Investment News

The launch of a new fund taking on the $250 billion NZ bank deposit market moved closer last week after Wedge lodged formal disclosure documents. As reported in April, the manager founded by former Fisher Funds fixed income head, David McLeish, plans to attract lazy bank account and term deposit money into a novel investment… [Read More…]

Almost two-thirds of financial planners expect artificial intelligence (AI) to improve the quality of advice, according to a just-released global survey. The Financial Planning Standards Board (FPSB) poll of more than 6,200 advisers in 24 jurisdictions (including NZ) found 60 per cent believed AI would “enhance the quality of advice” while almost 80 per cent… [Read More…]

Artificial intelligence (AI) KiwiSaver compliance start-up, Sevaka, has landed its first “enterprise client”, according to founder, Clive Fernandes. Fernandes said the technology firm had started worked on building an AI-based KiwiSaver client-servicing tool for an unnamed provider with a pilot version expected to be ready for take-off in two months. “We’re solving for a specific… [Read More…]

The NZ Superannuation Fund (NZS) is set to exit the hotel business as a joint venture local real estate portfolio valued at more than $600 million goes up for sale. NZS partnered with the Russell Property Group and Lockwood Property Group in 2019 to form NZ Hotel Holdings, which owns seven marquee sites around the… [Read More…]

Institutional investor appetite for private markets continues to rise with debt and infrastructure proving the most popular menu items in 2025, according to a new global Mercer survey. The second annual Mercer ‘Large asset owner barometer’ found “a significant divergence between public and private markets, with large asset owners planning to increase allocations to several… [Read More…]

Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) head of dynamic asset allocation, David Iverson, will succeed Paul Dyer as chief investment officer for the almost $50 billion government-owned fund. Iverson joined the ACC fund in 2020 after an 11-year stint at the NZ Superannuation Fund (NZS), finishing as head of asset allocation at the now $80 billion sovereign… [Read More…]

Veteran Mercer NZ chief, Martin Lewington, is to leave the multi-manager and consulting business next month after almost 20 years with the firm including 16 in the top job. In a LinkedIn post Lewington said he would “hang up my boots” on June 27. Mercer reported about $11.4 billion of retail assets under management at… [Read More…]

A new Investment News NZ study has analysed official data for the first time, providing new details on the layout of the Financial Advice Provider (FAP) world. The free report published today, uses Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) figures to identify the largest FAPs across several categories. As at January 2025, the official… [Read More…]

ANZ has lost its crown as the largest retail funds manager in the country, according to revised figures in a long-running sector survey. The Plan for Life (PFL) December 2024 quarterly NZ retail fund report shows ANZ fell to second on the table behind ASB for the first time during the period as the Australian… [Read More…]

The KiwiSaver growth/income split hit the exact 60/40 level of an idealised balanced portfolio during a slightly risk-off start to 2025 that saw assets tracked by Morningstar decline by about $700 million quarter-on-quarter. Total KiwiSaver funds under management in the Morningstar March quarterly report amounted to about $121.2 billion, down from the almost $121.9 billion… [Read More…]