ESSSuper’s recently released member app, developed in association with CapitalRoad Financial, has delivered 3,000 downloads and “received very positive feedback”, according to James Holmes, the fund’s manager of member engagement. CapitalRoad is a Melbourne-based fintech developer and software-as-a-service provider who built the native iOS and Android application for mobile phone access to specific account information…
by John Kavanagh Australian institutional investors are moving on from addressing gender equality issues in their own organisations to asking the same questions of the investment managers they work with as well as the companies they invest in. The gender issue has been shifted up a notch from companies to fund managers. Heather Ridout, the…
by Greg Bright In what was, possibly, the best publicity stunt the investment industry has ever seen, State Street Global Advisors and its smart New York ad agency, McCann, last week sent a strong message to companies to get their gender balance in order. Wouldn’t you love to hire this brave young girl? OK, she…
by Matthew Lee AXA Investment Managers has launched a global equity strategy capitalising on companies which promote gender diversity along side responsible investing. The move comes as part of the growing global trend towards ESG, of which gender diversity is a key part. The strategy aims to generate long-term capital growth from companies that foster…
The proposed merger of Pengana Holdings and Hunter Hall International is good for Hunter Hall investors according to Geoff Wilson, who has been battling for small shareholders since the bizarre sale of a big part of his stake by founder Peter Hall over Christmas. If it progresses, which is considered likely, the merger should bring…
The finalists for the Chant West 2017 Super Fund Awards are being announced today. The awards – the industry’s most prestigious – span 12 categories, including Super and Pension Funds of the Year. They will be presented at a black-tie dinner at Sydney’s Ivy Ballroom on May 24. The finalists for Super Fund of the…
One of Australia’s oldest and largest surviving corporate super funds, the Reserve Bank of Australia Officers’ Superannuation Fund, is to be folded next week into Sunsuper. The $1.3 billion fund, advised by Willis Towers Watson, will have its own sub-plan but will take on all the Sunsuper managers and other service providers. The fund is…
Frontier Advisors has expanded its quantitative investment team to eight people with the recruitment of Marcus Nelson, who starts tomorrow (it’s a public holiday in Victoria today). Nelson was previously with the Melbourne hedge fund manager Kaiser Trading Group. Kaiser was formed by former NAB trader Anthony Kaiser and NAB currency manager Karl O’Shaughnessy in…
A strong focus on governance standards is the key to successful investing in emerging markets (EM), according to the principals of a new specialist EM investment manager, Remerga. Remerga’s first fund, the ‘Emerging Markets Sustainable Leaders Fund’, offers access to a concentrated portfolio of stocks in across the emerging markets. Remerga makes its stock selection…
The insurance industry has responded to criticism of the Life Insurance Code of Practice, with an industry group getting to work to address one of its biggest shortcomings – the lack of coverage of super fund trustees. The Insurance in Superannuation Working Group released a discussion paper last week as a first step towards extending…
