Edwina Maloney

The latest Blend portfolios bring together BlackRock’s multi-asset investment expertise and global custom model portfolio technology with Lonsec Investment Solutions’ investment manager research and selection capabilities.

North is the only platform in Australia to offer this range to advisers with unique technology to support the North ‘Buy, Badge, Build and Blend’ capability.

North is announcing the evolution of its model portfolio offering with its new ‘Blend’ capability, as the first in a series of enhancements aimed at democratising access to model portfolios for advice practices large and small.

For advisers who have traditionally been left out when it comes to accessing model portfolios, North is helping to bridge the gap with a solution that, in a market-first, means asset customisation of a model portfolio can now be realised at the advice practice level.

Expected to be the first of many, this new ‘Blend’ opportunity will appeal to those advice practices who want to generate efficiencies, but don’t want to have a full tailored solution.

Announced yesterday in collaboration with BlackRock and Lonsec Investment Solutions, the new series highlights the market-leading customisation of North as a contemporary platform for advisers, with North uniquely placed with its technology to deliver the ‘Blend’ capability.

The latest portfolios use BlackRock’s multi-asset investment expertise and global custom model portfolio technology, together with Lonsec’s investment manager research and manager selection capabilities to deliver portfolio customisation at scale to advice practices.

Breaking down traditional barriers to adoption

Leveraging the portfolio construction expertise of two of Australia’s leading investment managers, North Blend is available to all advice practices directly and exclusively through North. By helping an adviser bring their investment strategies to life, it addresses many of the traditional barriers to adoption – including personalisation, incumbency and scale.

Advisers will have access to portfolio performance tracking and dedicated content support allowing them to monitor their holdings, performance, and access trade notices and market commentaries that can be white-labelled for their client base.

Tailored with ease

North has seen a 50% increase in advisers using MyNorth model portfolios over the last two years, with North now being the third largest and fastest growing managed account platform provider in the market with over $20 billion in funds under management.

North Blend offers eligible advisers the ability to tailor the portfolios to meet the needs of their advice practice within agreed guardrails.

The new series follows the introduction of existing client account level asset customisation launched together with BlackRock and Lonsec last year.

Katie Petering, Head of Investment Strategy, BlackRock Australasia said: “We are delighted to continue our collaboration with AMP and Lonsec through the launch of tailored model portfolio solutions on the North platform.

“Drawing on our 30+ years of experience in managing multi-asset portfolios and global technology for customising model portfolios, this collaboration enables advisory practices to tailor highly sophisticated managed accounts to suit their end-clients’ investment preferences– something that was previously out of reach.

“As pioneers of model portfolios in Australia, we are excited to continue innovating to democratise access to these portfolios and accelerate the adoption of managed accounts in the industry.”

Nathan Lim, Chief Investment Officer at Lonsec Investment Solutions said: “We are thrilled to work with AMP and BlackRock to bring this solution to the Australian adviser market. This new managed portfolio solution will enable practices using North to create a suite of tailored portfolios – a first-of-its-kind solution to be offered by an Australian platform.

“The Blend portfolios will be supported by Lonsec Investment Solution’s unrivalled manager selection and consulting expertise, as well as our broader end-to-end managed account capabilities supporting licensees, financial advisers, and their clients. We expect this solution will enable more advice practices to be able to reap the benefits of managed accounts for their businesses and clients.”

David Hutchison, AMP’s General Manager of Managed Portfolios and Investments said: “Not all advice practices want an off-the-shelf or full-tailored solution.  To date, these practices have been ‘forgotten’ by platforms.  We’re really excited to support advice practices large and small with a tailored entry point into managed accounts, by providing them with the capability to tailor portfolios without a full build – and create a way they can benefit from model portfolios, while still using their current approach to portfolio construction as part of their advice proposition.
“The new Blend solution, only available on North, creates opportunities for advisers who don’t fully outsource investment selection to step into model portfolios for the client and adviser benefits.

