It is the fifth financial services provider to be given exemption by the FMA
Online investment platform Sharesies has been granted an exemption to provide personalised digital advice to its customers.
It is the fifth business to be granted the exemption so far by the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) behind Kiwi Wealth, Nikko Asset Management, Cigna Life and National Capital.
“We’ve got 40,000 people on our platform already, and we want our investors to have access to investing and advice,” Sharesies CEO and co-founder Brooke Roberts said. “Robo-advice will let us do that.”
According to Roberts, there are a large number of people “prevented from getting appropriate investment advice because they don’t have big enough portfolios.
“In the past, personal advice has been restricted to people with substantial funds – often upwards of $500,000. We don’t think that’s fair, or equitable,” she noted.
Read more: Brokers should pay attention to robo-advice developments- AIM
Roberts also hinted on a range of product offerings that are set to be introduced in the coming months, including advice and robo-advice. However, Sharesies noted it doesn’t consider robo-advice as a product by itself, rather a tool they can use to help its customers be confident investors.
“Having access to robo-advice means we can provide investment recommendations based on our customer’s individual goals, beliefs and behaviours that really resonate with how they want to build their portfolio,” Roberts added. “We’re excited about a future where advice is available to more and more Kiwis—allowing us to become the most financially empowered generation yet.”
