How do I complete a Wholesale Investor Declaration or Eligibility Certificate?

To make an investment with Icehouse Ventures, you must complete a valid Wholesale Investor Declaration or Eligibility Certificate. Read below to understand the difference in definition and process between the two.

Before reading this article, we recommend reading our other help desk article, When does a person or entity classify as Wholesale Investor, to understand the FMA's guidelines on Wholesale / Eligible Investors.

When will you be asked to complete a Wholesale Investor Declaration / Eligibility Certificate?

All new investors are required to complete either a Wholesale Investor Declaration or Eligibility Certificate before they become eligible to make an investment with us. The declaration / certificate will be part of the onboarding process completed online.

Existing investors will also be asked to renew their declaration / certificate every two years (read below for more information on this).

What is the difference between a Wholesale Investor Declaration and an Eligibility Certificate?

Wholesale Investor Declaration:

If your chosen investment entity qualifies as being a "Large Investor", an "Investment Business" or meeting "Investment Activity" (as explained in the article here) then all you need to do is select the respective option in the Wholesale Investor Declaration and sign your name and date to confirm.

Note that if you select Investment Activity, you will also need to provide a date at which you satisfied this requirement.

Eligibility Certificate:

If you do not fit into one of those three criteria, then you may still be able to certify as a Wholesale Investor by completing an Eligibility Certificate. To complete this certificate, you need to provide 'Eligibility Grounds,' which are essentially written context referring to your prior information/experience in acquiring and disposing of financial products.

Please note that your eligibility grounds have to be as specific and pointed as possible to the relevant experience you have in early stage venture as an asset class. If your stated grounds do not demonstrate a connection between your prior relevant experience in acquiring or disposing of financial products, and the type of early-stage venture investments you could make on the Icehouse Ventures platform, the certificate will not meet the legislative requirements and we will be required to decline your investment/onboarding.

Examples of Compliant Eligibility Grounds:

Examples of Non-Compliant Eligibility Grounds:

I have worked in a technology startup for 10 years and have invested in several technology start ups already.
I have 20 years experience in business lending, the last 10 years as Director of my own company, which involves assessing business risk and direct lending of personal funds to growth companies.
I have previously invested in a wide range of financial investments and in my role as a tax accountant, I have also prepared and audited self-managed superannuation funds and advised clients on tax.

I have been investing in the stock market in New Zealand for 10 years.
I have had 15 years of business experience and participated in various share transactions.
I have experience with investments at a similar level on a similar type of investment at a similar stage of development.
I have purchased and owned five houses in the New Zealand market.
I have a Commerce degree and so can understand the risks involved with this transaction.

Once you have written these Eligibility Grounds, you must get your certificate signed-off by a Chartered Accountant / solicitor / financial advisor. To do so, you need to provide their name and email address as shown below. Once you save your certificate, your advisor will receive an automated email to review and sign-off on your certificate.

Renewing your Wholesale Investor Status:

Your Wholesale Investor status must be renewed every 2 years (as is required by the FMCA). If you plan on making regular investments with Icehouse Ventures, then we must have a valid Wholesale Investor Declaration/Eligibility Certificate from you on file at all times.

We will contact you to let you know when your Wholesale Investor status has expired and will send you a link/document to redo, however, you can also check/renew your status by navigating to your Investor Portal > Settings > Entity Compliance Details.

Completing your Wholesale Investor Declaration / Eligibility Certificate offline:

The instructions above pertain to the online process. If you prefer to complete your Wholesale Investor Declaration/Eligibility Certificate on a physical form, you can download and complete the form here and send it to operations@icehouseventures.co.nz once you're done.

Please note that if you choose to complete the Eligibility Certificate manually, you will need to send it to your chosen advisor for sign-off then send it back to us once fully signed.

Disclaimer: Please note that this guide has been prepared and provided by Icehouse Ventures for informational purposes only. Nothing in this guide constitutes legal or professional advice regarding whether or not you are a wholesale investor or otherwise and is not guaranteed to be accurate, complete, reliable, current or error-free. We recommend that you work with your accountant, lawyer or financial advisor to determine whether or not you qualify as a wholesale investor and to understand the implications for you.