Investment News

Wholesale Australasian equities boutique, Discovery Funds, has raced to almost a third of its soft-close target of $300 million just one year after launch. Founded last September by former Pie Funds portfolio managers, Chris Bainbridge and Mark Devcich, Discovery ended its inaugural year with circa $90 million under management on the back of strong performance… [Read More…]

In a product-dominated world, selling the benefits of an “integrated” KiwiSaver advice model has not been an easy road for Consilium since launching its open platform scheme late in 2020. As at the end of March this year the Consilium-owned KiwiWRAP reported just 277 members and $36 million under management. But Consilium chief, Scott Alman,… [Read More…]

The newly slimmed-down AMP has lodged an appeal against a July Australian Federal Court decision that left the ASX-listed entity facing potential damages of more than A$100 million over a unilateral change to adviser contracts three years ago. In a statement last week, the financial services group confirmed it would contest the ruling by Justice… [Read More…]

Retail investors and financial advisers are at odds over expected long-term portfolio return potential with the former group off in la-la-land, according to a just-released Natixis Investment Managers study. The 2023 Global Retirement Index survey published by the French funds management group late in September found retail investors globally expected to garner long-term returns of… [Read More…]

Even average levels of financial literacy can add up to 1.5 per cent in annual investment returns, a new Allianz analysis suggests. After assessing the financial knowledge of survey respondents in five countries, the latest Allianz Global Wealth Report found those with a lower level of money skills tended to allocate more to cash. “In… [Read More…]

Australian exchange-traded fund (ETF) specialist and recent entrant to the NZ market, Betashares, has bought into the superannuation game across the Tasman with the purchase of a bank-owned scheme last week. Pending regulatory approval, Betashares will take possession of the A$1.4 billion Bendigo Superannuation fund next year, marking a strategic move out of pure product-manufacturing…. [Read More…]

The NZ Stewardship Code has added three new members in its first year of operation on top of the 15 foundation signatories, bringing the total underlying asset pool covered by the agreement to more than $100 billion. Mint, Nikko and Pathfinder signed on to the code during the previous 12 months to join a mixed… [Read More…]

NZ regulators have urged financial service providers to take a “proactive” stance on “identifying and helping” clients experiencing tough times as inflation and higher interest rates bite. In a joint communiqué issued in September, the Commerce Commission and the Financial Markets Authority note financial services firms should be on the lookout for “vulnerable” clients as… [Read More…]

The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) is keeping a close eye on KiwiSaver distribution tactics in the value-for-money era despite a slowdown in the scheme transfer market over the 12 months to the end of March, according to John Horner, director of markets, investors and reporting. “We have more work to do in the KiwiSaver distribution… [Read More…]

Independent asset consulting firm, Makao Investments, has launched a new stand-alone sustainability analytical tool backed by Danish expertise with Public Trust as inaugural client. Makao signed up as the first Australasian licensee of the Copenhagen-based business, Matter, to offer local investors the ability to review portfolios across more than 500 sustainability metrics as well as… [Read More…]