HOW DO I DISCHARGE MY NEW OBLIGATIONS AS A TRUSTEE?

TRUST INVESTMENT POLICY

All Trusts need an effective Investment Policy that sets out, clearly and simply, what the trust's objectives are and how the trust's investments are to be selected and managed. In turn that needs effective governance and quality external and impartial advice, free from biases. Our Investment Policy Review provides a robust framework for:

• Reviewing the existing policy across ten key dimensions for strength, robustness and effectiveness
• Developing a new Investment Policy (or updating the existing one)
• Implementing all recommendations
• Monitoring and reporting regularly

We’ll also help you put in place effective ethical investment solutions.

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"GREAT SOLUTIONS THAT CUT THROUGH THE OBSTACLES, CAPTURED THE SPIRIT OF THE INITIATIVE AND PRESENTED A SIMPLE AND EFFECTIVE ALTERNATIVE THAT ENABLED THINGS TO PROGRESS CONSTRUCTIVELY."

Pru, Chief Executive 

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TRUSTEE INVESTMENT ADVICE

Designing a robust Investment Policy that reflects your trust's aims and objectives, as well as consistent with best practice, your legal obligations, and the trust's particular ethical preferences. We follow a structured, evidence-based approach based on investing ethically. Our solutions are based on long-term, low cost and proven strategies that help  trustees meet their obligations and requirements.

TRUSTEE INVESTMENT

Our services include: 

1. Designing an Investment Policy Statement (or reviewing the current one) to ensure the value of your trust's investments achieve stakeholder needs and expectations. 
2. Developing and implementing structured, evidence-based solutions, based on long-term, low cost and proven strategies and consistent with your ethical investment preferences, to help trustees meet your obligations and requirements.
3. Working with you over time, to help you manage and grow investment funds.

ETHICAL INVESTMENT STATEGIES & APPROACHES

In Private (family) trusts: the settlors are typically still actively involved, usually as trustees as well as beneficiaries. There is commonly a single 'external' trustee who is not actively involved. The trust's objectives generally reflect the settlors' specific needs and preferences - including ethical. Often, the beneficiaries/trustees want a significant say or preference for specific investments. The main challenge is to design an investment policy that recognises these preferences without letting them take over the actual investment choices - especially important given the new Trusts Act obligations. Often, provision of income for Lifestyle reasons is the first requirement, with provision for children and legacy also being part of the mix. As each of these has a different time horizon, different investment mixes are needed.

'Commercial' trusts, including charities and incorporated societies, have a clearer separation of the founders' objectives and interpretation, and how the trust is administered ongoing. Typically the founder/settlors are no longer involved. At the same time, some or all of the trustees may be professionals and expected to bring to their role the skills of a professional or business person. The main difference is that trustees of an incorporated society are generally elected by the membership - which can result in trustees with limited or no knowledge of trust rules and investment needs - whereas most trustees of a charity or similar trust are appointed via a specific process.

In both cases the investment strategy needs to clearly set out:

• The key objectives - including the use of two or more portfolios if needed
• How the investments are to be selected and managed
• How the investments are to be reviewed
• How the advice is impartial and unbiased and avoids conflicts of interest

Ethical Investing NZ's team have experience both at governance level (current and former trustees of a range of family and not-for-profit trusts) and in providing impartial, unbiased investment advice.