The $3 billion, Melbourne-based Catholic Super Fund (CSF) will have a new asset consultant from November, only the second in its long history, and has also switched group insurer.
Mercer Investment Consulting, which according to CSF chief executive Frank Pegan became the fund’s first ever asset consultant in the mid-1990s, will be replaced by JANA Investment Advisers from November. Pegan said an internal review had not recommended the switch to JANA because of any poor performance from Mercer. Indeed, CSF’s balanced fund averaged a net 10.2 per cent for the five years to July 31, placing it eighth on the SuperRatings league tables. Rather, Pegan said that after a long relationship with Mercer, it was simply “;time for a change”; and a “;fresh set of views”;. Mercer’s representative on CSF’s investment committee, and head of the consultant’s Melbourne practice, Tony Arnold, defected to Watson Wyatt in February. This event prompted fellow Mercer client, TWU Super, to go to tender immediately and eventually also switch to JANA, as it announced last week. CSF’s principal consultant at JANA will be former CEO turned head of investment outcomes, Ken Marshman. Meanwhile, CSF has also replaced its insurer of seven years, AMP Life, with Tower Australia. Pegan said that the move to Tower was basically about offering better services to members. He said some of the advantages of Tower included its case management (the insurer nominates an individual to work on each case), and its technology, which would enable members to underwrite claims online.
Australian super funds’ collaboration with their British counterparts to change the UK policy setting is an engagement effort the first of its kind. However, as the global pension industry and financial markets become increasingly entwined, it certainly won’t be the last. IFM Investors’ David Whiteley outlines its global engagement ambitions on behalf of super funds.
Darcy SongOctober 14, 2024
