Fund-vs-fund · NZ Fixed Interest
Fisher Funds New Zealand Fixed Income Trust vs Kernel March 2027 NZ Bond Fund
Both are NZ Fixed Interest 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 difference in this comparison is data availability: Kernel's March 2027 NZ Bond Fund discloses no fee, risk indicator, fund size, five-year return, growth asset allocation, or top holdings in our current snapshot, making a symmetrical comparison impossible. Fisher Funds New Zealand Fixed Income Trust, by contrast, provides a reasonably complete disclosure picture from its latest Quarterly Fund Update.
Both funds sit in the NZ Fixed Interest category. Fisher Funds NZ Fixed Income Trust carries an annual fund charge of 0.97% and a risk indicator of 3 on the standard 1–7 scale. Its five-year return to the latest QFU date stands at 0.68% per annum, with a fund size of approximately NZD $76.97 million. Growth assets represent just 0.07% of the portfolio, reflecting a predominantly income-oriented structure. Its five largest disclosed holdings are all NZ government or LGFA bonds, with the NZ Government Bond maturing April 2033 (3.50% coupon) as the largest position at 7.46%.
Kernel's fund name implies a target maturity of March 2027, suggesting a defined-term or "target date" bond structure — a potentially material structural distinction from Fisher Funds' open-ended approach — but this cannot be confirmed from the data available in our snapshot. Kernel's fee, risk profile, and portfolio composition are all silent on our current data.
Readers should verify all figures, including fees and fund structure, against the source PDS and latest Quarterly Fund Update for each fund 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
- Both are New Zealand PIE funds — investor tax is capped at the Prescribed Investor Rate (PIR), maximum 28%.
Where each fund sits in its cohort
Percentile rank vs all 14 nz fixed interest funds we've matched on Sorted Smart Investor. Mechanical only — no opinion, no forward-looking view.
Annual fund charge
Lower is better
Fisher Funds
0.97%
Highest 11% of cohort
Kernel
—
—
5-year return p.a.
Past performance — not a predictor
Fisher Funds
0.68%
Bottom 19% over 5 years
Kernel
—
—
Fund size
Larger = more stable, lower close-risk
Fisher Funds
NZ$77m
Lower half by size
Kernel
—
—
| Metric | Fisher Funds | Kernel | Lower / higher is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fund charge | 0.97% | — | Lower is better |
| Risk indicator (1–7) | 3 | — | Higher = more volatility |
| 5-year return p.a. | 0.68% | — | Higher is better (past not future) |
| Fund size | NZ$77m | — | Larger = more stable, lower close-risk |
| Growth / income split | 0% / 100% | — | 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 | No | No | Specific exclusions live in each fund's SIPO. |
| Available via | Direct | Direct | Platforms accepting retail subscriptions. |
What each fund says it does
Fisher Funds
Fisher Funds New Zealand Fixed Income Trust
The fund aims to provide stable returns over the long term by investing in New Zealand fixed interest assetsFull Fisher Funds Fisher Funds New Zealand Fixed Income Trust profile →
Kernel
Kernel March 2027 NZ Bond Fund
Strategy summary not yet ingested.
Full Kernel Kernel March 2027 NZ Bond Fund profile →Documents
Crawled directly from each manager's website. How we record provenance →
Fisher Funds
LiveLast verified 2026-05-08
Kernel
Common questions
What's the difference between the Fisher Funds New Zealand Fixed Income Trust and the Kernel March 2027 NZ Bond Fund?
Are both funds PIE-taxed in NZ?
Where can I read the official documents for these funds?
