Fund-vs-fund · Australasian Equities
BetaShares NZ Sustainability Leaders Fund vs Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund
Both are Australasian Equities funds available to NZ retail investors. Numbers below are sourced from the FMA Disclose register via Sorted Smart Investor and reflect the latest published quarterly fund updates.
Why these two differ
The most material structural difference between these two funds is their investment mandate. The Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund is constructed around income generation, concentrating on dividend-paying Australasian stocks, with its five largest positions being Contact Energy (9.84%), Infratil (9.64%), Mainfreight (6.58%), EBOS Group (4.48%), and Freightways Group (4.19%). The BetaShares NZ Sustainability Leaders Fund applies an ESG screen, selecting companies assessed as sustainability leaders, with Fisher & Paykel Healthcare (9.75%), Xero (9.74%), Auckland International Airport (9.28%), Infratil (9.22%), and A2 Milk (8.39%) as its top holdings. Infratil appears in both portfolios, but the remaining names reflect meaningfully different stock-selection philosophies.
On fees, Harbour charges 1.10% per annum against BetaShares' 0.59%, a gap of 51 basis points that compounds over time. Risk profiles also diverge: Harbour carries a risk indicator of 4, while BetaShares sits at 5, indicating higher expected volatility on the BetaShares side. Both funds allocate 98.31% to growth assets and are similarly sized — Harbour at NZD 34.87 million, BetaShares at NZD 34.26 million.
On historical returns, Harbour discloses a five-year annualised return of 2.81%; BetaShares' five-year return figure is not available in this snapshot, likely reflecting the fund's shorter operating history. Readers should not draw performance comparisons without a matching time series.
Verify all figures against each fund's current PDS and latest Quarterly Fund Update on FMA Disclose before relying on any of this information.
Comparison generated 2026-07-05 from each fund's FMA Disclose QFU facts as at that date. If the underlying facts change, this narrative is withheld until it is regenerated — the tables on this page always reflect the current data.
What's different at a glance
- BetaShares NZ Sustainability Leaders Fund charges 0.51% lower in annual fund charges (0.59% vs 1.10%).
- Both are New Zealand PIE funds — investor tax is capped at the Prescribed Investor Rate (PIR), maximum 28%.
- BetaShares NZ Sustainability Leaders Fund applies responsible-investment / ESG screening. The other fund does not.
Where each fund sits in its cohort
Percentile rank vs all 58 australasian equities funds we've matched on Sorted Smart Investor. Mechanical only — no opinion, no forward-looking view.
Annual fund charge
Lower is better
BetaShares
0.59%
Lower half of cohort
Harbour
1.10%
Upper half of cohort
5-year return p.a.
Past performance — not a predictor
BetaShares
—
—
Harbour
2.81%
Upper half over 5 years
Fund size
Larger = more stable, lower close-risk
BetaShares
NZ$34m
Lower half by size
Harbour
NZ$35m
Lower half by size
| Metric | BetaShares | Harbour | Lower / higher is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fund charge | 0.59% | 1.10% | Lower is better |
| Risk indicator (1–7) | 5 | 4 | Higher = more volatility |
| 5-year return p.a. | — | 2.81% | Higher is better (past not future) |
| Fund size | NZ$34m | NZ$35m | Larger = more stable, lower close-risk |
| Growth / income split | 98% / 2% | 98% / 2% | More growth = higher long-run return + volatility |
| NZ tax structure | PIE (PIR-capped) | PIE (PIR-capped) | PIE = simpler. FIF = annual return. |
| Currency hedging | — | — | Hedged smooths NZD/foreign FX moves at a small cost. |
| Responsible investment screening | Yes | No | Specific exclusions live in each fund's SIPO. |
| Available via | Direct | Direct | Platforms accepting retail subscriptions. |
Portfolio overlap
How many top-10 positions both funds hold, and at what weight. Computed from each fund's most recently disclosed top-10 holdings — exact-name matched (Microsoft Corp. = Microsoft Corporation), with a Cash / Cash & Equivalents collapse rule.
Matching holdings
3
of each fund's top 10
BetaShares weight in shared
17.2%
of BetaShares NZ Sustainability Leaders Fund top 10 is shared
Harbour weight in shared
20.2%
of Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund top 10 is shared
| Holding | BetaShares | Harbour |
|---|---|---|
 Infratil NZ | 9.22% | 9.64% |
 Spark New Zealand NZ | 4.15% | 4.01% |
 Mainfreight NZ | 3.86% | 6.58% |
"Min weight" = the smaller of the two weights — a conservative read of how much exposure you'd have to that position if you held both funds.
What each fund says it does
BetaShares
BetaShares NZ Sustainability Leaders Fund
The Fund aims to provide an investment return that tracks the performance of the Solactive New Zealand Sustainable Leaders Index, Before taking into account fees and expenses.Full BetaShares BetaShares NZ Sustainability Leaders Fund profile →
Harbour
Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund
The Fund is an actively managed strategy that invests predominantly in New Zealand and Australian listed equities that generate attractive dividend yields as well as cash and fixed interest securities.Full Harbour Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund profile →
Documents
Crawled directly from each manager's website. How we record provenance →
BetaShares
Harbour
LiveLast verified 2026-05-08
Common questions
What's the difference between the BetaShares NZ Sustainability Leaders Fund and the Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund?
Which fund has lower fees, BetaShares NZ Sustainability Leaders Fund or Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund?
Are both funds PIE-taxed in NZ?
Does either fund apply responsible-investment screening?
Where can I read the official documents for these funds?
