Far fewer KiwiSaver switches than 2020 as markets wobble again
Mortgage advisers with KiwiSaver‑linked first‑home buyers and long‑term savers may find clients calmer about recent market noise than they were during the 2020 sell‑off.
ANZ Investments says switching activity among its KiwiSaver members in March 2026 stayed very low, despite renewed geopolitical and economic uncertainty.
In March 2020, when global share markets suffered double‑digit losses and some indices fell more than 30% from February highs, fund switches at ANZ surged to more than ten times normal monthly levels, with 94% of switchers moving into lower‑risk options.
By contrast, most major markets fell a more modest 5–10% in March 2026, and only about 0.6% of ANZ KiwiSaver members switched funds, compared with 2.9% in March 2020 (excluding Lifetimes options).
“This is really encouraging,” says ANZ Investments managing director Fiona Mackenzie (pictured). “It highlights how member behaviour has evolved since COVID-19, and how more KiwiSaver members realise the benefits of taking a long-term approach.”
Switching at the wrong time can cost thousands
The bank’s data from the COVID‑19 crash underline how costly reactive moves can be for balances that support borrowing capacity and retirement income.
Two‑thirds of those who switched in March 2020 later changed funds again, mostly back into higher‑risk options once markets had rebounded, with a median gap of around five months.
ANZ’s modelling shows that a member with $20,000 in the scheme at the end of February 2020 who stayed in a growth fund would have seen about $2,600 of growth after a year. A member who switched from growth to cash in mid‑March, then back to growth in mid‑August, ended up roughly $1,400 worse off than if they had stayed put, while someone who remained in cash gained only about $200.
“Moving out of growth funds during the 2020 market sell off meant many members sold low and bought back in higher,” Mackenzie said. “Staying invested through the volatility would typically have resulted in a larger balance.”
The ANZ leader stresses that if customers are in the right fund for their circumstances, “having patience is the best strategy in unsettling times.”
The findings come as KiwiSaver funds are gradually lifting exposure to private equity, private debt, and unlisted infrastructure, and policy settings nudge savers to commit more, with default contribution rates for employees and employers rising from 3% to 3.5% on 1 April 2026 and to 4% from April 2028.
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