“North is there to support advisers no matter how they want to build portfolios and we are the only platform with manager-level customisation of model portfolios, accounting for 16% of all advised assets and a fast-growing segment that has been totally untapped by model portfolios to date.”

Edwina Maloney, AMP Group Executive, Platforms said: “At North, we’re focused on helping practices deliver great advice to their clients more efficiently. That’s why we’re thrilled to be extending our collaboration with BlackRock and Lonsec to help more advice practices across Australia bridge the gap between off-the-shelf and fully tailored private label model portfolio solutions.”

“Through this innovative new offer, we’re helping practices accelerate their efficiency by creating tailored, high-quality investment portfolios for their clients which are governed, managed and administered by world class asset managers utilising world class tech.

“In less than four years, our managed portfolios have grown tenfold and continue to be the fastest growing offer in market thanks to the support from our advisers, asset consultants and fund managers we work with.”

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The ESMP offers six risk profiles: Conservative, Moderate, Balanced, Growth, Aggressive, and All Growth. The suite is built and managed by BlackRock’s Multi-Asset Strategies and Solutions (MASS) team, which has a 32-year track record of managing multi-asset portfolios in Australia.^[2]

Over the past ten years, the ESMP has delivered strong performance, with cumulative returns outperforming the peer group median. An investor who invested $100,000 in the Enhanced Strategic Growth Model Portfolio at the start of 2015 would have seen their investment double, reaching approximately $200,000 by 2024.^[3]

Katie Petering, Head of Multi-Asset Investment Strategy, BlackRock Australasia, said, “We are excited to commemorate the 10^th anniversary of the BlackRock Enhanced Strategic Model Portfolios, which have driven innovation in the Australian managed accounts industry. These portfolios deliver a market-aware, diversified investment solution^[4] and support advisers in building better portfolios for their clients. Over time, our Australian managed accounts franchise has grown from a single model family to ten, reflecting advisers’ and investors’ evolving investment preferences and risk tolerance.

“BlackRock is pleased to deliver institutional-quality portfolios to Australian investors that best meet their investment goals. ESMP’s success can be attributed to the robustness of BlackRock’s MASS investment process, which included over 50 rebalances across different market cycles in the past ten years, and the monitoring of over 3,000 risk factors through Aladdin, BlackRock’s proprietary risk management platform.”^[5]

James Waterworth, Director of Wealth, BlackRock Australasia, said, “Managed accounts have become the key wealth offering that Australian advisers use to scale their practices in order to serve their clients. BlackRock is proud to reach the 10-year milestone of our Enhanced Strategic Model Portfolio suite, which is now available on ten platforms, enhancing accessibility for advisers. 

“Our managed accounts offerings now incorporate a range of investment styles, including active, index, and ESG models, to support advisers to deliver multi-asset investment solutions that align with their clients’ specific risk/return investment goals.”

This milestone follows the launch of BlackRock Active Multi-Asset Model Portfolios (“Active Model Portfolios”) in July 2024 in response to evolving the managed accounts industry for the benefit of Australian advisers and their clients.

Established in 1992^[6], BlackRock’s MASS team today has over A$67 billion in assets under management ^[7]across its diversified funds range, model portfolios, absolute return strategies, and custom mandates.

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Notes:
[1] BlackRock model portfolios themselves are not funds issued by BIMAL. They are offered through third party platform providers which are no affiliated with BIMAL. Any potential investor should consider the latest PDS issued by the third-party platform provider before deciding whether to acquire, or continue to hold, an investment
[2] History includes predecessor firms
[3] Source: BlackRock and Lonsec’s iRate portal, as of 31 December 2024. Peer Group Median is proxied by the FE UT PG Multi-Asset Growth Index. The model portfolios have an inception date of 30 January 2015. Simulated past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. The model performance shown is hypothetical and for illustrative purposes only. The performance may not represent the performance of an actual account or investment product and is not the result of any actual trading. Model performance is estimated and net of underlying fund fees, but gross of platform fees and does not include brokerage and commissions that may be incurred in the trading of financial products within the model portfolio. Actual investment outcomes may vary. Material differences may exist between models and peer groups being compared, such as, investment objectives, fees and expenses, types of investments made, countries or markets covered.
[4] Diversification and asset allocation may not fully protect you from market risk.
[5] While proprietary technology platforms may help manage risk, risk cannot be eliminated.
[6] History includes predecessor firms.
[7] Source: BlackRock as at 30 September 2024. All figures in AUD.

