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Coronavirus pandemic led to several challenges and resulted in a turbulent year for financial markets. In spite of the pandemic’s damaging impact, the Guardians of NZ Superannuation stays positive in its long-term investment strategy.
Guardians of NZ Superannuation is a Crown entity, which handles the NZ Super Fund.
On 3 March, senators from the Guardians assembled before the Parliament's Finance and Spending Select Committee through a video link for an annual review of their results.
Chairman Catherine Savage assured Committee members that the $54 billion Fund was surpassing its long-term performance targets. The wealth formed over 18 years of investing shows a significant role towards the Fund’s purpose to help in paying the cost of giving universal superannuation to future groups of Kiwis, she added.
Source: Pixabay
The NZ Super Fund bounced back strongly and returned 53% from its low point in March 2020 to date amid COVID-19, showing the fastest period of growth since its commencement.
NZ Super Fund has delivered over $33 billion more than the NZ Government’s cost of debt since the it began investing in 2003. Investment returns have averaged more than 10% per year in over about 18 years.
Beginning of the term of Catherine Drayton
Ms. Savage will retire from the Board after serving for 10 years in the firm’s Board.
Catherine Drayton, Fellow Board Member and the current Audit Committee Chairman, has been hired to succeed Ms. Savage from 1 April 2021. She started the term as the Chairman after a period of increased unpredictability in financial markets, which saw the Fund to witness large changes in value over the course of the year.
Ms. Drayton has served as the director of technology in many companies - Meridian Energy, PowerbyProxi, Beca Group, and Ngāi Tahu Holdings. She stated that NZ Super was known globally for its investment strategy and played a significant part in the NZ Capital markets.
The Fund constantly looks to improve its management by strengthening responsible investing strategy, generating new methods to add value to returns, and detecting technology innovations, which will assist in delivering more insights and efficiencies in operations.
The size of the Fund is likely to double in the coming decade and will be centered on helping the team in preparing for that growth.
