Sovereign wealth fund delivers 10.03% annualised returns over 20 years
The New Zealand Superannuation Fund has been recognised as the world’s best-performing sovereign wealth fund over the past two decades, according to the latest GlobalSWF rankings.
Over the 20 years to June 2024, the NZ Super Fund delivered a standout annualised return of 10.03%, outperforming both the average sovereign wealth fund return of 6.4% and average pension fund return of 6.8%. It also topped the 10-year performance table with a 10.33% return.
Chief Executive of NZ Super attributed the results to a long-term investment strategy supported by strong global equity performance — 60% of the fund’s portfolio is currently invested in equities — and consistent outperformance by the fund’s active strategies against both benchmark and long-term expectations.
“Staying the course with growth-oriented strategies through multiple market cycles has been critical to our success,” Jo Townsend said.
The GlobalSWF study benchmarked 13 sovereign wealth funds and 37 pension funds across 18 countries. While Australia’s Future Fund led the 10-year performance for Australian sovereign funds (8.29%), and Hostplus led the 20-year view among Australian pension funds (7.88%), NZ Super remained in a class of its own.
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Source: Williamson, J. (2025). NZ Super recognised for two decades of outperformance. From https://www.financialstandard.com.au/news/nz-super-recognised-for-two-decades-of-outperformance-179808432