High profile investment adviser and author Martin Hawes is to front a re-launch of Forysyth Barr's Kiwisaver scheme.
The Forbar scheme hasn't been a raging success, having only about $50 million under management as of March this year.
Now, however, it's being re-styled as Summer Kiwisaver, with the name being a reference to Hawes' 2006 retirement planning bestseller 20 Good Summers.
The management of the scheme will remain in the hands of Forbar, but Hawes is chairing what is being termed the "Summer Investment Committee" and he says he will "lead communications with the scheme’s members".
Hawes says his move into KiwiSaver is a natural extension of his mission to "reach as many New Zealanders as possible with the message that the small decisions you make today can have a massive impact on your lifestyle in retirement".
Hawes, is an Authorised Financial Adviser with over 30 years experience who has sold over two hundred thousand books on personal finance.
Hawes says New Zealanders can miss out on tens of thousands of dollars in retirement unless they become more actively involved in driving their investment choices.
“New Zealanders are notoriously disengaged with their KiwiSaver. One quarter of KiwiSaver members don’t even know what kind of fund they’re invested in*. That’s dangerous. If you’re still ten or twenty years from retirement you risk missing out on thousands in retirement,” he says.
Hawes says Summer KiwiSaver members will have the opportunity to learn about investing from his regular communication with them. They’ll also have the chance to put those leanings into action by deciding the weighting of their investment allocated to different investment classes.
“With Summer, you can get involved as much or as little as you choose. We offer the Investment Selection option for members who would rather let us make the decisions for them and keep them informed along the way. Those who like to be more involved can allocate their investment across different funds that invest in cash and domestic and global fixed interest and shares, depending on how they read the market at any given time,” he says.
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