In a surprise move, the NZX-owned Smart funds shop has brought former Nikko NZ (now Amova) Asset Management head of distribution, James Wesley, back from New York to assume a just-invented sales role under new chief, Lisa Turnbull.
Wesley left the-then Nikko local business in March 2023 to take on the deputy chief executive Americas role for the Japan-headquartered investment firm – promoted to the top job later that year.
He begins as Smart chief sales and marketing officer next month after a leadership switch in the NZX subsidiaries last week saw Turnbull jump from platform head to run the funds arm.
She replaces Anna Scott, who resigned as Smart chief in July this year en route to leading Mercer NZ. Scott spent about two years at Smart (a brand adopted during her tenure from the previous Smartshares), joining the group in 2023 as the permanent filler for Hugh Stevens.
Turnbull, meanwhile, has led the NZX investment platform business, Wealth Technologies, since 2017 after arriving for a risk and compliance contract job the previous year.
Prior to Wealth Technologies she held several senior finance, risk and investment operations roles for ASB and its former insurance/fund distribution arm, Sovereign.
Under her watch the NZX platform, once known as Apteryx, has grown from about $2 billion of assets under administration to almost $19 billion by the end of September this year – albeit requiring some expensive technological upgrades along the way.
According to Turnbull, Wealth Technologies has strong pipeline of new clients ahead of it as NZX chief information officer, Robert Douglas, arrives to take over head platform duties, initially in an acting capacity.
Daniel Juchnowicz, NZX head of capital market and digital technology, will step in for Douglas in the interim.
However, Turnbull will remain on the Wealth Technologies board in addition to leading Smart.
“I’m very familiar with the funds business from my time at ASB,” she said.
Smart reported about $15.4 billion under management as at September 30 including almost $7 billion in its suite of 40-plus exchange-traded funds, $3.5 billion of superannuation master trust money and $2.8 billion in the to-be-rebranded SuperLife KiwiSaver scheme.
As well, the Smart fund family includes the circa $2 billion QuayStreet Asset Management active house, which the NZX bought from Craigs Investment Partners in 2022 for $31.25 million plus a, since downgraded, potential earn-out payment of $19 million.
The Smart funds business has been the growth-engine for the NZX over the last couple of years with platform revenue also beginning to contribute to the bottom line. During the six months to June 30 this year, the combined Smart and Wealth Technologies income totalled $29.8 million – about equal with the $29.9 million generated by the traditional NZX exchange activities.
NZX chief financial officer, Graham Law, is currently acting chief of the exchange in lieu of Mark Peterson, who is on leave.
Peterson is due to exit the firm in April next year with the search for his replacement underway.