Celebrating Investment for a better future

This award will go to the KiwiSaver provider that can best demonstrate effective responsible or ethical investment outcomes. Entrants will demonstrate leading practice in avoiding harm from their investments, generating or supporting positive impact, providing strong corporate governance and stewardship, and operating with ethical conduct.

The award is open to registered New Zealand KiwiSaver providers.

This award will go to the investment fund provider that can best demonstrate effective responsible or ethical investment outcomes. Entrants will demonstrate leading practice in avoiding harm from their investments, generating or supporting positive impact, providing strong corporate governance and stewardship, and operating with ethical conduct.

This category is open to managed investment fund providers, wholesale funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds or other fund managers that can best demonstrate effective responsible or ethical investment practices. The provider must have a substantial presence in New Zealand including employees. Please note that this is a separate category to the Best Ethical KiwiSaver provider award.

This award will go to the fund that can best demonstrate innovation in its investment approach and practice for the benefit of clients, the environment and society.

The fund can be a KiwiSaver fund, retail investment fund, private equity fund, venture fund or impact fund within an asset owner. The provider must have a substantial presence in New Zealand including employees.The fund must have been launched between March 2023 and May 2024.

Entrants will demonstrate a strong purpose and a clear vision for how their enterprise will create significant impact overall, using examples of specific investments that benefit people or the environment, including aims such as social equity, nature restoration and greenhouse gas emissions reductions. They will have a clear methodology on how they assess their impact, including the additional impact that is attributable to their investment and/or the impact of the company receiving investment.

The applicant must be a New Zealand registered organisation. It can be a wholesale or retail fund provider, a government entity, social enterprise, not-for-profit enterprise, a collaboration or a commercial fund. The category includes green bond portfolios or programmes (but not a single green bond issue). This year for the first time, the criteria also allow for impact funds within asset owners such as trusts and foundations, charities and other institutions. The initiative will either have made investments or have plans to launch in 2024.

This award will go to the fund provider or fund that can best demonstrate a strong purpose and a clear vision for how their enterprise will reduce emissions and/or build climate resilience, and invest in impactful climate solutions, using examples of specific initiatives. Mainstream funds that are committed to climate action are eligible, as are funds focused on investing in climate solutions.

The applicant must be a New Zealand registered organisation. It can be a wholesale or retail provider, a public entity, social enterprise, not-for-profit enterprise, a collaboration or a commercial fund. This category includes climate bond portfolios, but not a single climate bond issue. This year for the first time, the criteria also allow for impact funds within asset owners such as trusts and foundations, charities and other institutions.

Entrants should complete the entry for either the mainstream investment fund section, or the dedicated climate fund section, but not both.

This award will go to the financial adviser (company or individual) that can best demonstrate how ethical issues are integrated throughout their client engagement and financial advice. The category is open to independent financial advisers, advisory firms, wealth management companies and others. Note we use the term ‘firm’ for advice businesses of any size.

Entrants will show excellence in their media coverage of ethical and impact investment and be able to cite a significant impact on public awareness and understanding of the issues.

This category is open to a broad range of New Zealand media including print, digital, radio, podcast, TV, video and documentary. This category is open to an individual journalist or a team.

This award will go to the best overseas ethical or impact investment fund. Entry is open to funds that are not registered PIE funds and issued in another country. They must be actively marketed in New Zealand and made available to the New Zealand public through distributors, financial advisers, ETFs or platforms. This category is open to overseas ETFs, AUTs and other overseas registered funds.

More information coming soon!