Te Tumu Paeroa

What Te Tumu Paeroa does

Te Tumu Paeroa is the Office of the Māori Trustee, a statutory professional trustee organisation established in 2009 under amendments to the Māori Trustee Act 1953 to support the Māori Trustee in administering whenua Māori. The organisation administers approximately 1,800 Māori Land Trusts — about one-third of all Māori Land Trusts in Aotearoa — covering roughly 88,000 hectares (about 7% of all Māori land) on behalf of more than 100,000 individual owners. Its leadership comprises the Māori Trustee, Dr Charlotte Severne (appointed September 2018), and the Deputy Māori Trustee and Director of Legal and Regulatory, Greg Shaw (appointed November 2018).

The core product is My Whenua, a secure online portal (relaunched with a new interface in July 2026) that gives owners, whānau, and trustees role-based access to whenua maps, ownership details, lease information, documents, reports, minutes, and financial data, and pushes notifications on updates. A secondary product is Tū Tiaki, a free online Māori Governance Toolkit comprising multimedia learning modules and templates for trustee duties, trust orders, and whenua management. Supporting services include property leasing and management (advertising, lease negotiation, rental collection, inspections), distribution administration, governance capacity-building (including the Taupae Pia graduate programme and Sir Āpirana Ngata Memorial Scholarship administration), and the M\u0101ori Trustee's pooled Common Fund (over $350 million in market value, managed at a 0.75% base fee).

Te Tumu Paeroa generates revenue through three streams: (1) Crown appropriation under a Crown Funding Agreement administered by Te Puni Kōkiri, with accountability to the Minister for Māori Development; (2) regulated fees and commissions under the Māori Trustee Act 1953 and Māori Trustee Regulations 2009 — a base trustee fee of NZD 1,475 per entity per annum, a 7.5% property management commission on gross rental, NZD 520 per meeting fee, and a 2.5% distribution administration fee; and (3) Common Fund investment management fees. Services are delivered through four regional offices (Wellington headquarters, Whanganui, Rotorua, Gisborne) and the My Whenua portal, with over 300 owner meetings convened annually.

Name

Te Tumu Paeroa

Legal name

Te Tumu Paeroa

Website

https://tetumupaeroa.co.nz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Te Tumu Paeroa is the statutory Office of the Māori Trustee, administering about 1,800 Māori Land Trusts (~88,000 hectares, ~7% of Māori land) on behalf of over 100,000 owners, delivering trust administration, property leasing, and governance education via the My Whenua portal and four regional offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trust Administration Services

NAICS

Trust, Fiduciary, and Custody Activities (523991), Trusts, Estates, and Agency Accounts (52592), Real Estate Property Managers (53131)

SIC

Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531), Investors, Nec (6799)

akta.pro primary industry

Fiduciary Agency & Trustee-for-Hire Services (FSAAANAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Personal Trust & Fiduciary Administration (FSAEAKAA), Trust Administration & Fiduciary Accounting Services (FSAAANAF)

Keywords

• Trustee services
• Whenua administration
• Property management
• Common fund management
• Māori land governance

Headquarters

HQ city

Wellington

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Crown Appropriation: The Crown contributes to the operating costs of Te Tumu Paeroa under a Crown Funding Agreement. The Māori Trustee is accountable to the Minister for Māori Development for the use of Crown funding.
2. Fees and Commissions: Fees and commissions charged for services provided in accordance with the Māori Trustee Act 1953 and Māori Trustee Regulations 2009. Includes base trustee fee ($1,475 per annum), property management commission (7.5% of gross rental), meeting fees ($520 per meeting), and distribution administration fee (2.5% of gross value).
3. Common Fund Investment Management: Money received by the Māori Trustee in fiduciary capacity is credited to the Māori Trustee's Common Fund. The fund generates investment income distributed to account holders. Current base management fee is 0.75% of market value of the Common Fund.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Te Tumu Paeroa is the Office of the Māori Trustee, a statutory professional trustee organisation that administers approximately 1,800 Māori Land Trusts (about one-third of all such trusts) and around 88,000 hectares of whenua Māori (about 7% of all Māori land in Aotearoa) on behalf of over 100,000 owners. Core offerings include trust administration, property leasing management (7.5% commission on gross rental), the Common Fund investment vehicle (over $350 million market value), the My Whenua online portal for owner/trustee engagement, and the Tū Tiaki Māori Governance Toolkit.

