Fund eyes offshore option

By ZARA KANU LEBO
THE unavailability of foreign exchange is holding back Nambawan Superannuation Limited’s (NSL) efforts to invest overseas, so that it could improve returns for its members, says chief executive officer Paul Sayer.
“We have roughly K10 billion assets and we are allowed, or can move, 35 per cent (or K3.7 billion) to invest overseas,” Sayer said.
“At the moment, we are at about 15 per cent (or K1.7 billion), where we could move K1.8 billion offshore.
“But that is if we had (adequate) foreign exchange.
“We haven’t had foreign exchange available to us at the volumes we need to invest offshore.”
He said the NSL was planning more offshore investment opportunities because its current assets of K10 billion was growing at a fast rate.
And the Fund cannot achieve the best returns for its members without investing the money they manage offshore to maximise earnings.
Sayer said investing off-shore offered more opportunities as the domestic market was limited.
“The reason to invest offshore isn’t because we don’t like PNG,” he said.
“It is because there are many more things we can invest into that can make money for our members.
“There are also some challenges in keeping the money inside PNG. It means that there is too much money in PNG, and therefore most superfunds will invest around the world.”
A growing proportion of NSL’s funds is more likely to be invested overseas in applications such as WhatsApp, Google, Facebook or foreign infrastructure assets with relatively less investment in the country’s market.
“For us to cut into their profit, we need to invest in those businesses overseas. That’s why we look for diversification and opportunities that we cannot get in PNG.
“It’s not about being upset with PNG. It’s about diversification and making sure we think about the risks and also supporting opportunities to get to our members, so that they can have that available.”