The ASIC report into death benefit claims revealing the devastating impact of poor industry practices on grieving Australians has again highlighted the pressing need for change. While some funds have taken up the cudgels, others are still playing hardball on improving their service offering.
A Retirement Income Covenant obligation notwithstanding, there is still a paucity of these complex products on offer. The Advice Through Superannuation draft legislation might offer a way forward.
Big managers dumped in KiwiSaver shake-up
ANZ, ASB, AMP, Fisher and Mercer have all been dumped as the KiwiSaver default schemes following the latest government review.
In a release last Friday (May 14), NZ Finance Minister, Grant Robertson, confirmed the default provider numbers would shrink to six with two new players – Smartshares and Simplicity – joining incumbents Westpac, BNZ, Booster and Kiwi Wealth – in the new regime.
The statement says: “On the advice of an independent panel, the number of default providers reduces from nine to six: Bank of New Zealand, Booster, BT Funds Management (Westpac), Kiwi Wealth, Simplicity and Smartshares (NZX).”
NZ’s Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister, David Clark, said the Government went to tender last October signalling the need for providers to demonstrate they would go further to deliver more for default members.
“The six default providers were selected because they offer the best value for money for their members in terms of lower fees and higher levels of service,” Clark said.
“We’ve also changed the default provider settings to enhance Kiwis’ financial wellbeing in retirement. This includes moving the default investment fund type from a conservative to a balanced setting to increase the likelihood of higher returns over the long-term.”
