Fund-vs-fund · NZ Fixed Interest
Mercer Macquarie NZ Short Duration FundvsSmart NZ Bond ETF
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.
How much do these two overlap?
They hold 23 of the same securities. If you held both, roughly 27.8% of your money would be in the same companies — so the diversification you get from holding the pair is smaller than holding two funds suggests.
| Shared holding | Mercer Macquarie | Smart NZ | Min weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| zealand local government funding agency gb | 5.49% | 3.76% | 3.76% |
| southland building society cb | 2.80% | 3.88% | 2.80% |
| bank of zealand cb | 3.44% | 2.68% | 2.68% |
| christchurch intl airpor cb | 3.03% | 2.29% | 2.29% |
| kiwibank cb | 3.18% | 2.03% | 2.03% |
| westpac zealand cb | 3.14% | 1.99% | 1.99% |
| community housing fa cb | 2.77% | 1.77% | 1.77% |
| auckland international airport cb | 1.72% | 2.37% | 1.72% |
| toyota fin zealand cb | 1.31% | 1.65% | 1.31% |
| anz bank zealand cb | 4.37% | 1.11% | 1.11% |
Min weight is the smaller of the two weightings — if you hold both funds, that is the floor of your exposure to that position. Direct holdings only: anything either fund holds through an underlying fund or ETF is not counted, so the real overlap can only be higher. From each fund's FMA Disclose full portfolio filing.
Where you can buy these
Platform availability confirmed within the last 180 days. This is a statement of availability, not a recommendation — ManagedFundsNZ is not a Financial Advice Provider. Check the current PDS before investing.
Mercer Macquarie NZ Short Duration Fund
No platform availability confirmed. Usually means it is bought directly from the manager — check their site.
Smart NZ Bond ETF
Why these two differ
The most material structural difference between these two funds is their risk profile relative to their fee and return history. The Smart NZ Bond ETF (Smartshares) carries a risk indicator of 3, one step higher than the Mercer Macquarie NZ Short Duration Fund's risk indicator of 2, despite both funds sitting in the NZ Fixed Interest category and holding an identical growth assets allocation of 0.07%. The higher risk rating for the Smartshares fund likely reflects greater interest rate sensitivity, consistent with its name suggesting a broader duration mandate compared with Mercer's explicit "short duration" positioning, which deliberately limits exposure to longer-dated bonds.
On fees, the Smart NZ Bond ETF charges 0.54% per annum against Mercer's 0.68%, a 14-basis-point difference. Over the five years captured in these quarterly fund updates, however, the Mercer fund returned 1.87% per annum versus 1.43% for the Smartshares fund — meaning the higher-fee fund produced a higher net return over this period, though past performance carries no guarantee of future outcomes. By fund size, Smartshares edges ahead at approximately NZD 58.4 million versus Mercer's NZD 47.0 million.
Portfolio composition differs notably: Mercer's top holdings are concentrated in NZ government bonds and investment-grade corporate bonds, while Smartshares includes NZLGFA (local government) bonds, Housing New Zealand bonds, and a 6.81% cash allocation to an ANZ Bank account as its largest single position.
Verify all figures against each fund's current product disclosure statement and latest quarterly fund update on FMA Disclose before relying on this summary for any investment decision.
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 Bond ETF charges 0.14% lower in annual fund charges (0.54% vs 0.68%).
- 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
Mercer
0.68%
Upper half of cohort
Smartshares
0.54%
Lower half of cohort
5-year return p.a.
Past performance — not a predictor
Mercer
1.87%
Top 4% over 5 years
Smartshares
1.43%
Upper half over 5 years
Fund size
Larger = more stable, lower close-risk
Mercer
NZ$47m
Lower half by size
Smartshares
NZ$58m
Lower half by size
| Metric | Mercer | Smartshares | Lower / higher is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fund charge | 0.68% | 0.54% | Lower is better |
| Risk indicator (1–7) | 2 | 3 | Higher = more volatility |
| 5-year return p.a. | 1.87% | 1.43% | Higher is better (past not future) |
| Fund size | NZ$47m | NZ$58m | Larger = more stable, lower close-risk |
| Growth / income split | 0% / 100% | 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
Mercer
Mercer Macquarie NZ Short Duration Fund
The fund is an actively managed portfolio of fixed interest securities. It is a low-risk investment product, focusing predominantly on corporate securities in the New Zealand and Australian market with a shorter average maturity than a standard fixed interest fund. Environmental, Social and Governance characteristics are integrated into our investment process. The fund aims to provide a Gross Return1 above the return of the Bloomberg NZBond Swaps 1–3 Year Index on a rolling three-year basis.Full Mercer Mercer Macquarie NZ Short Duration Fund profile →
Smartshares
Smart NZ Bond ETF
The Smart NZ Bond ETF is designed to provide a return (before tax, fees and other expenses) that outperforms the S&P/NZX A-Grade Corporate Bond Total Return Index over rolling three-year periods.Full Smartshares Smart NZ Bond ETF profile →
Documents
Crawled directly from each manager's website. How we record provenance →
Smartshares
Common questions
What's the difference between the Mercer Macquarie NZ Short Duration Fund and the Smart NZ Bond ETF?
Which fund has lower fees, Mercer Macquarie NZ Short Duration Fund or Smart NZ Bond 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?
