Mercer New Zealand surpasses $10 billion NZD in assets under management 

• Mercer NZ achieves almost 60 per cent AUM growth in three years, with $1bn NZD in new mandates secured in 2021
• Demand for global equities, single sector funds and private markets growing
• Mercer’s investment manager research and multi-manager portfolios a differentiator in the market for new clients

New Zealand, June 24, 2021 – An increasingly volatile investment environment and the complexities of modern portfolios has driven greater demand for external investment consulting and management among investors, contributing to an almost 60 per cent increase in Mercer New Zealand’s assets under management over the past three years. The firm announced today that it had reached a new milestone of $10 billion NZD in New Zealand, with $1 billion NZD in new mandates secured in 2021 alone.

Ronan McCabe, Mercer New Zealand’s Chief Investment Officer, said New Zealand’s asset owners were looking for greater support to implement their investment programs and achieve their investment goals, with equities front of mind for many.

“Investors – including institutional asset owners, iwi and foundation clients, family offices and retail members – are coming to us for greater support in navigating the challenges of a difficult economic outlook. They’re looking for expertise in implementing their investment strategies, with a keen interest in our suite of equity funds, socially responsible global equities in particular,” Mr McCabe said.

“We’ve also seen growing demand for single sector funds, with clients seeking dedicated allocations to sectors like emerging markets and listed infrastructure, in addition to global equities. Our private markets capabilities is also attracting investors, including Private Debt where we recently won a mandate in New Zealand to invest in our Global Private Debt fund.

“Ultimately, clients are looking for diversification, enhanced return opportunities and inflation protection in the current environment, and they’re placing enormous value in our investment process of building multi-manager portfolios. With our market-leading research in investment managers, global investment knowledge and scale, we’re able to construct portfolios that blend together best in class investment managers for local investors,” he said.

Mercer recently announced its global assets under management had reached $380 billion USD.

Mr McCabe said New Zealand’s institutional and retail investors were making it clear that investing responsibly was more important than ever for their portfolios.

“Demand for responsible investment options continues to grow. Investors are turning to us for our global expertise in responsible investing with ESG becoming a primary focus as they seek to align their portfolios with their values, while still securing sustainable returns,” Mr McCabe said.

Mercer New Zealand CEO Martin Lewington said the firm’s rapid growth was an excellent result for clients and customers.

“We’re always seeking to leverage our scale to deliver better value for our products and services for New Zealand’s institutional and retail investors,” Mr Lewington said.

“We’re delighted to have hit $10 billion NZD in assets under management and look forward to continuing to help New Zealanders reach their investment objectives, whether that be building an individual’s retirement savings or achieving the goals of large-scale asset owners,” he said.