Pushpay director sells all shares - but no cause for alarm

Independent director Lovina McMurchy has sold all her shares in Pushpay. Photo / File

Pushpay independent director Lovina McMurchy has sold all her shares in the NZX-listed financial software company - but there's no cause for concern.

She said she'll be buying back into the company at the same level in around a month.

The Kiwi venture capitalist with US citizenship said the sale of her 61,728 shares on December 23 was part of her tax loss management of financial gains in the US.

The US operates on a calendar tax year and this is the time of year American citizens and greencard holders do what's called tax-loss harvesting.

"At the end of the year it's quite common to sell some of your stock. It's part of my tax-loss harvesting strategy. I sold Pushpay to get credit against [gains], I sold my house in the US. I have to stay out of the market for 30 days then I can come back and buy again," McMurchy told the Herald.

Tax-loss harvesting is the selling of securities at a loss to offset a capital gains tax liability. This strategy is typically employed to limit the recognition of short-term capital gains. Short-term capital gains are generally taxed at a higher US federal income tax rate than long-term capital gains.

"People don't have to worry about capital gains in New Zealand but for Americans it's quite common - you do these things to optimise your tax position. I'll be buying back," she said.

"I've got to do taxes on both sides so it gets quite complex."

McMurchy, who lived and worked in the US for 20 years and has an American husband and US-born children, sold her shares on-market for $80,246.

She joined the board of Pushpay, a US-based financial software provider to the faith, non-profit and education provider sectors, in March last year.

Harvard-educated with a masters degree is mathematics and statistics from Auckland University, she is a partner in Movac, New Zealand's largest venture capital company.