BetaShares announced on Monday the upcoming launch of a range of New Zealand domiciled portfolio investment entity (PIE) funds.
In a statement, the fund manager said the new funds would offer New Zealand-based investors exposure to a range of BetaShares’ investment strategies, with the firm initially expected to provide access to five index-tracking strategies covering global and Australian equities as well as Australian fixed income.
Specifically, the BetaShares Global Sustainability Leaders Fund, Australian Sustainability Leaders Fund, Australia 200 Fund, Global Quality Leaders Fund, and the Australian Investment Grade Corporate Bond Fund (NZD hedged) are expected to be available on selected investment platforms from June 2023.
BetaShares confirmed that the new products are based on some of the most popular investment methodologies in the firm’s Australian product range, which collectively holds over $7.5 billion between them.
Moreover, the launch follows BetaShares’ decision in 2021 to set up an office in Auckland. The fund manager confirmed it is currently in the process of building out a local team, with the initiative currently led by BetaShares executive director – institutional and adviser services, Vinnie Wadhera.
To complement the launch of the New Zealand fund range, the firm also announced it intends to launch new support services for NZ financial advisers.
Commenting on the expansion, BetaShares chief executive officer Alex Vynokur said the firm is proud to be making a range of investment strategies available to NZ-based investors and their advisers.
“We’ve been actively servicing New Zealand clients since our inception and so the launch of locally domiciled funds is a natural extension for us,” Mr Vynokur said.
“BetaShares has been at the forefront of innovation in the Australian funds management industry since 2010, and we believe the time is right for us to take our involvement in New Zealand to the next level.”
“As a business, we’re highly focused on growth in the next decade of our journey. We believe the New Zealand market is currently underserved in terms of high quality and cost-effective investment options and we’re excited to address this opportunity by broadening the range of innovative investment solutions available to Kiwi investors,” Mr Vynokur concluded.
Earlier this month, BetaShares also announced the upcoming launch of two new Global (ex-Australia) Shares ETFs, the BetaShares Global Shares ETF (BGBL) and BetaShares Global Shares Currency Hedged ETF (HGBL), that have since commenced trading on the ASX.
