [Read More…]

The New Zealand Superannuation Fund (NZS) has released a cache of documents detailing the rationale for its recently-implemented portfolio carbon-cleansing strategy including a previously-unpublished analysis by Mercer. In its bespoke study prepared for the NZS and 17 other global institutional investors in October 2015, Mercer lists four portfolio ‘risks and opportunities’ facing the NZ sovereign… [Read More…]

RBC Investor & Treasury Services in Australia has restructured its leadership team with the recruitment of two senior people from JP Morgan – Marian Azer and David Brown. Both are very experienced in the custody space and are expected to join their new firm in a few weeks. Azer is an executive director and head… [Read More…]

Investors should lead with the head not the heart when it comes to assessing ‘impact’ assets, a new paper from Russell Investments NZ says. The Russell report, authored by the group’s NZ head of implemented consulting Noah Schiltknecht, says while impact investors may be happy to give up some monetary gain in exchange for the… [Read More…]

Peter Costello has always had big ideas. After all, he introduced the GST when predecessors John Howard and John Hewson failed. “$50 billion. Now that’s a tax!” he proudly told the SuperRatings conference two years ago. He also launched the Future Fund, of which he is now chair. At this year’s SuperRatings conference he floated… [Read More…]

Funds managers have been aware for a long time that size is an issue for outperformance. There are various rules of thumb – such as 3 per cent of the market’s capitalisation – but it really depends on style and processes. Now a recent paper by Capital Group, shows how its flagship US$72 billion ‘New… [Read More…]