Why it's wise to invest your KiwiSaver Savings with TOWER Investments 

We recently sent out the TOWER KiwiSaver Scheme Annual Report to our members. This annual report contains a lot of very useful information, and I would encourage you to have a read. If you already have had a look, then you may recognise the following sentence in the introduction:

“TOWER is a conservative investment company, with over 140 years of experience through good times and bad.  We are well positioned to continue delivering value as your trusted KiwiSaver fund manager.”

These words refer to the history and culture of TOWER as an organisation and are reflected in the trust of our investors we have earned over such a long period of time.

Many people are surprised to hear TOWER is over 140 years old; in fact we started out as the Government Life Insurance Department in 1869. I can assure you however I was not part of the company at that stage!

Our background as a longstanding insurance company has shaped and defined the investment organisation we are today.

Of course, with such a long Kiwi history the names and faces have changed but importantly our principles and standards have not. Over that time we have developed a set of strong values that will continue to guide us long into the future.

One of the long standing strengths of TOWER is that we have never relied on any single individual to influence the decisions we make, and this ensures that we stick to our standards as a value based investment manager.

TOWER today is a conservative, risk-averse organisation, but that does not for a moment mean that we are outdated. The awards we have been presented with over the past decade are testament to our ability as an investment manager to remain leaders in this industry. Additionally, the success of the Cash 4 Schools programme reinforces our ability to push the boundaries of innovation.

For more details on the Cash 4 Schools programme click here.

A symbol of strength

You may have also noticed the image of a lighthouse in our logo. By identifying with the lighthouse from the outset, Government Life signalled to the public that it was a dependable insurance company that could be trusted and relied upon in times of loss and disaster. Government Life was permitted to issue its own postage stamps as a government department, which it did from 1891 to 1989, and lighthouses appeared on all of them. The lighthouse symbol continues as the TOWER logo today and represents our ongoing heritage of dependability, to be trusted and relied upon by our clients to pay out on their future insurance claims. To meet that responsibility, TOWER is also an institutional investor that sensibly manages funds received from our insurance customers, with an eye always on the ability to meet their claims. A recent practical example of that ability occurred with the sudden and unexpected crisis of the major earthquake that damaged Christchurch and surrounding communities.  TOWER has the funds available to pay out the multi-million dollar claims that have come in from our affected policyholders at short notice.

You may have also noticed the image of a lighthouse in our logo. By identifying with the lighthouse from the outset, Government Life signalled to the public that it was a dependable insurance company that could be trusted and relied upon in times of loss and disaster.

A “Lighthouse” stamp from the Government Life centenary issue of 1969

Government Life was permitted to issue its own postage stamps as a government department, which it did from 1891 to 1989, and lighthouses appeared on all of them.

The lighthouse symbol continues as the TOWER logo today and represents our ongoing heritage of dependability, to be trusted and relied upon by our clients to pay out on their future insurance claims. To meet that responsibility, TOWER is also an institutional investor that sensibly manages funds received from our insurance customers, with an eye always on the ability to meet their claims.

A recent practical example of that ability occurred with the sudden and unexpected crisis of the major earthquake that damaged Christchurch and surrounding communities.  TOWER has the funds available to pay out the multi-million dollar claims that have come in from our affected policyholders at short notice.

TOWER KiwiSaver Scheme funds are managed differently and kept quite separate from TOWER’s own insurance claim-related investments, because the Scheme’s investments are for medium-to-longer term investors who have planned and foreseeable personal objectives such as a retirement nest egg or first home deposit.

Nonetheless, the same cautious, tried-and-tested culture, values, and philosophy are applied by TOWER when choosing the investments held by the TOWER KiwiSaver Scheme.

This is good news for you as a member of the TOWER KiwiSaver Scheme because we want your TOWER KiwiSaver Scheme funds to be available when you need to access them in the years ahead.

There are real benefits to investing your KiwiSaver savings with TOWER, an organisation that has stood the test of time and proven to be dependable, reliable and trustworthy for more than 140 years.

Have your say….

Workplace Savings NZ is running its “2010 People's Choice KiwiSaver Communication Award” competition with voting by the public open in the month of November this year.

If you would like to vote for the TOWER KiwiSaver Scheme to win the People’s Choice Award, please visit the Workplace Savings NZ website over the voting period and have your say.

As an incentive to vote, Workplace Savings NZ is offering a lucky prize draw.

Eight winning voters will receive a $250 contribution from Workplace Savings NZ to their KiwiSaver account.

So please don’t hesitate to vote in the competition and good luck in the prize draw if you do!

Thank you for investing in the TOWER KiwiSaver Scheme.

Sam Stubbs
Chief Executive Officer
TOWER Investments

For a copy of the TOWER KiwiSaver Scheme investment statement click here