CIO Series
CFS CIO warns on AI ecosystem’s tangled capital web
The scale of the financial web that binds the corporate AI ecosystem together has never been seen before in markets, and investors have little understanding of how and where it could break in the event of a serious repricing, according to Colonial First State chief investment officer Jonathan Armitage.
Industry & regulation
Cbus CEO wants SMSF guardrails, but says funds ‘asleep at the wheel’ on engagement
In a wide-ranging interview with Investment Magazine, Cbus chief executive Kristian Fok called for more guardrails to be put up around SMSF establishment while also conceding that profit-to-member funds need to do more to keep the members they are haemorrhaging to the vehicle and upstart retail platforms.
Industry trends
TCorp chair Michael Dwyer to lead State Super trustee board
NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey has appointed Michael Dwyer, chair of TCorp, to lead the trustee board of the $38 billion State Super. The industry veteran was the long-time chief executive of First State Super (now a part of Aware Super), having helmed the fund for 14 years.
2026 Insurance in Super Summit
Group insurance faces paradigm shift, not mental health ‘blip’: AIA chief
The surge in mental health claims moving through group insurance is not another cyclical blip that can be repriced away, according to AIA Australia chief executive Damien Mu, who says the issue demands benefits be redesigned from the ground up and a rebalancing of who is responsible for doing it.
19 August, 2026
Retirement Leaders Summit
13 – 15 October, 2026
Fiduciary Investors Symposium
3 – 4 February, 2027
Chair Forum
Investments
ART CIO says balance sheet management will reshape super investing
Ian Patrick, chief investment officer of the $370 billion Australian Retirement Trust, says that integrated balance sheet management will “beyond a shadow of a doubt” become a more prominent feature in the superannuation industry as funds grapple with the compounding effects of their growing size, systemic importance and the liquidity needs of servicing a larger cohort of retirees.
Leadership & profiles
GESB CEO calls time: ‘Past regime of default super’ no longer sustainable
GESB chief executive Ben Palmer is set to leave the Western Australian government super fund, ending a 13-year tenure after steering the fund through the most significant change in its history. In a rare interview, Palmer examines the past, present and future of super and explains why GESB is treating platforms, not profit-to-member funds, as its benchmark.
Profiles
Why HESTA’s ‘joined-up thinking’ is one of its CIO’s favourite things
Sonya Sawtell-Rickson joined HESTA as the health industry workers’ super fund was taking steps towards investment internalisation and a total portfolio approach. She says the moves have been vindicated not only by member returns but in the “joined-up” conversations the now-$96 billion fund has with the companies it invests in.
Member engagement
What is really going on behind the Epic Retirement Tick v2.0
The Epic Retirement Tick, launched last year by the Epic Retirement Institute and Chant West, provides consumers with an overview of super funds deemed to be doing a good job for members in retirement. The criteria behind the Tick are designed to evolve, and to reflect changing practice among funds.
Governance
CGT, negative gearing reforms reflect Australian values
Labor has built a generational political brand, and one that endures in the face of some major challenges here and abroad, Conexus Financial founder and managing director Colin Tate told the 50th ALP National Conference in Adelaide. But it must push back against extreme demands on AI and technology if it is to boost productivity and seize a huge economic growth opportunity.
Industry & regulation
Super complaints expected to reach 8000 in 2026: AFCA
Superannuation complaints to AFCA are on track to exceed 8000 this year, a second consecutive year of around 30 per cent increases. Heather Gray, who is retiring in May after six years as lead ombudsman for superannuation, told the authority’s Member Forum that the answer to reducing complaints lies in empowering funds’ IDR teams and communicating with complainants and AFCA early. The forum heard that handling unreasonable people is a critical skill.
Industry & regulation
Industry tensions over who will lead on cyber governance standards
The Financial Services Council has criticised the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia for engaging in anti-competitive behaviour for applying to the country’s consumer watchdog for an exemption to negotiate with third-party vendors on behalf of all super funds. The government has deferred to the associations to work together on creating a standard, but the dispute raises questions over whether the industry can self-regulate.
Investments
Robeco CIO says AI winners and losers will be decided within a year
Asset managers that underestimate the importance of artificial intelligence to their businesses do so at their own peril, according to Anton Eser, global chief investment officer of Robeco, who thinks that many have less than a year to get across the “most important transformation” the industry has seen since the beginning of the index business more than 25 years ago.
Investments
Mercer Super expands into frontier market debt, builds out PE program
The $80 billion Mercer Super has delivered a fourth consecutive year of double-digit returns to most members of its SmartPath lifecycle product. Global equities did a lot of heavy lifting, but chief investment officer Graeme Miller tells Investment Magazine that the fund is now looking further afield for returns.