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Edwina Maloney

AMP Advice has engaged BlackRock Australia and Lonsec to introduce a new category of tailored managed portfolio solutions, making it accessible to more advice practices – a first of its kind in the Australian market.

Advisers will have access to portfolio performance tracking and dedicated content support allowing them to monitor their holdings, performance, and access trade notices and market commentaries that can be white-labelled for their client base^[1].

The portfolios use BlackRock’s multi-asset investment expertise and global custom managed portfolio technology, together with Lonsec’s investment manager research and manager selection capabilities to deliver portfolio customisation at scale to advice practices.

The solution is underpinned by BlackRock’s global managed portfolio customisation technology, which is only currently available in the US.  AMP Advice is able to create a suite of managed portfolios that make it easy and cost-efficient for AMP Advice practices to create tailored portfolios.

A new era in managed portfolios

North has seen a 50% increase in advisers using MyNorth Managed Portfolios over the last two years^[2]. And according to a report by independent financial services research firm Investment Trends, managed account solutions are growing in popularity in Australia with 56% of advisers surveyed last year saying they had used them for their client investments, up from 16% in 2012.^[3]

However, some advice practices have been unable to adopt managed accounts, where off-the-shelf solutions may not be suitable due to manager incumbency or preferences within the existing portfolios, and the lack of scale required to access fully tailored managed portfolios.

Thanks to this new innovation, AMP Advice is helping both practices within its network, as well as the increasing number of advisers who operate under their own AFSL to take full advantage of a pioneering managed portfolio solution – one that offers customisation to suit a practice’s individual requirements and investment philosophy.

Exclusive access through North and AMP

Advice practices, both through the AMP Advice network and other eligible practices, can access the new offering directly and exclusively through AMP’s North platform.

It will also be made available to self-licensed practices through Jigsaw Advice Solutions, AMP Advice’s dedicated service for independent financial advisers and self-licensees.^[4]

Currently, North has the fastest growing managed portfolio offering in the market – approaching $15 billion in funds under management, up from $2 billion in 2021.  It was recently awarded the Most Improved Platform and Best Retirement Solution by Investment Trends^[5], reflecting how North’s innovative retirement offer and adviser-driven continual improvement program are creating better outcomes for advisers and their clients.

The offering further builds on North’s existing stable of more than 380 portfolios with leading asset managers, covering numerous asset classes and investment strategies

Matt Lawler, AMP Group Executive, Advice said: “We’re excited to be launching a unique entry point into managed accounts for advice practices large and small that will for the first time bridge the gap between off-the-shelf and fully tailored private label managed account solutions.”

“Through this innovative new offer, AMP-aligned practices as well as smaller eligible practices through Jigsaw will be able to create tailored, high-quality investment portfolios for their clients which are governed, managed and administered by world class asset managers utilising world class tech. We recognise the value managed portfolios are providing advisers and their clients, but that many smaller advice practices don’t have the required scale to benefit from them. That’s why we’ve partnered with BlackRock and Lonsec to pave the way forward with an industry-leading solution that addresses many of the traditional barriers to adoption – including personalisation, incumbency and scale.”

Edwina Maloney, AMP Group Executive, Platforms said: “At North, we’re focused on helping practices deliver great advice to their clients more efficiently. At the heart of this is our commitment to expand and strengthen our managed portfolio offers, including the ability for IFAs and larger advice practices to tailor portfolios for their clients.”

