Policy and Regulation
As populism comes for preservation, super must read the national mood
One Nation’s new super-for-housing policy has earned a predictable response from the superannuation industry and its representatives. But defending preservation will take more than a paternalistic press release.
CIO Series
Seamus Collins on investment biases and battle scars
Team Super chief investment officer Seamus Collins believes investors are shaped as much by what went wrong as by what went right – and that asset managers and asset owners alike can carry those scars.Speaking to Lachlan Maddock for the second season of the Investment Magazine CIO Series, Collins described how investors anchor on their
Administration & fees
Grow takeover lays bare super’s innovation problem
MUFG’s slated acquisition of Grow Inc. is a deal that makes perfect sense for pretty much everybody involved and may ultimately improve member outcomes. But it also highlights how hostile the superannuation system has become to innovation.
Investments
Brighter Super, JANA back European direct lending push
Brighter Super and the JANA are among four Australian institutional investors that have committed a combined $705 million to a dedicated Australian portfolio investing in European middle-market lending.
13 – 15 October, 2026
Fiduciary Investors Symposium
3 – 4 February, 2027
Chair Forum
18 – 20 May, 2027
Fiduciary Investors Symposium
Leadership & profiles
‘Good time to leave’: Arndt says Future Fund ready for ‘fresh leader’
Future Fund chief executive Raphael Arndt said the time has come for “a fresh leader” to steer the $356 billion sovereign investor as he prepares to close out an almost two-decade tenure at the fund and make a pivot to the private sector.
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
The 250,000 reasons why funds must nail Phase 1 of retirement right now
Phase 1 of Retirement Income Strategy development, whereby funds aim to deliver retirement solutions and guidance regarding the member’s interest in the fund, is now well underway, but effective delivery is needed before Phase 2, under which super funds play an expanded role in their members’ retirement, can be considered.
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
What’s next for BUSSQ after flunking the YFYS test
The APRA performance test has just claimed its first MySuper casualty for the first time in three years, with Queensland-based BUSSQ failing the YFYS due to weak investment performance. With 85 per cent of its assets sitting in the default option, BUSSQ now has a year to turn things around or face consequences that go well beyond a stern letter to members.
Investments
New Future Fund CIO eyes shifting dynamics in emerging markets
The Future Fund delivered a 14.8 per cent one-year return to June 30, 2026, attributing the return to a combination of exposure to commodities, geographic diversification, an increased focus on active management and low exposure to bonds. Newly minted chief investment officer Richard Brandweiner also highlighted strong performance in emerging markets.
CIO Series
How Jonathan Armitage is building portfolios for more ‘violent’ markets
Colonial First State chief investment officer Jonathan Armitage believes the defining change of his 34-year career is speed – and that portfolios now have to be built for markets that can fall as far in days as they once did in months.
