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Super wars

August

Retirees and savers just starting should be at the forefront of super fund thinking.

Shouldn’t retirees be on super boards too?

Super funds have changed since the Cooper inquiry recommended more independent directors. Now, it might be a case of why stop there?

  • Jeremy Cooper and Ruth Stringer
IFM Investors CEO David Neal previously led Future Fund.

IFM Investors, ISPT shareholders agree terms for $240b merger

Property investor ISPT is ready to sign on the dotted line with IFM Investors after more than a year of negotiations.

  • Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport

June

Superannuation investors are tinkering their income levels to avoid the ‘Division 293 tax’ where they can, a new study shows.

The super funds with the most million-dollar members

After losing ground to industry super funds since the Hayne royal commission, data shows retail funds are fighting back when it comes to attracting and retaining high-net-worth members.

  • Joanna Mather and Michelle Bowes

Eight ways to squeeze more into super – which ones are you using?

A couple employing just four of these methods could boost their retirement savings by almost $5 million.

  • Duncan Hughes
The debate over default pensions will be an important one in the next 12 months.

Why KKR’s Colonial First State calls default pension plan ‘dangerous’

Colonial First State chief executive Clive van Horen says the wealth and super giant is back in growth mode. But he’s not shying away from a big super debate. 

  • Updated
  • James Thomson
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May

David Atkin is chief executive of the Principles for Responsible Investment, a UN-backed lobby for socially responsible investing.

‘Every country is worried about what’s happening in the US’

ESG champion David Atkin runs a global organisation with 5300 signatories that manage a total of $US121 trillion – about half of global funds under management.

  • Ben Potter

Boomer ‘wave’ of outflows starts to hit super

Australia’s biggest retail superannuation funds are paying out billions more dollars in cash than they are bringing in as baby boomers reach retirement age.

  • Updated
  • Hannah Wootton
Peter Costello says people should be entitled to tap their super to buy a home.

Costello backs Dutton on super for housing

Former treasurer Peter Costello has backed Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s super for housing policy, saying members should be able to choose what happens to their money.

  • Updated
  • Gus McCubbing

March

Zali Steggall, Zoe Daniel, Allegra Spender and Kylea Tink have warned against Labor’s super reforms.

Teals brand Labor’s $3m policy a ‘cash grab’

Teal MPs say changes to taxation of super funds with balances larger than $3 million could drive investment away from start-ups and leave retirees worse off.

  • Hannah Wootton
Treasurer Jim Chalmers is consulting on the superannuation performance test.

Time for super performance test facts and myth busting

The latest Treasury review should find what we already know: that the current test has delivered for members.

  • Karen Chester and Brad Ruting
Australians have focused on the accumulation phase of supperannuation.

Superannuation funds have quietly started paying retirement ‘bonuses’

Super funds are paying out millions of dollars in retirement “bonuses”. But what are they, and does your fund offer one?

  • Updated
  • Lucy Dean
Employment Hero CEO Ben Thompson is waging war against Hostplus.

Hostplus wants $2b start-up founder sacked, Airtree in the crossfire

Employment Hero founder Ben Thompson has published a letter sent by Hostplus concerning the start-up’s ongoing social media campaign against the super fund.

  • Tess Bennett, Lucy Dean and Nick Bonyhady
Experts have warned that any proposal to let first home buyers access their super needs to be coupled with significant efforts to boost housing supply.

First home buyers tapping super could drive up house prices

Experts have warned that any proposal to give first home buyers access to their superannuation needs to be coupled with significant efforts to boost housing.

  • Updated
  • Michael Read and Hannah Wootton

February

Misha Schubert will work with both sides of government to push for better support for workers approaching retirement.

Most Australians run out of super by the end of their lives: study

The research from a new industry super mega lobby group comes as the government considers how to make super funds better assist their customers in retirement.

  • Hannah Wootton
Have your cake and eat it by focusing early on returns and low costs.

What age you need to take super saving seriously – or suffer

Choosing a top-performing fund could boost your retirement savings by more than 50 per cent.

  • Duncan Hughes
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December 2023

Some retail offerings are achieving better investment results for lower fees than industry funds in the no-frills MySuper segment.

Compare the pair: Retail super closes the fee gap

The performance gap between industry and retail superannuation funds is narrowing, raising the prospect of a fightback by for-profit super funds after the savaging wrought by the banking royal commission.

  • Joanna Mather and Hannah Wootton

Big capital comes to Canberra. See the full list here

Big bank CEOs, super fund bosses and venture capital executives are at Parliament House to hear Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ push for them to invest in national priorities.

  • Ronald Mizen
Treasurer Jim Chalmers. The government is considering reviewing the Your Super, Your Future rules.

Labor signals review of superannuation fund performance tests

Possible changes canvassed by the government will include a shift from a strict benchmark introduced by the Coalition, two industry sources say.

  • Ronald Mizen and Kylar Loussikian

November 2023

The OECD calls for higher taxes on superannuation.

A strong and strategic voice on superannuation for 10 million Australians

The new Super Members Council will advocate for high standards of performance, clear and meaningful transparency and the ability to access the right information about retirement.

  • Nicola Roxon

October 2023

Super chiefs speak at the AFR’s Super & Wealth Summit.

$3m super threshold must be indexed to stop ‘bracket creep by stealth’

The proposal to double tax on balances above $3 million to 30 per cent is reasonable, but the limit should increase over time, says ART chief.

  • Hannah Wootton and Jonathan Shapiro

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/topic/superannuation-wars-1mr4