When I was a child, I thought everything in my world was going to stay the same forever. For instance, our local shops, where my mother and I would visit the bakery regularly, felt as permanent as national monuments.

But the baker eventually retired, and the business changed hands, taking on a new name. Indeed, I came to realise the whole neighbourhood was in a slow and constant state of flux. An older me saw that the impression of permanence I had was a childhood illusion a comforting one for sure, but still an illusion.

Change is all around us it makes the world go around. It gives our lives go-forward energy and momentum. It’s undoubtedly the lifeblood of the commercial world.

Which brings me to a change here at Staples Rodway Asset Management (SRAM).

On 1 April 2019, we changed our name, with the SRAM brand giving way to the FANZ Private Wealth brand.

This will hardly be news to most of you; it’s certainly not some step into the unknown. For the past three years, FANZ Private Wealth has had a 50% stake in SRAM, and we’ve maintained a shared identity.

Over that time each organisation brought its ideas, methods and strengths to the joint project, and the relationship has flourished. A strong, unified business has been forged. When FANZ Private Wealth acquired the remaining 50% of SRAM last year, it further consolidated the business, creating a solid platform to meet the challenges of the future.

So, changes to our ownership structure and name. What does that mean? Are these changes the prelude to a raft of further changes?

No, apart from the usual day-to-day adjustments that occur in any enterprise. Just as it was when my local baker underwent ownership and name changes, it will be business as usual. Your advisor will continue to oversee the investment of our members’ savings. In other words, we’ll be doing what we’ve always done.

In fact, the changeover will be far more seamless than it was for the baker, as the same people will remain. I will continue in my role as General Manager and Head of Advisory. It will remain the same with the excellent advisor team we have built here.

Other important things will not change with the transition. SRAM was always proud to be 100% New Zealand-owned. For new owners FANZ Private Wealth, that is equally important. FANZ Private Wealth is a subsidiary of SBS Bank, a financial institution that was established in Southland over 150 years ago and has been staunchly Kiwi-owned ever since.

Then there is the similarity in the cultures and philosophy of both SRAM and FANZ Private Wealth. Both are boutique in scale, providing bespoke investment solutions with a personal touch. That has enabled the two of us to sing in harmony right from the start. The slight differences in timbre we’ve each brought to the business have only added to the richness of the whole.
We all feel recharged and confident that we have a bigger, better organisation, one that is capable and ready to make the most of the opportunities that lie ahead.

Change happens. It always has and always will. The key thing is to guide and shape it, so it works for you, rather than letting change happen to you. I feel confident that is what we have achieved.

FANZ Private Wealth is an operating division of Funds Administration New Zealand Limited (FANZ) so references to it in this document should be construed to mean FANZ where appropriate. FANZ is the funds management subsidiary of SBS Bank. SBS Bank is a registered bank, but neither FANZ nor FANZ Private Wealth is a registered bank.

Download article