Bonus: The most requested feature for the Sharesies KiwiSaver Scheme is here

Sharesies' Matt MacPherson reveals the launch of members' most-requested feature—US Self-Select for the Sharesies KiwiSaver Scheme, opening access to 55 American companies. We discuss:

• The unique Investment Plan Builder tool that lets you experiment with portfolio combinations using virtual money before committing
• How guardrails work to maintain diversification (minimum 50% in base funds, maximum 5% per individual stock selection)
• Access to previously unavailable investments like crypto through ETFs
• The tax-efficient PIE fund structure that makes it all possible.

Sharesies Investment Management Limited is the issuer of the Sharesies KiwiSaver Scheme. The product disclosure statement (PDS) for the Sharesies KiwiSaver Scheme has been lodged, and may be viewed on the Disclose Register or on our documents page

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Investing and involves the risk you might lose the money
you start with. We recommend talking to a licensed financial advisor.
We also recommend reading product disclosure documents before deciding to invest.
Everything you're about to see and here is current at
the time of recording.

Speaker 2 (00:18):
Hi, Matt, it's been pretty exciting the last few days.
We've released the self select for the US for our
keysaver members. How has it been going?

Speaker 3 (00:29):
Easily the most requested feature that we've had since we
launched keysaver about two years ago. We launched fifty five
US companies and ETFs, the largest, most widely held, most
popular investment options on the Shares's platform from the US
markets are now available for people to self select into

(00:49):
their kisaver investment plans. So it's early days, you know,
it's just after lunch time on the on the launch day.
We are seeing our existing customers updating their plans to
include some UIs companies you know, and some new customers

(01:10):
also who want to use the investment plan builder to
have a look at how it could work for them.
And then you know, some people signing up and asking
us questions and things.

Speaker 2 (01:20):
It is early days, but can you tell us maybe
what are the most popular stocks thus far.

Speaker 3 (01:25):
Yeah, I mean the most popular stocks. I don't think
we'll be any surprise because they are the most popular
stocks I guess on the charesies platform, but also the
most popular stocks for a lot of Q saver managers
too if you look into what they're holding their funds.

Speaker 1 (01:39):
So the.

Speaker 3 (01:41):
You know, the top choices so far are companies like Microsoft, Meta,
Amazon and Videos in There, which has been really popular
on the platform for a while now. The rocket Lab
was actually the first the first US option we made

(02:02):
available in our beta program, which was a nod I
guess to the fact that it's a New Zealand founded
company that is on the US markets as well.

Speaker 2 (02:13):
Now you mentioned the investment builder, can you explain to
listeners and viewers what that actually is.

Speaker 3 (02:19):
Yes. Our QV Saver scheme is a bit unique in
that we've introduced the idea that anyone can go in
and have a bit more control over the individual companies
that make up their QV service scheme. So we thought
it was really important to let people do that in

(02:40):
a really safe and kind of experimental way outside of
having to use their actual money. So we have an
Investment plan Builder. It's on our website, you can go
through and correct your investment plan, see what fees, see
what level of risk, look at all the different companies
and ETFs and funds and things we have, and you

(03:01):
can do it in a way that you can update
it and if you like it, you can actually import
it into the app. But for most people, that's where
we're directing them to have a look and see how
this all works because it is a unique concept.

Speaker 2 (03:15):
So it's things like how much risk, how much I'm
going to pay and fees that sort of thing, so
I sort of get a bit of a taste before
I commit.

Speaker 3 (03:22):
Yeah, because everyone's kepsaver can actually be different with us,
and so we can't just say, oh, you're paying one
percent for your kivsaver, because I could choose, you know,
a fundat much lower than that that I can add
some of my own picks, and the price level and
the risk level of each portfolio could be quite different.

(03:45):
And so you can do that in a way where
we will do all that maths for you and present
it back in a way that you can compare to
other schemes.

Speaker 2 (03:53):
The other thing that seems quite exciting is is you
can get exposure to things that you might not normally
have it your key we save, for example, through ETFs.
I understand we can now invest in crypto.

Speaker 3 (04:07):
That's right. So the criteria for what makes it into
as an investment option is driven by a few things.
I think our ultimate goal is to provide as much
access as possible. But the options that we include, we
also have liquidity hurdles, so we have a minimum size

(04:28):
of the companies. We also have a widely held rule
because what we're doing is we are turning each of
these options into a PI fund. We have some additional yeah,
into a tax efficient PIE fund. We have some additional

(04:49):
obligations about ensuring that the options are widely held. And
so you know, we've started with fifty five companies and
funds and that will expand over time when we're interested
in feedback from people what they think is missing and
what they do and don't like. But yeah, we have
one crypto option, which is the Icehars ETF. We have

(05:16):
a few other companies like that that we actually have
some volatility warnings on within the the you know, the
crypto ETF has been quite volatile since it's been launched,
as have a few other companies like rocket Lab. As
I mentioned earlier on.

Speaker 2 (05:32):
So Matte just before we finished, let's explain how the
fund works. I mean, I can't put everything into Tesla,
can I correct?

Speaker 3 (05:41):
So we have a concept of guardrails, and guard rails
are investment limits that we apply to your investment plan,
which is your standing instructions on how to invest contributions
as they arrive into the scheme. And those guardrails require
you to have at least fifty percent of your contributions

(06:03):
invested into a base fund, which is a diversified fund.
You can have one hundred percent invested into a divestified
fund if you want, but no less than fifty percent.
And then we have around one hundred and fifty companies
in ETFs from New Zealand and the States. The maximum
for each of those is five percent per selection. So

(06:28):
I could have ten companies at five percent each, or
I could have one hundred companies at half a percent each,
for example, included in my investment plan, and as money
arrived into the scheme, it would be invested according to
those proportions.

Speaker 2 (06:44):
Are you predicting that people will be a real mix
of those percentages or is there like a typical investor.

Speaker 3 (06:51):
Yeah. Today, what we've seen is around half of our
members have picked at least one company and on average
around ten percent of contributions are invested into self select
and ninety percent into managed funds.

Speaker 2 (07:09):
So still slightly conservative if.

Speaker 3 (07:12):
We Yeah, look the guardrails are there to enforce the divestfication.
It's a it's a foundation of risk management when it
comes to investing, as is the investment plan concept, which
means your dollar cost averaging, you're buying no matter whether
the price is up or down. And so you know,

(07:33):
the base fund is like our course satellite type approach
as well. So we've got you know, a number of
different things working together here because qpsaber is a long
term investment and we want to make sure that we
get the risk levels you know, managed as well as
we can.

Speaker 2 (07:48):
So, Matt, if people are interested, how do they go
how do they go about getting into the self select
for KEEPSAB.

Speaker 3 (07:55):
I'd recommend you have a look at the Investment Plan Builder,
So head to our website. You'll find your way to
the Kiwi Saver sit. It's pretty well signposted. Have a
look at it. There's nothing like being able to actually
have a play with something when it's not your money
and get comfortable with the idea and if so, you know,
follow the prompts.

Speaker 2 (08:15):
Thanks Matt. It's about probably watching the space and seeing
what investors do.

Speaker 1 (08:21):
Cheesy's Investment Management Limited is the issuer of the Cheesy's
key Wes Have a Scheme. The Product Disclosure Statement for
the Cheess's key Wes Have a Scheme has been laudged
and may be viewed on the Disclosed Register or on
our Documents page.