“That’s why we’re thrilled to be the first platform in Australia to offer these new portfolios, allowing more advice practices to grow their businesses, improve end client outcomes, and efficiently service more clients.”

“Our managed portfolios continue to be the fastest growing in market thanks to the support from our advisers, asset consultants and fund managers we work with. We have one of the most flexible offers available and we’re continuing to build our unique badged portfolio solution, adding a greater degree of flexibility to help a broader range of practices.”

Katie Petering, Head of Multi-Asset Investment Strategy, BlackRock Australasia said: “As pioneers of managed portfolios in the Australian market, we are excited to work with AMP and Lonsec to build a new model portfolio solution that will enhance how AMP Advice and North serves advisers. By drawing on the breadth of our global platform, Australia will be the first market outside of the US to benefit from BlackRock’s global model portfolio customisation technology.”

“This reinforces our commitment to continuously look for ways to introduce innovation in a sophisticated market like Australia, with the primary goal of democratising access to model portfolios for a broader base of advice practices.”

Michael Wright, Lonsec Group Chief Executive Officer said: “We are thrilled to work with AMP and BlackRock to bring the next generation of managed accounts to market. This new managed portfolio solution will empower licensees like AMP Advice to create a suite of tailored portfolios that can allow certain customisations within the scheme for aligned practices – a first-of-its-kind breakthrough in the Australian wealth market. We expect this new managed portfolio solution will enable more advice practices to be able to reap the benefits of managed accounts for their businesses and clients.”

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Notes:
[1] Available through BlackRock’s Model Evaluator Portal
[2] Source: North data
[3] Source: January 2023 Managed Accounts Report by Investment Trends
[4] Included as part of a practice’s Jigsaw licencing package, at no additional cost
[5] Source: 2023 Platform Competitive Analysis and Benchmarking Report by Investment Trends

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Edwina Maloney

North, one of Australia’s leading wrap investment platforms, has partnered with three of the industry’s leading investment managers to add a further 12 managed portfolios to its investment menu.

In total, North now offers 230 managed portfolios to advisers and their clients, covering all asset classes and risk profiles. The portfolios continue to attract strong interest, with AUM for the portfolio range recently passing $6.5 billion, and helping drive increasing cash inflows onto North from independent financial advisers, which increased 45 per cent from 3Q21 to 3Q22.

North’s growing managed portfolio offer contributed to it recently being awarded the highest possible 5 Apples Platform Rating by Chant West.

BlackRock

North has partnered with BlackRock to design and launch the platform’s first international equity portfolio – the iShares Enhanced Strategic International Managed Portfolio. It is a dynamically managed diversified portfolio, comprising 10-20 ETF holdings, providing exposure to more than 2,500 underlying securities across developed and emerging markets. BlackRock uses a four-step framework to construct the portfolio, which covers strategic country and sector allocations, dynamic tilting, portfolio implementation and monitoring of risk exposures.

Morningstar

Morningstar’s six new managed portfolios have been designed to meet the broad needs of all investors, covering Australian equities, ETFs and managed funds. They are intended to grow savings above a clearly defined rate of inflation, utilising Morningstar’s asset allocation, security selection, portfolio construction, and research capabilities.

InvestSense

Five new multi-asset portfolios from InvestSense provide exposure to a diversified portfolio of 7-30 managed funds and ETFs, and 20-40 direct Australian equities. The portfolios offer a broadly diversified exposure to a mix of securities that are out of favour with the market and therefore trading at attractive valuations, combined with those that have attractive growth prospects, but with reasonable valuations. Each portfolio aims to ensure that it is sufficiently diversified across sectors and controls for any biases.

Edwina Maloney, AMP Director of Platforms, said: “These latest additions to North’s growing managed portfolio range are delivered in partnership with industry leading investment managers and reflect a commitment to ensuring we provide advisers and their clients with access quality investment choice and flexibility.

“Every enhancement we make to North, across investment choice and functionality, is informed by advisers, and designed to support the delivery of high-quality advice as efficiently as possible.”

