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(December-2002) IFS in the mood for empire building
The possibility of creating a substantial and diversified financial services organisation out of the businesses associated with industry funds is under consideration, says Industry Fund Services (IFS) executive chair Garry Weaven.
In addition to IFS, which manages funds and provides support to industry funds, these business interests include administration company Superpartners, budding bank Members Equity, two wholesale property trusts, alternative investment vehicle Development Australia Fund and eligible rollover fund, the Australian Preservation Fund.
“A number of people are thinking about this now,” says Weaven, adding that the major industry fund shareholders of IFS are also major shareholders of the other entities.
“If you think of these organisations collectively, you have a diversified financial institution of some substance. There are lots of interrelationships between them. The main benefit will be the synergies that will emerge, but the move will also concentrate management ability and technical skills,” he says.
Weaven adds that if a deal is approved, Members Equity is likely to be the vehicle that owns and centrally governs the rest. “It’s the most logical and the vehicle that will grow the most.”
The move would create what Weaven describes as “a real new mutual to be owned by super funds and their members”.
The new group will give super funds access to a wide range of services. “It would be simply branded in the same way that super funds brand themselves and would use the workplace as a distribution channel,” says Weaven.
However, Weaven says not everyone will support the plans as many interests are involved in the different businesses. “It’s not certain to occur but there is a real interest to have discussion.”
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