Financial advice can add at least 5% in annual value for New Zealand investors
Russell Investments’ 2026 Value of an Adviser Report finds behavioural coaching can add 3.7% as advisers look to create capacity for more personalised advice
Auckland, 2026-10-07 – Russell Investments, the global investment solutions provider, estimates financial advisers can add at least 5 per cent in value each year for New Zealand investors, according to its new 2026 Value of an Adviser Report.
Behavioural coaching makes up the largest quantifiable component, adding an estimated 3.7 per cent per annum. Appropriate asset allocation can add a further 1.3 per cent, while advisers also create value by helping clients navigate choices and trade-offs and applying their expertise to complex financial decisions.
The report also explores what clients value from advice. Russell Investments’ latest client and adviser research found 43 per cent of advised clients seek advice for reassurance about their financial future, ahead of retirement planning at 38 per cent. After receiving advice, 83 per cent feel confident about achieving their financial goals, compared with 41 per cent beforehand.
Neil Rogan, Head of Distribution, New Zealand and Australia at Russell Investments, said clients increasingly value the confidence, judgement and reassurance an adviser provides.
“Investment outcomes remain fundamental, but clients also want someone to help them make difficult decisions and give them confidence when the answers aren’t obvious,” Rogan said.
“Advisers create some of their greatest value in moments clients may never see. They help clients avoid selling during a downturn, weigh up competing priorities or simply stay on track. Advisers need to make that invisible value visible.”
Creating capacity for more human advice
The report also examines a challenge facing New Zealand’s advice industry: how to make advice more accessible and affordable while maintaining the personalisation clients value.
Creating more capacity will be critical. The report explores how technology, AI and automation can reduce the administrative burden on advisers, helping them serve more clients while freeing up time for the more human side of advice.
“AI and automation can give advisers more capacity, but the goal shouldn’t simply be to do the same work faster,” Rogan said. “The opportunity is to give advisers more time to do the work where they add the most value: applying judgement, building trust and helping clients make difficult decisions.”
The full 2026 Russell Investments Value of an Adviser Report – New Zealand Edition is available here.
About the research
Honeycomb Strategy conducted independent research for Russell Investments in April and May 2026, surveying 501 advised investors, 200 non-advised investors and 237 financial advisers in Australia, supported by qualitative adviser interviews. The report combines those client and adviser insights with New Zealand market and regulatory data.
About Russell Investments
About Russell Investments
Russell Investments is a leading global investment solutions partner providing a wide range of investment capabilities to institutional investors, financial intermediaries, and individual investors around the world. Since 1936, Russell Investments has been building a legacy of continuous innovation to deliver exceptional value to clients, working every day to improve people’s financial security. The firm has AUD$603 billion in assets under management (as of 6/30/26) for clients in 31 countries. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, Russell Investments has offices in 17 cities around the world.
On July 2, 2026, Russell Investments Group, Ltd. (“Russell Investments”) entered into a definitive agreement and plan of merger (the “Transaction”) pursuant to which Russell Investments will be acquired by a consortium led by B Capital Group Management, L.P. that includes California Public Employees Retirement System. The Transaction is expected to close by the end of Q1 2027, subject to the receipt of regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
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