Kiwis like the concept of robo-advice but also want human advisers to assist in their financial decisions, a new survey commissioned by Kiwi Wealth shows.
The stud titled ‘Rise of the Money Robots: Kiwis’ attitudes to robo-advice’revealed that though only 8% have heard of robo-advice for financial planning, one in five are interested in using a robo-adviser for managing their retirement planning.
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Respondents however, believed that robo-advice should complement real advisers, with older generations more hesitant to entrust robo-advisers with retirement savings management.
Also, older Kiwis see robo-advice as a means of realising their goals, while younger ones want robo-advice to get advice on setting financial goals.
Kiwi Wealth head of retail wealth and marketing Joe Bishop said: "The survey findings clearly show that Kiwis see robo-advice as complementary to human financial advisers, rather than as a total replacement of experts.
“That reflects how new robo-advice is as a concept, and the lack of a proven track record for the technology here. However, that’s changing, and we expect things to only accelerate.”
Findings from the study further unveiled that less than 20% of Kiwis have a financial adviser.
“The human element will remain important in the advice mix, but robo-advice has the potential to democratise access to financial advice for all New Zealanders, particularly as KiwiSaver accounts grow and other investments play a role,” Bishop added.
