Fund-vs-fund · Australasian Equities
Harbour Australasian Equity Fund vs Smart NZ Top 10 ETF
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 approach: the Harbour Australasian Equity Fund is an actively managed portfolio, while the Smart NZ Top 10 ETF is a passive exchange-traded fund tracking the ten largest NZX-listed companies by market capitalisation. This distinction drives most of the other differences.
The annual fund charge reflects that contrast directly — Harbour charges 1.12% versus Smartshares' 0.60%, a gap of 52 basis points that compounds meaningfully over time. Both funds carry the same risk indicator of 5 (on a scale of 1 to 7) and hold near-identical growth asset allocations of 98.31%. Fund sizes are also comparable: Harbour sits at approximately NZD 101.2 million and Smartshares at NZD 103.3 million.
Portfolio construction diverges despite shared names in each top-five. Harbour's largest position, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, is weighted at 16.23%, whereas the Smartshares ETF allocates 24.97% to the same stock — reflecting its index-driven concentration. The Smartshares fund includes Auckland International Airport (15.36%) prominently, which does not appear in Harbour's disclosed top five, suggesting the active manager has made a deliberate underweight or exclusion decision there.
On five-year returns, Harbour reports 0.83% annualised and Smartshares 0.29%, though short-period figures are sensitive to start dates and should not be extrapolated. Neither fund is associated with a KiwiSaver scheme account in this data snapshot.
Always verify fees, returns, and holdings against each fund's current PDS and latest Quarterly Fund Update on FMA Disclose before relying on any figures here.
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
- Smart NZ Top 10 ETF charges 0.52% lower in annual fund charges (0.60% vs 1.12%).
- 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 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
Harbour
1.12%
Upper half of cohort
Smartshares
0.60%
Lower half of cohort
5-year return p.a.
Past performance — not a predictor
Harbour
0.83%
Lower half over 5 years
Smartshares
0.29%
Bottom 15% over 5 years
Fund size
Larger = more stable, lower close-risk
Harbour
NZ$101m
Upper half by size
Smartshares
NZ$103m
Upper half by size
| Metric | Harbour | Smartshares | Lower / higher is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fund charge | 1.12% | 0.60% | Lower is better |
| Risk indicator (1–7) | 5 | 5 | Higher = more volatility |
| 5-year return p.a. | 0.83% | 0.29% | Higher is better (past not future) |
| Fund size | NZ$101m | NZ$103m | 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 | No | 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
6
of each fund's top 10
Harbour weight in shared
52.1%
of Harbour Australasian Equity Fund top 10 is shared
Smartshares weight in shared
74.2%
of Smart NZ Top 10 ETF top 10 is shared
| Holding | Harbour | Smartshares |
|---|---|---|
 Fisher & Paykel Healthcare NZ | 16.23% | 24.97% |
 Infratil NZ | 10.47% | 13.24% |
 Contact Energy NZ | 7.44% | 10.01% |
 Auckland International Airport NZ | 6.43% | 15.36% |
 Mainfreight NZ | 7.96% | 5.43% |
 EBOS Group NZ | 3.54% | 5.19% |
"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
Harbour
Harbour Australasian Equity Fund
The Fund is an actively managed strategy that invests predominantly in New Zealand and Australian listed equities. The Fund has a growth-oriented investment approach to generate alpha (return over the benchmark) for investors. The Fund incorporates an ESG strategy involving integration of Harbour s proprietary Corporate Behaviour Survey and external provider scores into investment decision making, company engagement, voting and zero tolerance exclusions. Further information on exclusions and processes is outlined in our ESG Policy.Full Harbour Harbour Australasian Equity Fund profile →
Smartshares
Smart NZ Top 10 ETF
The Smart NZ Top 10 ETF is designed to track the return (before tax, fees and other expenses) of the S&P/NZX 10 Index. The Index is comprised of ten of the largest companies listed on the NZX.Full Smartshares Smart NZ Top 10 ETF profile →
Documents
Crawled directly from each manager's website. How we record provenance →
Harbour
LiveLast verified 2026-05-08
Smartshares
Common questions
What's the difference between the Harbour Australasian Equity Fund and the Smart NZ Top 10 ETF?
Which fund has lower fees, Harbour Australasian Equity Fund or Smart NZ Top 10 ETF?
How do the 5-year returns compare?
Are both funds PIE-taxed in NZ?
Where can I read the official documents for these funds?
