Huljich scheme stung by new conditions

The Government Actuary (GA) has imposed tight controls on the Huljich KiwiSaver scheme and its trustee, Trustee Executors.

Monday, April 19th 2010, 1:54PM 2 Comments

by David Chaplin

In a just-released statement, the GA has demanded Trustee Executors ensure a new Statement of Investment Policies and Objectives (SIPO) for the Huljich scheme be prepared by April 30 this year.

"The Trustee must within 5 working days of 30 April 2010 supply a copy of the SIPO to my Office and at any time that the SIPO is amended supply a copy of the amended SIPO within 5 working days of it coming into effect," the GA statement says.

As well Trustee Executors will have to supply quarterly statements to the GA, which include investment returns information for all of the Huljich KiwiSaver funds.

Furthermore, Trustee Executors must inform the GA if the Huljich "scheme may have or has failed to comply with its Trust Deed, including any failure to comply in any material respect with the SIPO".

The GA has also requested: "A copy of the minutes of each quarterly meeting between Huljich Wealth Management (New Zealand) Limited and the Trustee in relation to the Huljich KiwiSaver Scheme which has taken place in that quarter and where those minutes have not yet been confirmed or signed then the minutes in draft for the quarter and any prior minutes which have been signed as approved during that quarter."

David Benison, Government Actuary, says in the statement the controls on Huljich and Trustee Executors will remain in place until "rescinded" by the GA.

Benison says he will keep a close eye on the management of all managers and trustees who run KiwiSaver schemes.

The harsh new measures have been imposed on Trustee Executors after the Huljich KiwiSaver scheme was found to have indulged in improper reporting practices earlier this year.

Huljich chief, Peter Huljich, later resigned with the company's chair, Don Brash, assuming day-to-day control.

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Comments from our readers

On 20 April 2010 at 9:56 am Lee Chris said:

I don't see how these measures are harsh at all. The scheme has to submit a copy of their SIPO, stick to it and provide evidence that they are doing their jobs!?! If that is harsh, then NZ still has a long way to go in terms of regulation and compliance.

On 20 April 2010 at 5:47 pm Independent Observer said:

The Huljich event is disturbing on many levels:
People: All due respect to the existing BOD and Huljich investment folks - but Mr Brash has little / no relevant investment experience, exposing the investors to serious future risks

Process: Clearly the Huljich investment process is lax enough to permit past oversights. Perhaps those involved in the process (investment folks, compliance, trustees, BOD) should be investigated thoroughly to ensure that offences are not repeated

Performance: It would be useful for the Government actuary to publish an annual report certifying the performance of all Kiwisaver schemes on an annual basis (of course they won't as the workload would be over-powering)

Philosophy: If the NZ industry (and its gate-keepers) genuinly beleive that the above-reported sanctions are appropriate, then (as noted by Lee Chris) the NZ financial services industry has a long way to travel before it can claim that it is a worthy profession