Fee rebates part of transparent process

Sealcorp will begin to rebate fees to clients who have investments placed through the Asgard master trust according to Sealcorp chief executive Ian Knox.

"We have been negoiating with fund managers for six months to reduce fees and Sealcorp publicly states all reductions in fees will go back to the clients," Knox says.

"This reflects the size of funds in Asgard and the leverage we can gain on a wholesale basis."

His comments came as part of his opening speech at the recent Securitor and Pact advisers conference held in Christchurch, New Zealand.

It was the first time the two groups had operated a joint conference as well as the first offshore conference for any part of the Sealcorp group, with nearly 300 planners in attendance.

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Speaking to Money Management at the conference Knox says the reason for the decision to rebate fees back to clients was to open up greater levels of transparency in the industry.

"We have taken a holistic approach and given back to the client the reduced fee amount which is unusual, even in this era of growing transparency," Knox says.

"Lots of trust operators do the same but pocket the difference themselves but we feel the industry has become tarnished in this area and want to be a leader in changing that."

Knox says master trust and wrap account providers need to be held accountable on this and as many hold the status of single responsible entities, it was their moral and fiduciary responsibility to disclose the status of fees.

"We did it because we want groups who use the Asgard master trust to be proud of our disclosure regime and to set the precedent for change," Knox says.

"It is not about driving down costs but rather removing unneccesary costs."