The superannuation industry is experiencing increasing structural change warranting closer attention on the part of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA).
APRA has used its annual report tabled in Parliament to point to the gradual decline in net contributions reflecting Australia’s ageing population.
“This reflects Australia’s ageing population and the maturing of the superannuation system, as a growing number of members reach retirement age and begin to draw down on superannuation assets,” the regulator’s annual report said.
“This is slowly removing one of the superannuation industry’s two primary sources of growth [positive net contributions] and poses a structural challenge to funds’ ability to maintain and gain scale,” it said.
The lower outlook for inflation has set the stage for another two rate cuts over the first half of 2026, according to Westpac.
With private asset valuations emerging as a key concern for both regulators and the broader market, Apollo Global Management has called on the corporate regulator to issue clear principles on valuation practices, including guidance on the disclosures it expects from market participants.
Institutional asset owners are largely rethinking their exposure to the US, with private markets increasingly being viewed as a strategic investment allocation, new research has shown.
Australia’s corporate regulator has been told it must quickly modernise its oversight of private markets, after being caught off guard by the complexity, size, and opacity of the asset class now dominating institutional portfolios.