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The $1.6 billion plus Trust Investments has partnered with an Auckland-based iwi to buy an industrial property in the city for an undisclosed sum. Under the deal the Trust Property Fund and Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei – a sub-tribe of the broader Auckland region iwi with about 8,000 members – will take equal ownership of the 1.4 hectare Wiri Station Road site in Manakau, described as a “high-quality, income-producing industrial asset”. Trust would “provide ongoing asset and property management services for the site”, according to a statement. The charitable investment specialist has a long history of managing real estate with the property fund reporting about $273 million in assets as at the end of September – the largest of the group’s six portfolio investment entity (PIE) products. Garry Anderson, Trust head of property, said in a release: “We are privileged to partner with Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei on this investment. The partnership reflects our shared commitment to responsible, values-aligned investment that delivers for future generations.” Earlier this year Trust general manager investments, Matthew Goldsack, signaled the business would look to increase its real estate exposure. Since joining Trust in 2020 from Westpac/BT, Goldsack has looked to broaden the appeal of the historically charity-focused manager with a switch to PIE funds, outsourcing back-office duties to FundRock this June and adopting an ‘ethical investment’ tagline. In April, Trust also hired Nuveen for a ‘green’ global bond mandate, replacing BlackRock as the underlying manager. Meanwhile last week, the Ralph Stewart-headed Lifetime Asset Management formally assumed control of the NZX-owned SuperLife UK Pension Transfer Scheme. As reported in August, Lifetime struck an agreement with the NZX to take over management of the $125 million SuperLife UK pension vehicle In a scheme proposal issued at the time, Lifetime unveiled plans to merge the SuperLife scheme with its own Garrison Bridge UK pension transfer product while shrinking the investment menu down to 10 (from 43) and diversifying the manager line-up. The SuperLife deal will see Lifetime “funds under management has surged to approximately $1.3 billion, including $463 million in UK pension assets, reinforcing its leadership in retirement and pension transfers”, a release says. Previously, Lifetime has purchased three legacy superannuation schemes from AMP as well as picking up the Aon employer master trust from Fisher Funds in 2022. Lifetime, originally founded as a guaranteed income annuity-like provider 10 years ago, now boasts more than 17,000 clients across its various schemes and recently launched reverse-mortgage alternative product.
