Some superannuation funds seem eager to hold back their delivery of better retirement outcomes to members until the financial advice reforms are bedded down, or members have more money, or the SG rate increases. But the tools are available now to provide a better solution to members. The key ingredient is keeping it simple.
In order for a superannuation fund to deliver what would be considered a leading retirement offering, they must ensure sufficient attention to the three prongs of investments, product and guidance/advice. The different objectives between retirement and accumulation suggest different strategies may be required – not just a rehash of accumulation.
Vanguard Super has appointed Jan Swinhoe and Teifi Whatley as independent directors on its trustee board, effective from 1 January 2025.
Insignia Financial boss Scott Hartley has got what every chief executive of a flagging business dreams of: a bidding war between two – and possibly more – private equity suitors for the business he’s in the process of reinvigorating. And, if a deal was to be done, how Insignia’s potential PE owner generates juicy profits out of its trustee arm will be a fascinating and instructive exercise to watch.
The $355 billion AustralianSuper has acquired a $1.4 billion European industrial and logistics portfolio, owned by OMERS real estate subsidiary Oxford Properties. The nation’s biggest fund is targeting a $7.5 billion valuation for the venture and $35 billion allocation in European and UK region before 2030, supported by its biggest international office in London with 121 employees.
Bain Capital has made a revised offer to take over ASX-listed wealth giant, Insignia Financial, matching the offer from CC Capital last week.
Since taking over the top job at the $44 billion Funds SA more than a year ago, chief executive John Piteo has ushered in an investment function overhaul and wrapped up an important stage of the fund’s five-year data transformation program. It pledges to recentre around investment performance and more efficient processes, as the “missing piece” has been found in incoming CIO Con Michalakis.
Almost every discussion about superannuation has become politically charged, even on esoteric issues such as historical trust deed amendments, over which Coalition Senator Andrew Bragg is accusing Cbus chair Wayne Swan of misleading the Senate.
The job of the chief investment officer has changed as super funds themselves have evolved in scope and scale. Today, the job is as much about managing a – sometimes global – asset management business as it is about managing investments. Staying focused on meeting the long-term objectives of fund members is an increasingly taxing task and, inevitably, all CIOs have a “use-by” date. For some, that day is closer than for others.
AI can add value in almost every part of the investment process, providing support in information gathering and analysis, sometimes from non-traditional and hard-to-access data sources, for portfolio management purposes. A recent CFA Institute Research and Policy Center featured case studies from NSW government pension fund State Super and other global asset owners.
Super funds REST and AMP Super have posted double-digit returns for their MySuper products, thanks to strong international equities performance.
ASX-listed wealth giant Insignia Financial has received a non-binding, indicative proposal from private equity firm CC Capital Partners.
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Investment Magazine provides in-depth, monthly analysis of trends and developments for all the businesses in which superannuation funds engage‚ including asset allocation, investment manager selection, custody and fund accounting, member administration, group insurance and compliance.
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