On Wednesday, new research from the Financial Services Council (FSC) revealed the surprising number of Kiwis using platforms like Sharesies, Hatch and Smartshares to invest their money.

“Over the past eighteen months we’ve seen the incredible rise of the digital investor, and our research has revealed that 38.2% of adult New Zealanders currently use, or plan to use micro-investing platforms," says FSC chief executive Richard Klipin.

"That's about 1.5 million Kiwis and reflects a transformational shift in how we are choosing to invest our money.

"That's no longer at the fringe."

The most prominent micro-investing platform in New Zealand, Sharesies, operates under an exemption from provisions in the Financial Markets Conduct Act that govern the main NZX share market, although its clients are investing in regulated markets including the NZX and ASX.

Sharesies head of investments Gus Watson says his company, which now has 395,000 customers after four years of operation, is offering easy access to investing in shares to a generation of people who have been locked out of traditional assets such as buying houses.

Watson said the Covid lockdowns had given a lot of Sharesies customers time to explore options such as his company and that low interest rates caused by the pandemic were another "slow burn" for people looking for better returns than are available from term deposits.

The average Sharesies account is $4,000 and the average holding is three exchange-traded funds and four companies.

While its customer base had been attracting equal numbers of men and women before Covid, that's shifted to about 60% men now, Watson says.

Smartshares chief executive Hugh Stevens says what surprises him about the survey results were how many people had a negative view of robo advice – with only 34.3% of people agreeing that a robo advice platform was safe, even for those with limited financial knowledge and capabilities.

FSC content manager Clarissa Hirst says the survey found that men were more likely to use platforms such as Sharesies "for the fun factor," and women were more likely to use them to improve their financial capabilities and knowledge.

Hirst says security was the number one concern of those surveyed.

"It tops everything else. I think it's impossible to ignore."

However, men tended to be less concerned "or more willing to take the plunge".

She noted that Covid had less impact on people over 60 in terms of how they view investing.

"The older you are, the more financial storms you have weathered."

Klipin says while the advent of robo advice has worried investment advisers that it could displace them, "...there will always be a need for a personal touch-point, a human connection."