Average annual returns of 10.03 percent after costs over the past 20 years make the New Zealand Superannuation Fund the world’s best-performing sovereign wealth fund, according to international sovereign wealth fund experts GlobalSWF.  

Global SWF’s annual rankings compare the performance of 13 sovereign wealth funds and 37 pension funds from 18 countries across five continents. The NZ Super Fund’s returns for the 20 years to 30 June 2024 were well ahead of the average returns for both sovereign wealth funds (6.4 percent) and pension funds (6.8 percent). 

The NZ Super Fund was also the top performing sovereign wealth fund during the past decade, with an average annualised return of 10.33 percent after costs. 

NZ Super Fund CEO Jo Townsend said that over the past 20 years the Fund had significantly outperformed long-term performance expectations. 

“In part, that reflects how well global equities, which presently make up about 60 percent of the Fund’s assets, have performed during that time. In addition, our active investment strategies have also outperformed both our Reference Portfolio benchmark and our long-term performance expectations,” Ms Townsend said. 

Ms Townsend said the Guardians’ active investment strategies were designed to capitalise on its competitive advantages as an institutional investor, particularly its long investment horizon, operational independence, and clear and effective governance structure. 

Ms Townsend said maintaining long-term, growth-oriented investment strategies through multiple market ups and downs had been central to the success of the NZ Super Fund. 

The NZ Super Fund has $8 billion invested in New Zealand, including investments in forestry, agriculture and horticulture, and numerous listed and unlisted entities. 

In the past year, the Fund had expanded its rural land portfolio, increased its investment in locally managed funds that provide growth capital to New Zealand businesses, and continued its involvement in various land development initiatives that will provide platforms for housing and social infrastructure.