It has been interesting to watch the debate around ethical investing within KiwiSaver. I am a believer in investors knowing where their money is, and unfortunately most managed funds don’t allow any real knowledge of where the funds eventually get invested. They will spin the line about more governance and how they are different/ better than the other bloke. The truth is, unless you can see for yourself, it’s all just marketing.
At WealthDesign we have investment clients who wouldn’t own shares in gambling or industries such as arms or tobacco or industries they believe are damaging our environment. I respect that, and am happy to design options that exclude.
You can be an ethical investor and still save for your retirement effectively. For example, you could have invested in Australasian Listed Property over the past five years and done very well. According to Morningstar, investors would have received a 16% return over this time.
Like most New Zealanders, I like property. The rent gives a stable income flow, and property tends to follow inflation. If commercial property inflation averages 3.5% for 10 years, the asset value will normally increase by 50%. Not a bad way of ethical investing in my opinion.
At WealthDesign we see there’s a need to audit investors’ KiwiSaver accounts. So we’ve created KiwCheck. This service is independent of any KiwiSaver manager and is designed to provide personalised advice based on independent research. We believe the banks and fund managers are conflicted as they have a vested interest in keeping people paying into their schemes (and keep getting their share of the $132 million paid in fees). Our service isn’t about moving investors from one provider to another, but is about checking that KiwiSaver is working optimally for you.
We believe transparency and knowledge is vital, plus we are all about making the complicated simple. KiwiCheck is just another way we can help our clients to live their life, on their terms.
Give us a call if you want to know more about ethical investing or KiwiCheck on
06 3555844.
John Barber
WealthDesign – a life well planned