- By Southern Cross Partners
When stories pop up about poor Kiwis losing hard-earned money over fraudulent investments, having the confidence to ensure you’re equipped with what you need to know to make sound investment decisions is important.
Conducting your own due diligence to identify which opportunities are legitimate, which are too good to be true, and which are fraudulent is an essential step.
We always recommend talking to a financial adviser before making any investments.
Here are our top five due diligence must-do’s when assessing a new provider:
- Confirm the legitimacy of the provider. Are they a legitimate company with directors and offices in New Zealand? This information is publicly available on the Companies Office website.
- You should also confirm they’re licensed by the FMA to provide the services they offer. You can do this by checking the FMA website to ensure they’re licenced to operate in New Zealand.
- Check if they’re on the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) watchlist. This is a list on the FMA website regularly updated with known investment scams.
- Can you view the investment opportunity in detail before investing? Understanding an investment opportunity and the risks involved is a key part of due diligence. Not having visibility over investment details could mean something fishy.
- Are the funds going into a New Zealand bank account with a New Zealand IRD number? New Zealand investment companies should be dealing with New Zealand accounts, so be wary of any international money transfer requirements.
- Southern Cross Partners is an FMA-licensed peer-to-peer investment company that’s been around for 27 years. We are 100 per cent New Zealand-owned and it’s our priority to ensure you receive trusted and transparent high-quality lending and investment services so you have peace of mind when choosing us.
Our office is at 16 Selwyn Road, Howick. We love meeting our customers, so pop in, call 09 535 2239 or visit southerncrosspartners.co.nz.
Southern Cross Partners is licensed to provide peer to peer lending services under the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013. This article is general in nature only and has not taken into account any particular person’s objectives or circumstances. We recommend you speak with a financial adviser before making any investment decisions.
