KiwiSaver survey: the full numbers revealed

In a year that has seen two KiwiSaver providers close up shop, the big bank brands were again dominating fund flows, the second annual Good Returns KiwiSaver survey has found.

Thursday, October 8th 2009, 12:41PM

According to the figures, as at March 31 the Commonwealth Bank-owned ASB once more topped the list as the single largest KiwiSaver scheme with almost $450 million in funds under management and over 170,000 members compared to $101 million under management and 72,305 members at the same time last year. The ASB-owned FirstChoice scheme also totallled 11,213 members and $37.3 million as at the end of March this year.

However, ING was the most successful overall provider with a total 212,732 members and $523 million across the four schemes it manages - the ING default scheme, ANZ, National Bank and SIL.

The survey, which represents about $2.6 billion in funds under management and almost 980,000 KiwiSaver members, showed the average member balance as at March 31 this year was approximately $2,650 with a wide range across the providers. The Huljich KiwiSaver scheme recorded the lowest average member balance of $670 while the tiny $1.55 million Brook Asset Management scheme scored the highest average with over $7,045 per member.

Among the larger providers, ING's SIL scheme reported the highest average member balance of $3,463 with its sister bank products managed by ANZ and the National Bank recording the lowest averages of $1,745 and $1,724 respectively.

While the default providers and other major institutions carved out the lion's share of the KiwiSaver market several mid-tier players were also snapping at their heels, most notably the Gareth Morgan scheme which reported $142.2 million in funds under management as at March 31 this year. Fisher Funds ($53.56 million), Fidelity Life ($37.3 million) and Medical Assurance ($35.6 million) have also accumulated respectable funds under management.

During the year two smaller providers the Australian-backed Eosaver scheme and the union-controlled IRIS scheme shut down after failing to meet growth expectations. The 3,254 Eosaver members, who had collectively accumulated almost $6 million at its close, were given three months to select a new provider before being allocated to a default scheme. Meanwhile, IRIS negotiated a deal with the Gareth Morgan scheme to transfer members. It is understood about 80% of the 1,076 IRIS KiwiSaver members opted for the Gareth Morgan scheme.

See the full report on who is winning the battle for KiwiSavers here

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