Katie Petering, Head of Product Strategy, Multi-Asset Strategies & Solutions at BlackRock, said: “We’re delighted to be partnering with one of the market’s leading investment platforms, North, to provide more advisers and clients with access to BlackRock’s global investment capabilities and insights. We’ve designed the iShares Enhanced Strategic International Managed Portfolio to provide diversified exposure to international equities with a long-term investment objective.

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Brett Taggart

BlackRock Australia has announced the launch of its iShares ESG Model Portfolios (‘ESG Portfolios’) for Australian investors as part of its commitment to make sustainability more accessible and affordable to a broader base of investors.

The ESG Portfolios apply BlackRock’s multi-asset strategy capabilities and are implemented using iShares ETFs and BlackRock index funds, making them some of the most affordable model portfolios in the Australian market. The ESG Portfolios are currently available on Praemium and are expected to be available on additional platforms later this year.

By incorporating ESG considerations throughout the portfolio construction process, the five portfolios – Conservative, Balanced, Moderate, Growth and Aggressive – offer investors a range of options based on risk profiles while also meeting their sustainability goals.

The ESG Portfolios aim to make it easier for advisers by working seamlessly within a separately managed account (SMA) structure. The platform automates the client portfolio rebalancing process, provides institutional-quality risk analysis reporting via BlackRock’s proprietary technology platform Aladdin, and offers the support infrastructure needed to handle client reporting requirements for advisers.

In its inaugural review, SQM Research awarded the ESG Portfolios a 4-star “Superior” rating. SQM Research attributed this rating to the rigorous portfolio construction process of setting and reviewing the Strategic Asset Allocation (SAA), the cost-effectiveness of the portfolios, as well as BlackRock Multi-Asset Strategy and Solutions (MASS) team-based approach to investment strategy, portfolio management, trading, client services and operations.

The ESG Portfolios are managed by the BlackRock MASS team based in Sydney and Hong Kong. The team has managed multi-asset portfolios for Australian clients since 1992, with around A$50 billion in assets^[1] across its diversified funds range, model portfolios, absolute return strategies, and custom mandates.

Chantal Giles, Head of Wealth, BlackRock Australasia said: “BlackRock’s focus is on democratising access to sustainability strategies, making sustainability the standard for investing.

Our fiduciary role is to guide clients along the way from “traditional” strategies to those that incorporate sustainability in various meaningful ways. For this specific product suite, Bell Partners reached out to BlackRock to design a series of ESG Model Portfolios that aim to meet the desired long-term investment and sustainable goals of its clients.

These ESG Portfolios aim to provide institutional-quality asset allocation across a range of client risk profiles. The creation of these portfolios also helps advisers reduce the time spent on operational oversight and administrative tasks while delivering institutional quality services to their clients through accessing BlackRock’s global investment expertise.”

Brett Taggart, Managing Director, Bell Partners said: “Our clients are increasingly looking to us to provide ESG-focused investment solutions so naturally we reached out to BlackRock to help design a set of options that best suit both our clients’ varying risk/return profiles as well as their long-term sustainability objectives.

We recognise the need for a holistic investment solution that can deliver on these goals so applying BlackRock’s ESG investment approach to its long-standing Model Portfolios made sense to us. Not only is it a cost-efficient way to seek outperformance, but it also delivers a consistent and compliant investment process for every client.”

Katie Petering, Head of Multi-Asset Strategy and Solutions Product Strategy, BlackRock Australasia said: “BlackRock’s iShares ESG Model Portfolios aim to make it easier for advisers to serve their clients by providing a whole portfolio solution tailored to the clients’ specific risk/return investment and sustainability goals.

“BlackRock’s five ESG portfolios deliver a cost-effective opportunity for investors to gain exposure to this important and growing investment thematic, while enabling advisers to allocate more time to their core business of delivering advice and solutions to their clients.”

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[1] Data as of 31 March 2022

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