Learn about your investment options | Super Plan, New Zealand Post

The Plan offers a choice of investments: the Short Term Fund, the Medium Term Fund and the Long Term Fund. You can choose to invest your account balances (the money you have in your accounts now) in any of the three funds – or a mix. If you like, you can choose a different fund or funds for your future contributions (the money contributed to your accounts in future).

Short Term Fund

Medium Term Fund

Long Term Fund

Lower risk; primarily designed for short-term saving up to three years

Medium risk; primarily designed for medium-term saving between three and 10 years

Higher risk; primarily designed for long-term saving (10+ years)

The benchmark is the mix of assets we aim to maintain in the normal course of events.

We can vary the mix of assets between these ranges if we think market conditions mean it is in your best interests.

Income assets 100%

Income assets 35–65%

Income assets 15–50%

Growth assets 0%%

Growth assets 35–65%

Growth assets 50–85%

Which option is best for you?

This depends on your personal circumstances. As a general rule, the closer you are to retirement, the less risk you will want to take on board. That’s because you have less time to ride out the highs and lows associated with returns from growth assets. When you make your choice, think about when you are likely to need to access your savings. (The names of the funds give an indication of the timeframes they are considered most suitable for.) It also pays to think about whether you’re comfortable accepting a higher level of risk in the hope your savings will grow more strongly over time. If you don’t like the idea of negative returns, you might be more comfortable in the Short Term Fund, even if you are likely to invest for a long time.

Savings timeframe

Risk/return profile

When you are likely to need to access the money

How you feel about risk

Short Term Fund

Up to three years

Not comfortable with the idea of a negative return

Medium Term Fund

Three to 10 years

Comfortable with the occasional negative return if it means a better chance of more long-term growth

Long Term Fund

More than 10 years

Comfortable with short-term volatility in order to maximise the chance of long-term growth

Our risk profiler is a good place to start if you’re not sure which fund or mix of funds to choose. Just answer 5 simple questions and the profiler will match your answers to the most appropriate fund(s). Get help to choose a fund. We've also put together a brochure to help New Zealand Post staff who are members of the Super Plan and/or KiwiSaver understand their investment choices. It's called How to pick a fund.