Platform superannuation trustees have been urged to strengthen oversight of advisers, fee deductions and investment activity after ASIC uncovered persistent governance failures that it says are putting Australians’ retirement savings at unnecessary risk.
The corporate regulator’s review of six platform trustees overseeing more than $300 billion in retirement savings found widespread shortcomings in monitoring harmful advice fee deductions, unusual investment patterns, high-risk superannuation switching and adviser conduct, despite repeated regulatory warnings and lessons from the collapses of the Shield Master Fund and First Guardian Master Fund.
ASIC commissioner, Simone Constant, said some trustees had failed to implement even the most basic safeguards.
“It’s clear some trustees are not doing enough to protect their members, despite repeated warnings from ASIC and APRA about the dangers of poor oversight. Nor have they learned lessons from the collapses of the Shield Master Fund and First Guardian Master Fund, which cost more than 11,000 Australians around $1 billion in retirement savings.”
The review examined platform trustees responsible for approximately $305 billion in member benefits and 977,000 member accounts, representing around three quarters of assets managed by platform trustees.
Among the regulator’s concerns were persistent weaknesses in advice fee controls, limited checks of advice documentation, inadequate monitoring of unusual member activity and insufficient due diligence of advice licensees before they were permitted onto platforms.
“In one disturbing case, a trustee failed to take further action for 13 months after becoming aware of suspicious activity from a representative of an advice licensee. During that time, another representative of that licensee submitted applications to rollover superannuation balances containing the falsified signatures of a deceased adviser.”
ASIC also criticised the sector’s reliance on manual monitoring processes despite growing technology and data capabilities.
“Many of the clear gaps in oversight are deeply concerning and difficult to justify. Trustees should not expose their members’ retirement savings to unacceptable risks in the pursuit of volume growth.
“In this age of rapidly evolving technology and data-driven intelligence, it is extraordinary to see some trustees not carrying out any checks in a month despite a 75 per cent adverse finding rate, and others being comfortable with limited, almost entirely manual indicators to monitor potential harm.”
The findings come as platform super continues to expand rapidly. ASIC said member benefits held on platforms more than tripled over the decade to June 2025, increasing from $123 billion to $396 billion, while advice fees deducted from platform super accounts quadrupled to $2.3 billion over the same period.
Responding to the report, the Financial Services Council (FSC) said it shared ASIC’s objective of strengthening governance across the platform sector and argued many of the regulator’s recommendations have already been incorporated into a new industry standard.
The FSC noted its Standard 31: Wrap Superannuation Platform Trustee Investment and Adviser Governance Principles was finalised in April and will take effect from 1 July, with full compliance required by 1 January 2027.
The standard requires platform trustees to implement controls such as advice fee caps, risk-based reviews of advice documents, monitoring of unusual fee and switching patterns, due diligence of advice licensees and documented escalation frameworks. It said members adopting the standard represent around 89 per cent of platform funds under management.
FSC chief executive, Blake Briggs, said the report aligned with reforms already underway.
“ASIC’s report reinforces the importance of strong governance and aligns with the direction the platform sector is taking through the FSC’s Standard and Better Practice Guidance. The FSC Standard will continue to be reviewed and updated as risks and regulatory expectations evolve.”
Briggs also said protecting consumers required action across the financial advice ecosystem.
“Australians should be protected from misconduct. Trustees as part of the value chain have a key role to play. Other parts of the value chain also play important roles, including advice licensees, responsible entities of managed investment schemes, research houses, and the regulators who monitor the sector and approve financial services licenses and approve the registration of managed investment schemes.
“Consumer protection should go hand in hand with protecting Australians’ freedom to choose and engage with their superannuation. Strong consumer protections and informed consumer choice go hand in hand in delivering better retirement outcomes.”
ASIC has called on all superannuation trustees to review their governance arrangements before poor oversight results in further member losses.
“All superannuation trustees should immediately review and consider areas for improvement before risks translate to serious harms for Australians and their hard-earned retirement savings,” Constant said.
“Where we identify significant non-compliance, we will not hesitate to exercise our regulatory powers, including enforcement action.”