Product overview

Te Tumu Paeroa is a dedicated professional trustee organisation for Māori, providing trustee services for the Māori Trustee who administers approximately 7% of whenua Māori (around 88,000 hectares) across Aotearoa for over 100,000 owners. The product portfolio centres on My Whenua, a secure online portal for landowners to access whenua information, combined with Tū Tiaki, a free Māori Governance Toolkit for trustee education. Additional services include property leasing management, the Sir Āpirana Ngata Memorial Scholarship for tertiary students, the Taupae Pia graduate programme, and Te Kanohi Kāhu newsletter. The Māori Trustee Top-up Loan Scheme is now closed. Services are delivered through regional offices in Rotorua (North), Gisborne (East), and Wellington/Whanganui (South/West).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• My Whenua Online Portal Secure online portal for Māori landowners, trustees, whānau members and whānau trust trustees to access information about whenua Māori, including maps, photos, videos, ownership details, lease information, documents, financial information, and notifications of updates. Supports multiple access levels (Whānau, Whānau Trust Trustee, Owner, Trustee).
• Tū Tiaki Māori Governance Toolkit Free online multimedia learning platform providing trustee education modules, videos and workbooks on whenua Māori trust governance, plus downloadable templates for trust administration. Aimed at Māori landowners, trustees and governance practitioners.
• Property Leasing Services Complete property lease management for whenua Māori owners including marketing properties, tender processes, lease negotiations, rental collection, rent reviews, lease renewals, property inspections, and compliance management.
• Common Fund Investment Management Pooled investment vehicle where money received by the Māori Trustee in fiduciary capacity is credited to the Māori Trustee's Common Fund, generating investment income distributed to account holders. Manages over 100,000 owner accounts with a base management fee of 0.75% of market value.
• Sir Āpirana Ngata Memorial Scholarship Scholarship grant for Māori students undertaking tertiary study, administered on behalf of the Māori Soldiers Trust. Grant amounts between $500 and $3,000 per recipient.

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Te Puni KōkiricoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTe Puni Kōkiri is the government's principal policy advisor on Māori wellbeing and economic resource development. They are the agency responsible for administering the Māori Trustee Act 1953 and Te Tumu Paeroa's Crown Funding Agreement. They advise the Minister for Māori Development on matters relating to the Māori Trustee.
• Māori Land Court (Te Kooti Whenua Māori)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Māori Land Court is the principal New Zealand court that hears matters relating to whenua Māori. They appoint the Māori Trustee to act as trustee of Māori freehold land and maintain official records of owners.
• Ministry for the EnvironmentminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment agency that Te Tumu Paeroa works with to ensure effective protection and enhancement of whenua Māori.
• Department of ConservationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment agency partnered with to protect and enhance whenua Māori and natural environments.
• Te Tumu KāingaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndependent charitable trust committed to helping Māori access healthy, affordable housing. The trust is administered by the Māori Trustee and is involved in projects that deliver positive outcomes for Māori whānau.
• Ahuwhenua TrophyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAward for excellence in Māori farming inaugurated in 1933 by Sir Apirana Ngata. Competited for on a three-year rotational basis by Māori farmers in sheep and beef, horticulture and dairy sectors. Te Tumu Paeroa is passionate about supporting this event showcasing Māori excellence in the primary sector.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Public Trust: New Zealand's Crown-owned statutory trust company providing trustee, estate administration, and investment services. The closest direct peer in NZ statutory trust services, competing for general (non-Māori) trust appointments while sharing Crown-backed structure.
• Perpetual Guardian: Major NZ private trustee, estate, and wealth management company offering will writing, estate administration, and trust services. Comparable in product offering (trust administration, investment management) though privately owned and pan-market rather than Māori-specific.
• Trustees Executors: Long-established NZ trust company (formerly part of the NZ Stock Exchange) providing trustee, executor, estate administration, and investment management services. Directly comparable trust administration and fiduciary services business.
• Equity Trustees: Australian specialist trustee and wealth services company providing estate, trust, superannuation fund, and charitable trustee services. Closest cross-Tasman comparable given similar Commonwealth statutory trust model and recurring fee-based structure.

Broad incumbents

• TMF Group: Global professional services firm providing trust, corporate, fund administration, and fiduciary services across 80+ jurisdictions. Comparable at the trust administration and corporate services level but operates at global scale across many customer segments beyond indigenous/Māori land.
• Forsyth Barr: NZ investment and wealth advisory firm with portfolio management, advisory, and execution services. Overlaps with Te Tumu Paeroa's Common Fund investment management and broader wealth advisory services for high-net-worth clients.

Regional players

• New Zealand Permanent Forest Sink Initiative (Māori forestry sector): NZ government and iwi-affiliated entities administering forestry and carbon forestry programmes on whenua Māori. Comparable at the Māori land asset management level, particularly for forests/farms the Māori Trustee currently administers via lease and farm environment plans.

Others

• Kiwibank / Iwi-affiliated investment vehicles: Iwi-owned banks and investment vehicles (e.g. behind Kiwibank and various iwi investment entities) manage tribal wealth on behalf of Māori collectives. Comparable as alternative vehicles for Māori wealth stewardship but typically operate at iwi level rather than for individual whenua blocks.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/TeTumuPaeroa
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/maori-trustee
• Instagraminstagram.com/tetumupaeroa
• Xx.com/tetumupaeroa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Te Tumu Paeroa