CMSF

As the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees disappears, a piece of super history – one that led to the creation of many of the institutions the industry relies on today – is likely going along with it.

Garry Weaven’s collected writings offer a fascinating history of both the industry fund movement and one of its key architects – and a warning not to stick with the pack.

There’s “nothing sinister” about funds taking advantage of government incentives to enhance returns for members, according to IFM. And when it comes to those funds heading offshore, “culture eats strategy”.

There’s too many associations around, and the proposed tie-up between the AIST and ISA could bring super closer to a single voice at a time when it needs it more than ever. The problem is what that voice might say.

The prudential regulator’s superannuation czar says it has no view on whether smaller funds can survive – but that funds must continue to innovate to avoid becoming “footnotes in financial history”.

Industry superannuation has, for the most part, been a roaring success. But it needs to retain its “missionary zeal” if it’s to avoid the same fate that befell the other giants that once dominated the landscape.

APRA’s orthodoxy on scale and its importance to funds has been disputed by all comers, with “massive and passive” a common refrain. But the regulator is hoping to prove that bigger really is better. One of the more controversial moments of Helen Rowell’s career as APRA’s superannuation executive was the claim that any fund below…

Ian Silk, soon to retire from AustralianSuper, was an infrequent speaker on the conference circuit, but his speeches were memorable. Two were very memorable and, as you might expect, prescient. AustralianSuper announced last week (July 13) that Silk, the first chief executive of AustralianSuper, would retire later this year. He is being replaced by Paul…

It’s approaching orthodoxy that a merger is always in the best interests of members. But is bigger always better? What is the true price of scale? Leeanne Turner, Spirit Super’s inaugural chief executive, told a CMSF audience in May: “If you’re not considering a merger then you either have your head in the sand or…