Sharesies investor confidence falls as customers keep depositing

Sharesies’ investor confidence index fell to 38 in the September quarter from 57 in the June quarter, RNZ reported on 12 October UTC. The New Zealand investment platform said its customers remained cautious as interest rates and global volatility weighed on sentiment, even as deposits continued to exceed withdrawals.

The index runs from zero, meaning most concerned, to 100, meaning most confident, according to Sharesies. The latest reading returned it to a level last seen two years earlier. The 19-point quarterly drop describes a change in sentiment among Sharesies customers; it does not, by itself, show that they sold investments or stopped adding money.

What Sharesies customers did as confidence fell

Sharesies general manager of wealth Scott Nixon described customers as cautious but not deterred. He said the platform’s average net deposit ratio was about 2.08: for every dollar withdrawn, customers deposited just over two dollars. The ratio softened slightly, he said, but funds continued to flow into the platform.

That ratio gives a different view from the confidence score. It shows the relationship between money deposited and money withdrawn, rather than how much money was invested overall or whether customers increased their exposure to particular assets. RNZ’s report did not give absolute deposit and withdrawal totals, so the size of those flows cannot be calculated from the reported ratio.

The platform’s most widely held investments changed little. Sharesies said the Smart US 500 ETF remained first and Rocket Lab second. The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF rose to third, Air New Zealand fell to fourth and Nvidia ranked fifth. The Fonterra Shareholders’ Fund was its biggest gainer, entering the top 10 holdings after an 18% share-price gain.

How other New Zealand investors describe the pressure

A separate ASB investor survey, published on 21 September, also found substantial concern. Forty percent of respondents said they were very concerned about the effect of local political uncertainty on their investments, a record for that survey, while another 46% said they were concerned. ASB said 57% were very concerned about global geopolitical and economic conditions, also a survey record.

ASB reported that net investor confidence fell five percentage points over its survey quarter to 1%, matching its June 2025 level. Yet the bank said heightened concern had not increased the proportion of respondents making or considering changes to their investments. Its findings offer a separate example of anxious investors maintaining their plans, although its survey measures a different group and uses a different confidence measure from Sharesies.

ASB senior economist Chris Tennent-Brown said concern alone was not a reason to abandon a considered investment plan. He noted that US shares had reached all-time highs amid geopolitical uncertainty. His comments do not remove the risks investors see, but they help explain why expressions of concern in a survey need not translate directly into trading decisions.

Consumer confidence gives a broader comparison

A broader measure told a less sharply changing story. Roy Morgan reported on 2 October that the ANZ-Roy Morgan New Zealand Consumer Confidence index was virtually unchanged in September, slipping 0.4 points to 97.6. It remained below par, although it stood 17 points above its April low. The measure covers consumer sentiment, so its reading cannot be compared point for point with an investor index.

Roy Morgan said two-year-ahead inflation expectations eased from 4.7% to 4.5%, while house-price expectations edged down from 2.5% to 2.4%. Its weekly observations suggested confidence began September more strongly and weakened toward the end of the month as oil prices rose. The researcher cautioned that smaller weekly samples make those estimates rougher.

What the Sharesies index cannot establish

Sharesies attributed weaker customer sentiment to rising interest rates and global volatility, but the reported figures do not isolate the effect of either cause. RNZ’s account did not state the index’s sample size, survey method or confidence interval. Without those details, readers cannot assess how representative the score is of all Sharesies customers, let alone New Zealand investors generally.

The three measures therefore answer different questions. Sharesies reported how its own customers scored their confidence and described activity on its platform; ASB surveyed investor concerns and intended or actual changes; Roy Morgan tracked broader consumer sentiment. Taken together, they show that concern can coexist with continued investing, while leaving open how long that pattern will persist.